title: Godavari River

text: The Gautami which is the largest branch of the whole passes along Yanam of Union territory of Puducherry and empties itself into sea at "Point Godavery". Infact, Yanam is bounded on south by Gautami branch and the Coringa River originates at Yanam which merges into the sea near Coringa village in Andhra Pradesh.


title: Godavari River

text: The major tributaries of the river can be classified as the left bank tributaries which include the Purna, Pranhita, Indravati, and Sabari River covering nearly 59.7% of the total catchment area of the basin and the right bank tributaries Pravara, Manjira, and Manair together contributing 16.1% of the basin.


title: Godavari River

text: The Pranhita River is the largest tributary of the Godavari River, covering about 34% of its drainage basin. Though the river proper flows only for , by virtue of its extensive tributaries Wardha, Wainganga, Penganga, the sub-basin drains all of Vidharba region as well as the southern slopes of the Satpura Ranges. Indravati is the 2nd largest tributary, known as the "lifeline" of the Kalahandi, Nabarangapur of Odisha and Bastar district of Chhattisgarh. Due to their enormous sub-basins both Indravati and Pranhita are considered rivers in their own right. Manjira is the longest tributary and holds the Nizam Sagar reservoir. Purna is a prime river in the water scarce Marathwada region of Maharashtra.


title: Godavari River

text: Other than these seven principal tributaries, it has many smaller but significant ones draining into it. Indravati river floodwaters overflow into the Jouranala which is part of Sabari basin. A barrage at is constructed across the Indravati river to divert Indravati water in to Sabari river for enhanced hydropower generation.


title: Godavari River

text: Before merging into the Bay of Bengal, the Godavari has seven mouths in total and is considered sacred by local Hindus. As per their traditional belief, the holy waters of the Godavari are said to have been brought from the head of Lord Shiva by the "Rishi Gautama", and the seven branches by which it is traditionally supposed to have reached the sea are said have been made by seven great rishis known as Sapta Rishis. Thus, they are named after these seven great rishis and are named as Tulyabhāga (Tulya or Kaśyapa), Ātreya (Atri), Gautamī (Gautama), Jamadagni (now replaced by Vṛddhagautamī i.e. Old Gautami), Bhardwāja (Bharadwaja), Kauśika (Viswamitra) and Vaśișțha (Vasishtha). So bathing in these mouths are considered an act of great religious efficacy by native Hindus. These mouths are remembered by a Sanskrit sloka as follow:


title: Godavari River

text: Together they are referred as "Sapta Godavari" and the Godavari river before splitting is referred as "Akhanda Godavari". However, there exists another eight mouth named as Vainateyam, which is not one of these traditional seven mouths and is supposed to have been created by a rishi of that name who stole a part of Vasisththa branch. Godavari was frequently referred as Ganga or Ganges by ancient Indian writings. However, the original branches of "Kauśika", "Bhardwaja" and "Jamadagni" does not exist any longer and the pilgrims bathe in the sea at the spots where they are supposed to have been. The traditional Bharadwāja mouth is in "Tirthālamondi" (now bordering Savithri Nagar of Yanam and before a Hamlet of Guttenadivi) and the traditional Kauśika mouth is located at Rameswaram, a hamlet of Samathakurru village in Allavaram Mandal of Konaseema district. Traditional mouth of Jamadagni is not known and people instead take bath in the Vriddha Gautami branch at Kundaleswaram village in Katrenikona Mandal of Konaseema district. There is a local legend saying the "Injaram" and "Patha (Old) Injaram" (now on the other bank of Gautami river within Island Polavalam mandal of Konaseema district) were split by Godavari river. Thus the Godavari passing between these two now referred as Gautami and the old passage being referred as Vriddha Gautami. In early British records, the Injaram "Paragana" (district) was counted along with Muramalla village (now located on the other side of Gautami within Island Polavalam mandal) and said to have comprised 22 villages.


title: Godavari River

text: The river is sacred to Hindus and has several places on its banks that have been places of pilgrimage for thousands of years. Amongst the huge numbers of people who have bathed in her waters as a rite of cleansing are said to have been the deity Baladeva 5000 years ago and the saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu 500 years ago. Every twelve years, Pushkaram fair is held on the banks of the river.


title: Godavari River

text: A legend has it that the sage Gautama lived in the Brahmagiri Hills at Tryambakeshwar with his wife Ahalya. The couple lived the rest of their lives in the then village called "Govuru", now known as Kovvur ("cow") since the British rule. Ahalya lived in a nearby place called "Thagami" (now Thogummi). The sage, as a reason for the practice of "annadanam" ("giving away food" to the needy), started cultivating rice crops and other crops. Once, the god Ganesha, on the wish of the munis, sent a miraculous cow "maaya-dhenu", which resembled a normal cow. It entered the sage's abode and started spoiling the rice while he was meditating. Since cattle is sacred to Hindus and shall always be treated with respect, he put the "dharbha" grass on the cow. But, to his surprise, it fell dead. Seeing what happened before their eyes, the munis and their wives cried out, "We thought that Gautama-maharishi is a righteous man, but he committed bovicide (killing of a cow or cattle)!". The sage wished to atone for this grievous sin. Therefore, he went to Nashik and observed tapas to Lord Tryambakeshwara (a manifestation of the god Shiva), on the advice of the munis, praying for atonement and asking Him to make the Ganges flow over the cow. Shiva was pleased with the sage and diverted the Ganges which washed away the cow and gave rise to the Godavari river in Nashik. The water stream flowed past Kovvur and ultimately merged with the Bay of Bengal.


title: Godavari River

text: In olden days a pilgrimage named as "sapta sāgara yātra" was made by those desirous of offspring along the banks of the holy waters from the seven mouths. It starts with holy bathing at Tulyabhaga river at Chollangi village during On Amavasya day during Krishna Paksha of Pushya month as per Hindu calendar. That day is locally referred as "Chollangi Amavasya". That place where the river branch merges with sea is referred as "Tulya Sāgara Sangamam". Secondly, they take bath in Coringa village in the Coringa river which is considered as Atreya branch of Godavari and the holy bathing place is called as "Atreya Sāgara Sangamam". After bathing at different banks of the other branches the pilgrimage ends by bathing near Narsapuram or Antarvedi.


title: Godavari River

text: Duduma Waterfalls is high and one of the highest waterfalls in southern India. It is located on the Sileru River which forms boundary between Andhra Pradesh and Odisha states. The following are a few other waterfalls located in the river basin:


title: Godavari River

text: The main Godavari River up to the confluence with Pranhita tributary is dammed fully to utilize the available water for irrigation. However, its main tributaries Pranhita, Indravati and Sabari which join in the lower reaches of the basin, carry three times more water compared to main Godavari. In 2015, the water surplus Godavari River is linked to the water deficit Krishna River by commissioning the Polavaram right bank canal with the help of Pattiseema lift scheme to augment water availability to the Prakasam Barrage located in Andhra Pradesh. More dams are constructed in the Godavari River basin than in any other river basin of India. The following are the few dams located in the river basin:


title: Godavari River

text: The Godavari river in Maharashtra is one of the rivers whose water energy is least harnessed for generating hydro electricity. The 600 MW capacity Upper Indravati hydro power station is the biggest hydro power station which diverts Godavari River water to the Mahanadi River basin. The following is the list of hydro electric power stations excluding small and medium installations.


title: Godavari River

text: Nearly 2490 tmcft of water has gone waste to the sea on average in a water year from 1 June 2003 to 31 May 2022 (19 years). The yearly water unutilized is given below


title: Godavari River

text: The primary and initial catchment of the Godavari drainage basin is largely represented by the basalt of the Deccan Volcanic Province (~50% of the total basin area). This is followed by the Precambrian granites and gneisses of the eastern Dharwar Craton, sandstones, shales and limestones of the Gondwana Supergroup, various sedimentary units of Cuddapah and Vindhyan basins, charnockites and khondalites of the Proterozoic Eastern Ghats Mobile Belt and the sandstones of the Rajahmundry Formation. The Godavari River carries the largest sediment load among the peninsular rivers and the majority of the mass transfer in Godavari occurs during the monsoon. Mineral magnetic studies of the Godavari River sediments suggest that the floodplains in the entire stretch of the river are characterized by a Deccan basalt source. The bed loads on the other hand are of sourced from local bedrock. Influx of Deccan source in the Godavari River up to the delta regions and possibly in the Bay of Bengal off the Godavari, therefore, can be related to the intensive chemical weathering in the Deccan basalts. Abrupt increase in δC values and decrease in TOC content accompanied with a significant increase in ferrimagnetic mineral concentration in Bay of Bengal sediments from ~3.2 to 3.1 cal. ka BP reflected a shift of organic carbon and sediment source and a severe decline in vegetation coverage. Such phenomena indicate intensified deforestation and soil/rock erosion in the Deccan Plateau producing higher ferrimagnetic mineral inputs, which is in agreement with significant expansion of agricultural activities in the Deccan Chalcolithic cultural period.


title: Godavari River

text: The Godavari River basin is endowed with rich mineral deposits such as oil and gas, coal, iron, limestone, manganese, copper, bauxite, granite, laterite, and others. The following are the few noted deposits:


title: Godavari River

text: The frequent drying up of the Godavari river in the drier months has been a matter of great concern. Indiscriminate damming along the river has been cited as an obvious reason. Within Maharashtra sugarcane irrigation has been blamed as one of the foremost causes.


title: Godavari River

text: In 2013, the river was at its all-time low in the Nizamabad district of Telangana. This had hit the growth of fish, making the life of fishermen miserable. The water-level was so low that people could easily walk into the middle of the river. Shortage in rainfall and closure of the controversial Babli project gates in Maharashtra was thought to have affected the water flow in the river and water availability to the Sriram Sagar Project except during above 20% excess monsoon (i.e. one out of four years) years.


title: Godavari River

text: A study has found that the delta is at a greater risk as the rate of sediment aggradation (raising the level of the delta through sediment deposition) no longer exceeds relative sea level rise. It further states that the suspended sediment load at the delta has reduced from 150·2 million tons during 1970–1979 to 57·2 million tons by 2000–2006, which translates into a three-fold decline in the past 4 decades. Impacts of this can be seen in destroyed villages like Uppada in Godavari delta, destruction of Mangrove forests and fragmentation of shoreline – possibly a fallout of dam construction.


title: Godavari River

text: Said to further epitomise the insensitivity towards Godavari, is the Polavaram Project which is touted to be gigantic – both in terms of size and violations. Deemed as being pointless and politically driven, the project raises questions about environmental clearance, displacement of upstream human habitations, loss of forest cover, technicalities in the dam design which are said to play down flood threats and unsafe embankments.


title: Godavari River

text: High alkalinity water is discharged from the ash dump areas of many coal fired power stations into the river which further increases the alkalinity of the river water whose water is naturally of high alkalinity since the river basin is draining vast area of basalt formations. This problem aggravates during the lean flow months in entire river basin. Already the Godavari basin area in Telangana is suffering from high alkalinity and salinity water problem which is converting soils in to unproductive sodic alkali soils. The following are the few coal fired power stations located in the river basin:


title: Godavari River

text: One of the ships of the Indian Navy has been named INS "Godavari" after the river. "Godavari" is also the codename of some variants of AMD APU chips.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun (pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actually discharge the following shot. As a result, only one round of ammunition is fired each time the trigger is pulled, as the pistol's fire control group disconnects the trigger mechanism from the firing pin/striker until the trigger has been released and reset.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Additional terms sometimes used as synonyms for a semi-automatic pistol are self-loading pistol, autopistol, autoloading pistol, and automatic pistol (E.G.: Automatic Colt Pistol).


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: A semi-automatic pistol recycles part of the energy released by the propellant combustion to move its bolt, which is usually housed inside the slide. After a round of ammunition is fired, the spent cartridge casing is extracted and ejected as the slide/bolt moves rearwards under recoil, the hammer/striker is cocked by the slide/bolt movement, and a new round from the magazine is pushed into the chamber when the slide/bolt returns forward under spring tension. This sets up the following shot, which is fired as soon as the trigger is pulled again. Most pistols use a short recoil operation to perform this, but some pistols use simple blowback or gas operation mechanisms.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Most types of semi-automatic pistols rely on a removable box magazine to provide ammunition, which is usually inserted into the grip. However, some pistols are based on receiver-style designs similar to existing semi-automatic rifles, and thus have the magazine inserted separately from the grip.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The language surrounding "automatic", "semi-automatic", "self-loading", etc., often causes confusion due to differences in technical usage between different countries and differences in popular usage. For example, the term "automatic pistol" technically refers to a fully automatic machine pistol, which is capable of continuously firing multiple rounds with a single pull of the trigger, although in popular American usage it is also used as a synonym for any self-loading pistol, the vast majority of which are semi-automatic. In colloquial usage, because machine pistols are very rare on the market, an "automatic pistol", a "semi-automatic pistol" or a "self-loading pistol" usually all imply a semi-automatic handgun that is fed by a removable magazine, which discharges one round for each trigger pull.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Semi-automatic pistols use one firing chamber that remains fixed in a constant linear position relative to the gun barrel. In contrast, although double-action revolvers can also be fired semiautomatically, their rounds are not fired from a single chamber, but rather are fired from each of the chambers that are rotated into linear alignment with the barrel's position in turn just prior for each shot fired.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Typically, the first round is manually loaded into the chamber by pulling back and releasing the slide mechanism. After the trigger is pulled and the round is fired, the recoil operation of the handgun automatically extracts and ejects the shell casing and reloads the chamber. This mode of operation generally allows for faster reloading and storing a larger number of cartridges than a revolver.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Some modern semi-automatic pistols are double-action only (DA or DAO); that is, once a round is chambered, each trigger pull cocks the hammer, striker, or firing pin, and additionally releases the same to fire a cartridge in one continuous motion. Each pull of the trigger on a DAO semi-automatic pistol requires the same amount of pressure. The Kel-Tec P-32 is an example of a DAO action. DAO semi-automatic pistols are most generally recommended only in the smaller, self-defense, concealable pistols, rather than in target or hunting pistols. A notable exception is Glock-brand pistols which optimize preset triggers (similar to DAO), but the striker is partially cocked back as the slide closes. This allows for significantly shorter trigger pulls than DAO. The trigger spring can be replaced with a lighter one and paired with a low-strength sear connector resulting in lightened trigger pulls to improve a shooter's accuracy (like models G34 and G35).


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Standard modern semi-automatic pistols are usually double-action (DA), also sometimes known as double-action/single-action (DA/SA). In this design, the hammer or striker may be either thumb-cocked or activated by pulling the trigger when firing the first shot. The hammer or striker is recocked automatically during each firing cycle. In double-action pistols, the first pull of the trigger requires roughly twice as much pressure as subsequent firings, since the first pull of the trigger also cocks the hammer (if not already cocked by hand). The Beretta 92F/FS, a full-sized, service, semi-automatic pistol is an example of this style of action. A common mode of carry for DA semi-automatic pistols is with the magazine full, a round chambered, and the gun holstered and uncocked with the external safety unengaged or off. The Taurus PT145 is an example of a DA/SA weapon, as it has no decocker and thus has its striker primed from the moment of chambering and only enters double-action mode if a round fails to fire upon the pin's impact; at other times, it operates as a single-action striker-fired firearm.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: In contrast, a single-action (SA) semi-automatic pistol must be cocked by first operating the slide or bolt, or, if a round is already chambered, by cocking the hammer manually. The famed Colt M1911 is an example of this style of action. All SA semi-automatic pistols exhibit this feature and automatically cock the hammer when the slide is first "racked" to chamber a round. A round can also be manually inserted in the chamber with the slide locked back. Then the safety can be applied. It is generally not a good idea to load a round manually as this can cause excessive wear on the extractor as semi-automatic firearms were designed to have cartridges loaded from the bottom via the magazine.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The normal mode of carrying an SA semi-automatic pistol is condition 1, popularly known as cocked and locked. Condition 1 (a term popularized by Jeff Cooper) refers to having the magazine full, a round chambered, the hammer fully cocked, and the thumb safety engaged or on, at least for right-handed users. For many single-action, semi-automatic pistols, this procedure works well only for right-handed users, as the thumb safety is located on the left side of the pistol and is easily accessible only for those who are holding the pistol in the right hand. Many modern SA semi-automatic pistols have had their safety mechanisms redesigned to provide a thumb safety on both sides of the pistol (ambidextrous), thereby better meeting the needs of left-handed, as well as right-handed users.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Many SA semi-automatic pistols have a hammer position known as "half-cocked". Squeezing the trigger will not fire the gun when it is in the half-cocked position, and neither will dropping the gun in this state cause an accidental discharge. During World War II in the Pacific Theater, an unofficial and unapproved carry mode for the SA M1911 by left-handed US soldiers in combat was carrying the gun with the magazine full, a round chambered, the action in half-cocked position, and the thumb safety (accessible only to right-handed users) positioned in the off (or ready-to-fire) mode.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The primary advantage of the half-cocked position versus the uncocked position in that particular scenario was added sound suppression (of the click of the weapon being cocked). A secondary advantage was the avoidance of accidental discharges if the gun was accidentally dropped. The half-cock was revised by Colt in the 1970s and subsequently other manufacturers – the hammer will fall from half-cock if the trigger is pulled on most newer 1911 type guns.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: A self-loading pistol reloads the chamber with a new round automatically each time the weapon is fired, without additional action being required by the user. For a semi-automatic pistol, this is typically accomplished by recoil operation. In a machine pistol, in contrast, this can be accomplished by blowback, or, less commonly, by gas operation, harnessing gases produced when the gun is fired. The Desert Eagle is a rare example of a semi-automatic pistol that siphons off some of the gases instead of relying on short recoil operation.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: A revolver, which uses multiple chambers and a single barrel, and a derringer, which uses multiple chambers and multiple barrels, also fire one round per trigger pull, but achieve this in different ways and as such are not classified as being semi-automatic.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: A semi-automatic pistol will fire only one shot per trigger pull, in contrast to a "fully automatic" or machine pistol, which continues to fire as long as the trigger is held or until all rounds have been fired. The Mauser M712 Schnellfeuer (German for "rapid fire"), a modified Mauser C96 pistol, is a notable example of a true machine pistol.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: While both types of weapons operate on the same principles, fully automatic weapons must be built more ruggedly to accommodate the heat and stress caused by rapid firing, and it can be difficult (and illegal in most countries) to convert a semi-automatic pistol into a fully automatic mode of fire. A selective-fire action pistol, though, can be converted back and forth by means of a switch, and often includes a burst mode, typically for a three-round burst with each trigger pull. Selective-fire weapons are generally used by specialized law enforcement and security personnel such as SWAT teams, hostage rescue teams, anti-terrorist units, or government bodyguards for heads of state. In the United States, selective-fire weapons are not available to civilians unless they live in a state that allows civilian ownership of National Firearms Act or Title II weapons.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Self-loading automatic pistols can be divided into "blowback" and "locked breech" categories according to their principle of operation. The blowback operating principle is suitable for smaller, lower-powered calibers, such as .32 ACP and .380 ACP, as the resistance of the recoil spring and mass of the slide are sufficient to retard the opening of the breech until the projectile has left the barrel and breech pressure has dropped to a safe level. For more powerful calibers such as the 9 mm Parabellum (9 mm) and .45 ACP, some form of locked-breech is needed to retard breech opening, as an unlocked blowback pistol in these calibers requires a very heavy slide and stiff spring, making them bulky, heavy, and difficult to operate. A somewhat commercially successful blowback pistol design in the more powerful calibers was produced; the Spanish Astra 400 in 9 mm largo and the similar Astra 600 in 9 mm Parabellum. U.S. manufacturer Hi-Point also produces a line of blowback-operated pistols in several calibers, including 9 mm and .45 ACP. Virtually all other service-caliber pistols are locked-breech designs


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: After Hiram Maxim introduced his recoil-powered machine gun in 1883, several gunsmiths set out to apply the same principles to handguns, including Maxim. Maxim's designs for smaller firearms using his recoil-powered ideas never went into production.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: In the 1880s, other designers worked on self-loading designs. The Salvator Dormus was the first semi-automatic pistol followed closely by the Schönberger-Laumann 1892.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The first model to gain any commercial success was Hugo Borchardt's C-93, which, together with the 7.65 mm Borchardt cartridge, had been designed in 1893 and made its public debut in 1894. Borchardt based the principle of the C-93's mechanism in large part upon Maxim's toggle-lock. The C-93 featured a locking mechanism modeled after the human knee, which is called "Kniegelenk" in German (knee joint). The C-93 proved mechanically reliable but was too large and bulky to receive widespread acceptance. Equipped with a screw-on wooden stock, the C-93 served well as a small pistol carbine.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: In 1896, Paul Mauser introduced the first model of his Mauser "Broomhandle" semi-automatic pistol, the C96. This was the first mass-produced and commercially successful pistol to have a large-capacity, staggered-column magazine holding 10 or 20 rounds.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Its original cartridge was called 7.63 mm Mauser, which was more powerful but otherwise identical to the 7.65 mm Borchardt.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The Mauser was one of the first self-loading pistols used extensively in battle, notably the Second Boer War of 1899–1902. These pistols were made in 7.63 mm Mauser, or 9×25 mm Mauser, along with some models eventually being made in 9 mm Parabellum and a small number in .45 ACP for China.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: 1898 saw the Schwarzlose Model 1898, a semi-automatic pistol invented by Prussian firearm designer Andreas Wilhelm Schwarzlose. It was chambered for the 7.65×25mm Mauser,[1] but could also shoot the weaker Borchardt ammunition. The Schwarzlose design was most advanced and far ahead of its time, but not widely adopted with less than 1000 pieces being manufactured. Small lots were sold to members of the Russian Social-Democratic Party who were plotting insurrection but were confiscated at the Russian border and issued to the Imperial Russian Frontier Guards.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: In Belgium in 1896 American gun designer John Browning developed self-loading semi-automatic pistols. His models were first manufactured in Europe by the Belgian firm of Fabrique Nationale (FN) and later by Colt in the U.S.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Like Georg Luger's work conducted around the same time in Germany, it was designed alongside a in 7.65 mm cartridge, but the 7.65 mm Browning (aka .32 Auto) differs substantially from Luger's 7.65 mm Parabellum. Browning went on to design .25, .38, .380, and .45 ACP cartridges for his semi-automatic pistol designs.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Browning must be given credit for developing the type of locked-breech action which is commonly used by the vast majority of modern large caliber semi-automatic pistols.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: One of Browning's most enduring designs was the Colt M1911, which was adopted by the U.S. military as its service pistol and is still in active use with some U.S. Special Forces and Marine Corps units, albeit in modernized forms (the M45A1 Pistol is a prime example).


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: Browning also co-designed the FN Browning Hi-Power, announced in 1922, during the last years of his life, working on this design until his death in 1926. This was a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol capable of holding 13 rounds in the magazine (plus one chambered).


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: The next notable design was the 7.65 mm Luger by Georg Luger, which although successful in its function, nonetheless failed to have adequate stopping power and failed to win widespread acceptance. In 1902, Luger's subsequent and similar P08 in 9 mm Parabellum overcame the problem of inadequate stopping power and featured a greatly improved Borchardt-type "Kniegelenk" ("knee-joint") locking mechanism. Unlike Browning's locked-breech design, the barrel in a "Kniegelenk" design does not tip up and down while the gun is fired, thereby theoretically improving shooting accuracy. Luger's P.08 was adopted by the German military and served as their standard sidearm in World War I.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: During World War II, Germany was the first nation to adopt a double-action pistol, the Walther P38, which could be carried loaded (with a cartridge chambered) and ready to fire without the risk of an accidental discharge if dropped. The P38 also used Luger's 9 mm Parabellum cartridge.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: During World War II, revolvers were still issued by various major powers, but their use was decreasing. Though the British firm Webley & Scott had developed several adequate self-loading pistols, one of which was adopted by the (normally unarmed) British police in 1911 and by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines before the First World War, revolvers were generally preferred by most British military. In the Soviet Union, the TT pistol replaced the Nagant M1895 revolver during the war. In the United States, the M1911A1 was adopted as the standard military sidearm. Both Colt and Smith & Wesson produced revolvers chambered for the same .45 ACP ammunition used in the M1911A1, because of the great demand for handguns and the need to adopt a common cartridge for use in both semi-automatic pistols and revolvers.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: After World War II, most nations eventually adopted 9 mm Parabellum caliber pistols employing some variant of Browning's locked-breech design for their standard-issue military pistols. The most popular early choice was the FN Browning Hi-Power mentioned above; another popular model was the locked-breech Walther P38 because of its many safety features. , the U.S. military sidearm is a variant of the Beretta 92F/FS.


title: Semi-automatic pistol

text: After the Second World War, the almost universal trend has been for semi-automatic pistols to replace revolvers for military use, although the transition has been slower in police and civilian use. , revolvers are mainly used in jurisdictions that permit their use for civilian self-defense, hunting, plinking, and target practice. Semi-automatic pistols are by far the most popular for concealed carry by civilians, primary handguns for police and military use, backup guns for police use, and where the usual five or six shots of a revolver are deemed inadequate.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican cuisine consists of the cooking cuisines and traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican cuisine. Its ingredients and methods begin with the first agricultural communities such as the Olmec and Maya who domesticated maize, created the standard process of maize nixtamalization, and established their foodways. Successive waves of other Mesoamerican groups brought with them their own cooking methods. These included: the Teotihuacanos, Toltec, Huastec, Zapotec, Mixtec, Otomi, Purépecha, Totonac, Mazatec, Mazahua, and Nahua. With the Mexica formation of the multi-ethnic Triple Alliance (Aztec Empire), culinary foodways became infused (Aztec cuisine).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Today's food staples native to the land include corn (maize), turkey, beans, squash, amaranth, chia, avocados, tomatoes, tomatillos, cacao, vanilla, agave, spirulina, sweet potato, cactus, and chili pepper. Its history over the centuries has resulted in regional cuisines based on local conditions, including Baja Med, Chiapas, Veracruz, Oaxacan, and the American cuisines of New Mexican and Tex-Mex.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: After the Spanish Conquest of the Aztec empire and the rest of Mesoamerica, Spaniards introduced a number of other foods, the most important of which were meats from domesticated animals (beef, pork, chicken, goat, and sheep), dairy products (especially cheese and milk), rice, sugar, olive oil and various fruits and vegetables. Various cooking styles and recipes were also introduced from Spain both throughout the colonial period and by Spanish immigrants who continued to arrive following independence. Spanish influence in Mexican cuisine is also noticeable in its sweets such as: alfajores, alfeniques, borrachitos and churros.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Asian and African influences were also introduced during this era as a result of African slavery in New Spain and the Manila-Acapulco Galleons.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican cuisine is an important aspect of the culture, social structure and popular traditions of Mexico. The most important example of this connection is the use of mole for special occasions and holidays, particularly in the South and Central regions of the country. For this reason and others, traditional Mexican cuisine was inscribed in 2010 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican cuisine is a complex and ancient cuisine, with techniques and skills developed over thousands of years of history. It is created mostly with ingredients native to Mexico, as well as those brought over by the Spanish conquistadors, with some new influences since then.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In addition to staples such as corn and chile peppers, native ingredients include tomatoes, squashes, avocados, cocoa and vanilla, as well as ingredients not generally used in other cuisines, such as edible flowers, vegetables like huauzontle and papaloquelite, or small criollo avocados, whose skin is edible. Chocolate originated in Mexico and was prized by the Aztecs. It remains an important ingredient in Mexican cookery.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Vegetables play an important role in Mexican cuisine. Common vegetables include zucchini, cauliflower, corn, potatoes, spinach, Swiss chard, mushrooms, jitomate (red tomato), green tomato, etc. Other traditional vegetable ingredients include Chili pepper, huitlacoche (corn fungus), huauzontle, and nopal (cactus pads) to name a few.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: European contributions include pork, chicken, beef, cheese, herbs and spices, as well as some fruits.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Tropical fruits, many of which are indigenous to Mexico and the Americas, such as guava, prickly pear, sapote, mangoes, bananas, pineapple and cherimoya (custard apple) are popular, especially in the center and south of the country.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Edible insects have been enjoyed in Mexico for millennia. Entemophagy or insect-eating is becoming increasingly popular outside of poor and rural areas for its unique flavors, sustainability, and connection to pre-Hispanic heritage. Popular species include chapulines (grasshoppers or crickets), escamoles (ant larvae), cumiles (stink bugs) and (water bug eggs).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Despite the introduction of wheat and rice to Mexico, maize is the most commonly consumed starch in almost all areas of the country and serves as the main ingredient in many local recipes (e.g. maize tortillas, atole, pozole, menudo, tamal). While also eaten fresh, most maize is dried, nixtamalized and ground into a dough called "masa". This dough is used both fresh and fermented to make a wide variety of dishes from drinks (atole, pozole, etc.) to tamales, sopes, and much more. However, the most common way to eat maize in Mexico is in the form of a tortilla, which accompanies almost every dish. Tortillas are made of maize in most of the country, but other regional versions exist, such as wheat in the north or plantain, yuca and wild greens in Oaxaca.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The other basic ingredient in all parts of Mexico is the chile pepper. Mexican food has a reputation for being very spicy, but it has a wide range of flavors and while many spices are used for cooking, not all are spicy. Many dishes also have subtle flavors. Chiles are indigenous to Mexico and their use dates back thousands of years. They are used for their flavors and not just their heat, with Mexico using the widest variety. If a savory dish or snack does not contain chile pepper, hot sauce is usually added, and chile pepper is often added to fresh fruit and sweets.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The importance of the chile goes back to the Mesoamerican period, where it was considered to be as much of a staple as corn and beans. In the 16th century, Bartolomé de las Casas wrote that without chiles, the indigenous people did not think they were eating. Even today, most Mexicans believe that their national identity would be at a loss without chiles and the many varieties of sauces and salsas created using chiles as their base.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Many dishes in Mexico are defined by their sauces and the chiles those sauces contain (which are usually very spicy), rather than the meat or vegetable that the sauce covers. These dishes include entomatada (in tomato sauce), adobo or adobados, pipians and moles. A hominy soup called pozole is defined as white, green or red depending on the chile sauce used or omitted. Tamales are differentiated by the filling which is again defined by the sauce (red or green chile pepper strips or mole). Dishes without a sauce are rarely eaten without a salsa or without fresh or pickled chiles. This includes street foods, such as tacos, tortas, soup, sopes, tlacoyos, tlayudas, gorditas and sincronizadas. For most dishes, it is the type of chile used that gives it its main flavor. Chipotle, smoked-dried jalapeño pepper, is very common in Mexican cuisine.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In addition to corn, common beans ("Phaseolus vulgaris") are a historical component of the Mexican diet. Genetic evidence indicates domestication occurred in Mesoamerica as well as South America Common bean varieties and cultivars used in Mexican cuisine include the pinto bean and the black turtle bean. Beans and corn are deficient in different essential amino acids but complement each other. When eaten in combination, they provide a complete protein source.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Together with Mesoamerica, Spain is the second basis of Mexican cuisine, contributing in two fundamental ways: Firstly, they brought with them old world staples and ingredients which did not exist in the Americas such as sugar, wheat, rice, onions, garlic, limes, oil, dairy products, pork, beef and many others.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Secondly they brought various culinary traditions from the Iberian peninsula which have become prevalent in Mexico. Equally, the discovery of the incorporation of New World ingredients to Spanish cuisine has led to many shared foods such as chorizo which uses paprika.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Spanish cuisine was in turn heavily influenced by its Moorish heritage and this created one of the earliest instances of the world's greatest Fusion cuisines. The Spanish also introduced the technique of frying in pork fat. Today, the main meats found in Mexico are pork, chicken, beef, goat, and sheep. Seafood and fish are also popular, especially along the coasts, and the way of cooking it commonly has Spanish origin such as Huachinango a la vizcaina.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Cheesemaking in Mexico has evolved its own specialties, although Spanish-style cheese such as Manchego is also produced in Mexico. It is an important economic activity, especially in the north, and is frequently done at home. The main cheese-making areas are Chihuahua, Oaxaca, Querétaro, and Chiapas. Goat cheese is still made, but it is not as popular and is harder to find in stores.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Churros are a common snack originating in Spain and because sugar cane was brought to the Americas through Spanish colonization, all of Mexico's sweets have a Hispanic origin, often with a Muslim heritage such as Alfeñiques.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In most of Mexico, especially in rural areas, much of the food is consumed in the home. Cooking for the family is usually considered to be women's work, and this includes cooking for celebrations as well. Traditionally girls have been considered ready to marry when they can cook, and cooking is considered a main talent for housewives.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The main meal of the day in Mexico is the "comida", meaning 'meal' in Spanish. The normal meal is, as follows; early morning meal, is called "desayuno", which entails coffee/atole (maize drink) and light meal, in some areas, the "almuerzo", around 11AM, includes a “snack” and drink, then followed by "comida", between noon and 2PM (lunch), which in itself is usually the heaviest meal of the day, or supper. It sometimes begins with soup, often chicken broth with pasta or a "dry soup", which is pasta or rice flavored with onions, garlic or vegetables. The main course is meat served in a cooked sauce with salsa on the side, accompanied with beans and tortillas and often with a fruit drink in some areas. The last meal of the day is "cena", dinner, which varies greatly by region, and is usually eaten between 6PM and 9PM.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In the evening, it is common to eat leftovers from the comida or sweet bread accompanied by coffee or chocolate. Breakfast can consist of meat in broth (such as pancita), tacos, enchiladas or meat with eggs. This is usually served with beans, tortillas, and coffee or juice.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican cuisine is elaborate and often tied to symbolism and festivals, which is one reason it was named as an example of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. Many of the foods of Mexico are complicated because of their relation to the social structure of the country. Food preparation, especially for family and social events, is considered to be an investment in order to maintain social relationships. Even the idea of flavor is considered to be social, with meals prepared for certain dinners and certain occasions when they are considered the most tasty.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The ability to cook well, called "sazón" (lit. seasoning) is considered to be a gift generally gained from experience and a sense of commitment to the diners. For the Day of the Dead festival, foods such as tamales and mole are set out on altars and it is believed that the visiting dead relatives eat the essence of the food. If eaten afterwards by the living it is considered to be tasteless. In central Mexico, the main festival foods are mole, barbacoa, carnitas and mixiotes. They are often prepared to feed hundreds of guests, requiring groups of cooks. The cooking is part of the social custom meant to bind families and communities.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican regional home cooking is completely different from the food served in most Mexican restaurants outside Mexico, which is usually some variety of Tex-Mex. The original versions of Mexican dishes are vastly different from their Tex-Mex variation.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Some of Mexico's traditional foods involved complex or long cooking processes, including cooking underground (such as cochinita pibil). Before industrialization, traditional women spent several hours a day boiling dried corn then grinding it on a metate to make the dough for tortillas, cooking them one-by-one on a comal griddle. In some areas, tortillas are still made this way. Sauces and salsas were also ground in a mortar called a molcajete. Today, blenders are more often used, though the texture is a bit different. Most people in Mexico would say that those made with a molcajete taste better, but few do this now.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The most important food for festivals and other special occasions is mole, especially mole poblano in the center of the country. Mole is served at Christmas, Easter, Day of the Dead and at birthdays, baptisms, weddings and funerals, and tends to be eaten only for special occasions because it is such a complex and time-consuming dish. While still dominant in this way, other foods have become acceptable for these occasions, such as barbacoa, carnitas and mixiotes, especially since the 1980s. This may have been because of economic crises at that time, allowing for the substitution of these cheaper foods, or the fact that they can be bought ready-made or may already be made as part of the family business.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Another important festive food is the tamale, also known as "tamal" in Spanish. This is a filled cornmeal dumpling, steamed in a wrapping (usually a corn husk or banana leaf) and one of the basic staples in most regions of Mexico. It has its origins in the pre-Hispanic era and today is found in many varieties in all of Mexico. Like mole, it is complicated to prepare and best done in large amounts. Tamales are associated with certain celebrations such as Candlemas. They are wrapped in corn husks in the highlands and desert areas of Mexico and in banana leaves in the tropics.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican street food can include tacos, quesadillas, pambazos, tamales, huaraches, alambres, al pastor, and food not suitable to cook at home, including barbacoa, carnitas, and since many homes in Mexico do not make use of ovens, roasted chicken. One attraction of street food in Mexico is the satisfaction of hunger or craving without all the social and emotional connotation of eating at home, although longtime customers can have something of a friendship/familial relationship with a chosen vendor.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Tacos are the top-rated and most well-known street Mexican food. It is made up of meat or other fillings wrapped in a tortilla often served with cheese added. Vegetarian fillings include mushrooms, potatoes, rice, or beans.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The best known of Mexico's street foods is the taco, whose origin is based on the pre-Hispanic custom of picking up other foods with tortillas as utensils were not used. The origin of the word is in dispute, with some saying it is derived from Nahuatl and others from various Spanish phrases. It possible the term taco comes from the term tlaco or tlacatl, which means middle or half in nahuatl. Tacos are not eaten as the main meal; they are generally eaten before midday or late in the evening. Just about any other foodstuff can be wrapped in a tortilla, and in Mexico, it varies from rice, to meat (plain or in sauce), to cream, to vegetables, to cheese, or simply to plain chile peppers or fresh salsa. Preferred fillings vary from region to region with pork generally found more often in the center and south, beef in the north, seafood along the coasts, and chicken and lamb in most of the country.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Another popular street food, especially in Mexico City and the surrounding area is the torta. It consists of a roll of some type, stuffed with several ingredients. This has its origins in the 19th century, when the French introduced a number of new kinds of bread. The torta began by splitting the roll and adding beans. Today, refried beans can still be found on many kinds of tortas. In Mexico City, the most common roll used for tortas is called "telera", a relatively flat roll with two splits on the upper surface. In Puebla, the preferred bread is called a cemita, as is the sandwich. In both areas, the bread is stuffed with various fillings, especially if it is a hot sandwich, with beans, cream (mayonnaise is rare) and some kind of hot chile pepper.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The influence of American fast food on Mexican street food grew during the late 20th century. One example of this is the invention of the Sonoran hot dog in the late 1980s. The frankfurters are usually boiled then wrapped in bacon and fried. They are served in a bolillo-style bun, typically topped by a combination of pinto beans, diced tomatoes, onions and jalapeño peppers, and other condiments.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Along the US-Mexican border, specifically dense areas like Tijuana, Mexican vendors sell food such as fruit melanged with Tajin spice to people crossing the border via carts. In recent years, these food carts have been threatened by tightened border security at the port of entry. Both the US and the Mexican governments have proposed a project that would widen the streets at the border, allowing for more people to pass through the border, although widening them would decimate neighboring mercados that rely on the business of travelers.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Besides food, street vendors also sell various kinds of drinks (including , , and ) and treats (such as , , and ). Most tamale stands sell as a standard accompaniment.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Around 7000 BCE, the indigenous peoples of Mexico and Central America hunted game and gathered plants, including wild chili peppers. Corn was not yet cultivated, so one main source of calories was roasted agave hearts. By 1200 BCE, corn was domesticated and a process called nixtamalization, or treatment with lye, was developed to soften corn for grinding and improve its nutritional value. This allowed the creation of tortillas and other kinds of flat breads. The indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica have numerous stories about the origin of corn, usually related to being a gift of one or more gods, such as Quetzalcoatl.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The other staple was beans, eaten with corn and some other plants as a complementary protein. Other protein sources included amaranth, domesticated turkey, insects such as grasshoppers, beetles and ant larvae, iguanas, and turtle eggs on the coastlines. Vegetables included squash and their seeds; chilacayote; jicama, a kind of sweet potato; and edible flowers, especially those of squash. The chile pepper was used as food, ritual and as medicine.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: When the Spanish arrived, the Aztecs had sophisticated agricultural techniques and an abundance of food, which was the base of their economy. It allowed them to expand an empire, bringing in tribute which consisted mostly of foods the Aztecs could not grow themselves. According to Bernardino de Sahagún, the Nahua peoples of central Mexico ate corn, beans, turkey, fish, small game, insects and a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, pulses, seeds, tubers, wild mushrooms, plants and herbs that they collected or cultivated.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: After the Conquest, the Spanish introduced a variety of foodstuffs and cooking techniques, like frying, to the New World. Regional cuisines remained varied, with native staples more prevalent in the rural southern areas and Spanish foods taking root in the more sparsely populated northern region. European style wheat bread was initially met unfavorably with Moctezuma's emissaries who reportedly described it as tasting of "dried maize stalks". On the Spanish side, Bernal Díaz del Castillo complained about the "maize cake" rations on campaign.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The cuisine of Spain is a Mediterranean cuisine influenced by its Arab period, composed of a number of staples such as olive oil and rice. Spanish settlers introduced these staples to the region, although some continued to be imported, such as wine, brandy, nuts, olives, spices, and capers. They introduced domesticated animals, such as pigs, cows, chickens, goats, and sheep for meat and milk, raising the consumption of protein. Cheese became the most important dairy product.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The Spanish brought rice to Mexico, along with sugar cane, used extensively creation of many kinds of sweets, especially local fruits in syrup. A sugar-based candy craft called alfeñique was imported and is now used for the Day of the Dead. Over time ingredients like olive oil, rice, onions, garlic, oregano, coriander, cinnamon, cloves became incorporated with native ingredients and cooking techniques. One of the main avenues for the mixing of the two cuisines was in convents.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Despite the influence of Spanish culture, Mexican cuisine has maintained its base of corn, beans and chili peppers. Natives continued to be reliant on maize; it was less expensive than the wheat favored by European settlers, it was easier to cultivate and produced higher yields. European control over the land grew stronger with the founding of wheat farms. In 18th century Mexico City, wheat was baked into leaved rolls called "pan francés" or "pan español", but only two bakers were allowed to bake this style of bread and they worked on consignment to the viceroy and the archbishop. Large ring loaves of choice flour known as "pan floreado" were available for wealthy "Creoles". Other styles of bread used lower-quality wheat and maize to produce "pan común", "pambazo" and "cemita".


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In the eighteenth century, an Italian Capuchin friar, Ilarione da Bergamo, included descriptions of food in his travelogue. He noted that tortillas were eaten not only by the poor, but by the upper class as well. He described lunch fare as pork products like chorizo and ham being eaten between tortillas, with a piquant red chili sauce. For drink, pulque, as well as corn-based atole, and for those who could afford, it chocolate-based drinks were consumed twice a day. According to de Bergamo's account neither coffee nor wine are consumed, and evening meals ended with a small portion of beans in a thick soup instead, "served to set the stage for drinking water".


title: Mexican cuisine

text: During the 19th century, Mexico experienced an influx of various immigrants, including French, Lebanese, German, Chinese and Italian, which have had some effect on the food. During the French intervention in Mexico, French food became popular with the upper classes. An influence on these new trends came from chef Tudor, who was brought to Mexico by the Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg. One lasting evidence of this is the variety of breads and sweet breads, such as bolillos, conchas and much more, which can be found in Mexican bakeries. The Germans brought beer brewing techniques and the Chinese added their cuisine to certain areas of the country. This led to Mexico characterizing its cuisine more by its relation to popular traditions rather than on particular cooking techniques.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Since the 20th century, there has been an interchange of food influences between Mexico and the United States. Mexican cooking was of course still practiced in what is now the Southwest United States after the Mexican–American War, but Diana Kennedy, in her book "The Cuisines of Mexico" (published in 1972), drew a sharp distinction between Mexican food and Tex-Mex.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Tex-Mex food was developed from Mexican and Anglo influences, and was traced to the late 19th century in Texas. It still continues to develop with flour tortillas becoming popular north of the border only in the latter 20th century. From north to south, much of the influence has been related to food industrialization, as well as the greater availability overall of food, especially after the Mexican Revolution. One other very visible sign of influence from the United States is the appearance of fast foods, such as hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In the latter 20th century, international influence in Mexico has led to interest and development of haute cuisine. In Mexico, many professional chefs are trained in French or international cuisine, but the use of Mexican staples and flavors is still favored, including the simple foods of traditional markets. It is not unusual to see some quesadillas or small tacos among the other hors d'oeuvres at fancy dinner parties in Mexico.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Professional cookery in Mexico is growing and includes an emphasis on traditional methods and ingredients. In the cities, there is interest in publishing and preserving what is authentic Mexican food. This movement is traceable to 1982 with the Mexican Culinary Circle of Mexico City. It was created by a group of women chefs and other culinary experts as a reaction to the fear of traditions being lost with the increasing introduction of foreign techniques and foods. In 2010, Mexico's cuisine was recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In contemporary times, various world cuisines have become popular in Mexico, thus adopting a Mexican fusion. For example, sushi in Mexico is often made by using a variety of sauces based on mango and tamarind, and very often served with serrano-chili blended soy sauce, or complemented with vinegar, habanero peppers, and chipotle peppers.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Corn in Mexico is not only eaten, but also drunk as a beverage. Corn is the base of a hot drink called atole, which is then flavored with fruit, chocolate, rice or other flavors. Fermented corn is the base of a cold drink, which goes by different names and varieties, such as tejuino, pozol and others. Aguas frescas are flavored drinks usually made from fruit, water and sugar. Beverages also include hibiscus iced tea, one made from tamarind and one from rice called horchata. One variant of coffee is café de olla, which is coffee brewed with cinnamon and raw sugar. Many of the most popular beverages can be found sold by street vendors and juice bars in Mexico.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Chocolate played an important part in the history of Mexican cuisine. The word "chocolate" originated from Mexico's Aztec cuisine, derived from the Nahuatl word "xocolatl". Chocolate was first drunk rather than eaten. It was also used for religious rituals. The Maya civilization grew cacao trees and used the cacao seeds it produced to make a frothy, bitter drink. The drink, called "xocoatl", was often flavored with vanilla, chile pepper, and "achiote".


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Alcoholic beverages from Mexico include tequila, pulque, aguardiente, mezcal and charanda. Wine, rum and beer are also produced. The most common alcoholic beverage consumed with food in Mexico is beer, followed by tequila. A classic margarita, a popular cocktail, is composed of tequila, cointreau and lime juice.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Rompope is believed to have been originally made in the convents of the city of Puebla, Mexico. The word "rompope" is a derivation of the word "rompon", which is used to describe the Spanish version of eggnog that came to Mexico.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: A popular Soft drink from Mexico is Sangria Señorial a sangria-flavored, non-alcoholic beverage. Sangria is a Spanish drink that was introduced by Spaniards, as was Horchata and Agua de Jamaica.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Similar to other regions in Mexico, corn is a dietary staple and other indigenous foods remain strong in the cuisine as well. Along with a chile called simojovel, used nowhere else in the country, the cuisine is also distinguished by the use of herbs, such as chipilín and hierba santa. Like in Oaxaca, tamales are usually wrapped in banana leaves (or sometimes with the leaves of hoja santa), but often chipilín is incorporated into the dough. As in the Yucatán Peninsula, boiled corn is drunk as a beverage called pozol, but here it is usually flavored with all-natural cacao. Another beverage (which can be served hot or cold) typical from this region is Tascalate, which is made of powdered maize, cocoa beans, achiote (annatto), chilies, pine nuts and cinnamon.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The favored meats are beef, pork and chicken (introduced by the Spanish), especially in the highlands, which favors the raising of livestock. The livestock industry has also prompted the making of cheese, mostly done on ranches and in small cooperatives, with the best known from Ocosingo, Rayón and Pijijiapan. Meat and cheese dishes are frequently accompanied by vegetables, such as squash, chayote, and carrots.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The main feature of Mexico City cooking is that it has been influenced by those of the other regions of Mexico, as well as a number of foreign influences. This is because Mexico City has been a center for migration of people from all over Mexico since pre-Hispanic times. Most of the ingredients of this area's cooking are not grown in situ, but imported from all of the country (such as tropical fruits).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Street cuisine is very popular, with taco stands, and lunch counters on every street. Popular foods in the city include barbacoa (a specialty of the central highlands), birria (from western Mexico), cabrito (from the north), carnitas (originally from Michoacán), mole sauces (from Puebla and central Mexico), tacos with many different fillings, and large sub-like sandwiches called tortas, usually served at specialized shops called 'Torterías'. This is also the area where most of Mexico's haute cuisine can be found. There are eateries that specialize in pre-Hispanic food, including dishes with insects.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The foods eaten in what is now the north of Mexico have differed from those in the south since the pre-Hispanic era. Here, the indigenous people were hunter-gatherers with limited agriculture and settlements because of the arid land.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: When the Europeans arrived, they found much of the land in this area suitable for raising cattle, goats and sheep. This led to the dominance of meat, especially beef, in the region, and some of the most popular dishes include machaca, arrachera and cabrito. The region's distinctive cooking technique is grilling, as ranch culture has promoted outdoor cooking done by men.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The ranch culture has also prompted cheese production and the north produces the widest varieties of cheese in Mexico. These include queso fresco (fresh farmer's cheese), ranchero (similar to Monterey Jack), cuajada (a mildly sweet, creamy curd of fresh milk), requesón (similar to cottage cheese or ricotta), Chihuahua's creamy semi-soft queso menonita, and fifty-six varieties of asadero (smoked cheese).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Another important aspect of northern cuisine is the presence of wheat, especially in the use of flour tortillas. The area has at least forty different types of flour tortillas. The main reason for this is that much of the land supports wheat production, introduced by the Spanish. These large tortillas allowed for the creation of burritos, usually filled with machaca in Sonora, which eventually gained popularity in the Southwest United States.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The variety of foodstuffs in the north is not as varied as in the south of Mexico, because of the mostly desert climate. Much of the cuisine of this area is dependent on food preservation techniques, namely dehydration and canning. Dried foods include meat, chiles, squash, peas, corn, lentils, beans and dried fruit. A number of these are also canned. Preservation techniques change the flavor of foods; for example, many chiles are less hot after drying.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: In Northeastern Mexico, during the Spanish colonial period, Nuevo León was founded and settled by Spanish families of Jewish origin (Crypto-Jews). They contributed to the regional cuisine with dishes, such as Pan de Semita or "Semitic Bread" (a type of bread made without leavening), and cabrito or "baby goat", which is the typical food of Monterrey and the state of Nuevo León, as well as some regions of Coahuila.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The north has seen waves of immigration by the Chinese, Mormons, and Mennonites, who have influenced the cuisines in areas, such as Chihuahua and Baja California. Most recently, Baja Med cuisine has emerged in Ensenada and elsewhere in Baja California, combining Mexican and Mediterranean flavors.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The cooking of Oaxaca remained more intact after the conquest, as the Spanish took the area with less fighting and less disruption of the economy and food production systems. However, it was the first area to experience the mixing of foods and cooking styles, while central Mexico was still recuperating. Despite its size, the state has a wide variety of ecosystems and a wide variety of native foods. Vegetables are grown in the central valley, seafood is abundant on the coast and the area bordering Veracruz grows tropical fruits.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Much of the state's cooking is influenced by that of the Mixtec and, to a lesser extent, the Zapotec. Later in the colonial period, Oaxaca lost its position as a major food supplier and the area's cooking returned to a more indigenous style, keeping only a small number of foodstuffs, such as chicken and pork. It also adapted mozzarella, brought by the Spanish, and modified it to what is now known as Oaxaca cheese.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: One major feature of Oaxacan cuisine is its seven mole varieties, second only to mole poblano in popularity. The seven are Negro (black), Amarillo (yellow), Coloradito (little red), Mancha Manteles (table cloth stainer), Chichilo (smoky stew), Rojo (red), and Verde (green).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Corn is the staple food in the region. Tortillas are called blandas and are a part of every meal. Corn is also used to make empanadas, tamales and more. Black beans are favored, often served in soup or as a sauce for enfrijoladas. Oaxaca's regional chile peppers include pasilla oaxaqueña (red, hot and smoky), along with amarillos (yellow), chilhuacles, chilcostles and costeños. These, along with herbs, such as hoja santa, give the food its unique taste.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Another important aspect of Oaxacan cuisine is chocolate, generally consumed as a beverage. It is frequently hand ground and combined with almonds, cinnamon and other ingredients.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The cuisine of Veracruz is a mix of indigenous, Afro-Mexican and Spanish. The indigenous contribution is in the use of corn as a staple, as well as vanilla (native to the state) and herbs called acuyo and hoja santa. It is also supplemented by a wide variety of tropical fruits, such as papaya, mamey and zapote, along with the introduction of citrus fruit and pineapple by the Spanish. The Spanish also introduced European herbs, such as parsley, thyme, marjoram, bay laurel, cilantro and others, which characterize much of the state's cooking. They are found in the best known dish of the region Huachinango a la veracruzana, a red snapper dish.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The African influence is from the importation of slaves through the Caribbean, who brought foods with them, which had been introduced earlier to Africa by the Portuguese. As it borders the Gulf coast, seafood figures prominently in most of the state. The state's role as a gateway to Mexico has meant that the dietary staple of corn is less evident than in other parts of Mexico, with rice as a heavy favorite. Corn dishes include garnachas (a kind of corn cake), which are readily available especially in the mountain areas, where indigenous influence is strongest.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Anthropologist and restauranteur Raquel Torres Cerdán has worked to preserve and record many of the foods of indigenous peoples of the region.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: West of Mexico City is the Pacific coast and the states of Michoacán, Jalisco and Colima. The cuisine of Michoacan is based on the Purepecha culture which still dominates most of the state. The area has a large network of rivers and lakes providing fish. Its use of corn is perhaps the most varied. While atole is drunk in most parts of Mexico, it is made with more different flavors in Michoacán, including blackberry, cascabel chili and more. Tamales come in different shapes, wrapped in corn husks. These include those folded into polyhedrons called corundas and can vary in name if the filling is different. In the Bajío area, tamales are often served with a meat stew called , which is flavored with cactus fruit.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The main Spanish contributions to Michoacán cuisine are rice, pork and spices. One of the best-known dishes from the state is morisquesta, which is a sausage and rice dish, closely followed by carnitas, which is deep-fried (confit technique) pork. The latter can be found in many parts of Mexico, often claimed to be authentically Michoacán. Other important ingredients in the cuisine include wheat (where bread symbolizes fertility) found in breads and pastries. Another is sugar, giving rise to a wide variety of desserts and sweets, such as fruit jellies and ice cream, mostly associated with the town of Tocumbo. The town of Cotija has a cheese named after it. The local alcoholic beverage is charanda, which is made with fermented sugar cane.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The cuisine of the states of Jalisco and Colima is noted for dishes such as birria, chilayo, menudo, and pork dishes. Jalisco's cuisine is known for tequila, with the liquor produced only in certain areas allowed to use the name. The cultural and gastronomic center of the area is Guadalajara, an area where both agriculture and cattle raising have thrived. The best-known dish from the area is birria, a stew of goat, beef, mutton, or pork, with chiles and spices.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: An important street food is tortas ahogadas, where the torta (sandwich) is drowned in a chile sauce. Near Guadalajara is the town of Tonalá, known for its pozole, a hominy stew, reportedly said in the 16th century, to have been originally created with human flesh for ritual use. The area which makes tequila surrounds the city. A popular local drink is tejuino, made from fermented corn. Bionico is also a popular dessert in the Guadalajara area.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: On the Pacific coast, seafood is common, generally cooked with European spices along with chile, and is often served with a spicy salsa. Favored fish varieties include marlin, swordfish, snapper, tuna, shrimp and octopus. Tropical fruits are also important. The cuisine of the Baja California Peninsula is especially heavy on seafood, with the widest variety. It also features a mild green chile pepper, as well as dates, especially in sweets.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: The food of the Yucatán peninsula is distinct from the rest of the country. It is based primarily on Mayan food with influences from the Caribbean, Central Mexican, European (especially French) and Middle Eastern cultures. As in other areas of Mexico, corn is the basic staple, as both a liquid and a solid food. One common way of consuming corn, especially by the poor, is a thin drink or gruel of white corn called by such names as pozol or keyem.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: One of the main spices in the region is the annatto seed, called achiote in Spanish. It gives food a reddish color and a slightly peppery smell with a hint of nutmeg. Recados are seasoning pastes, based on achiote (recado rojo) or a mixture of habanero and chirmole both used on chicken and pork.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Recado rojo is used for the area's best-known dish, cochinita pibil. Pibil refers to the cooking method (from the Mayan word "píib", meaning "buried") in which foods are wrapped, generally in banana leaves, and cooked in a pit oven. Various meats are cooked this way. Habaneros are another distinctive ingredient, but they are generally served as (or part of) condiments on the side rather than integrated into the dishes.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: A prominent feature of Yucatán cooking is the use of bitter oranges, which gives Yucatán food the tangy element that characterizes it. Bitter orange is used as a seasoning for broth, to marinate meat and its juice (watered down with sugar) is used as a refreshing beverage.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Honey was used long before the arrival of the Spanish to sweeten foods and to make a ritual alcoholic drink called balché. Today, a honey liquor called xtabentun is still made and consumed in the region. The coastal areas feature several seafood dishes, based on fish like the Mero, a variety of grunt and Esmedregal, which is fried and served with a spicy salsa based on the x'catic pepper and achiote paste. Other dishes include conch fillet (usually served raw, just marinated in lime juice), coconut flavored shrimp and lagoon snails.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Traditionally, some dishes are served as entrées, such as the brazo de reina (a type of tamale made from chaya) and papadzules (egg tacos seasoned in a pumpkin seed gravy).


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Street food in the area usually consists of Cochinita Pibil Tacos, Lebanese-based kibbeh, shawarma tacos, snacks made from hardened corn dough called piedras, and fruit-flavored ices.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Lime soup made of chicken or some other meat such as pork or beef, lime juice and served with tortilla chips. Panucho made with a refried tortilla that is stuffed with refried black beans and topped with chopped cabbage, pulled chicken or turkey, tomato, pickled red onion, avocado, and pickled jalapeño pepper.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Dessert culture in Mexico did not develop until after the introduction of the Spanish to the area. There were foods which could be considered desserts by modern standards like chocolate, but they were consumed and used differently. With the introduction of Europeans and their food and culture to the region came sugar and with it, sweets. The range of desserts evolved and grew over time to include everything from churros to rice pudding, from cakes to fruit treats. Some of the desserts which historically are made in Mexico are fairly easy to make and can be produced in high quantity.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Chocolate consumption pre-European influence was drunk in a warm syrupy form mixed with honey. This was done in order to create a pleasant drinking experience. During this time chocolate was also treated as medicine. After the arrival of Europeans, Chocolate was brought across the sea to Europe where it would be used in various forms including medicine and confections. In the modern era, chocolate is used as both a topping and a dip, as well as in candies. The traditional form of chocolate consumption lives on in the form of Mexican hot chocolate, the natural evolution of the warm syrup.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: There are a number of fruit related dessert recipes which are popular in Mexico, some using native fruits, such as plantains and others using foreign fruits like oranges. Recipes for these foods can be found dating back to the early 19th century and incorporate both sugar and ice. Fruit dishes are naturally sweet and juicy which made them popular in the Mexican climate.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: One such dessert is orange and lime ice, a treat similar to snow cones. It is made by freezing strained oranges and lime juice mixed with sugar.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Baked dessert items in Mexico are mostly ideas imported from Europe over time. These items came from a variety of different nations before becoming staples of desserts in the region. Baked goods include cookies made with local fruits, churros which originated in the Iberian Peninsula, and macaroons which come from Italy. Churros can be made by mixing flour with boiling water, shaping and frying that mixture then coating it in cinnamon and/or sugar. Churros can be eaten hot or cold and can be molded into any number of different shapes. Macaroons can be made by beating together around 60 eggs, mixing some more eggs with sugar, mixing in flower then baking the whole thing.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican cuisine is offered in a few fine restaurants in Europe and the United States. Sometimes landrace corn from Mexico is imported and ground on the premises.


title: Mexican cuisine

text: Mexican food in the United States is based on the food of Native Americans and Hispanos in the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. Mexican foods that originate in the United States often come from the Southwestern region, breakfast burritos and red or green chile come from New Mexican cuisine, likewise chili con carne and chimichangas are examples of Tex-Mex. With the growing ethnic Mexican-American population in the United States, more authentic Mexican food is gradually appearing in the United States. Most large American cities host a Mexican diaspora due to proximity and immigration, and Mexican restaurants and food trucks are generally easy to find in the continental states. One reason is that Mexican immigrants use food as a means of combating homesickness, and for their descendants, it is a symbol of ethnicity. Alternatively, with more Americans experiencing Mexican food in Mexico, there is a growing demand for more authentic flavors. Korean tacos are a Korean-Mexican fusion dish popular in a number of urban areas in the United States and Canada. Korean tacos originated in Los Angeles. In 2013, Carlos Gaytán became the first Mexican to obtain a Michelin star for his work at the Mexique restaurant in Chicago.


title: The God of High School

text: The God of High School () is a South Korean manhwa released as a webtoon written and illustrated by Yongje Park. It has been serialized in Naver Corporation's webtoon platform Naver Webtoon since April 2011, with the individual chapters collected and published by Imageframe under their Root label into one volume as of April 2020. "The God of High School" received official English translations by Line Webtoon beginning in July 2014.


title: The God of High School

text: It has received a mobile game and an original net animation short attached to the aforementioned game's original soundtrack. An anime television series adaptation by MAPPA aired from July to September 2020.


title: The God of High School

text: At the dawn of time, humans, demons and gods lived together on Earth. The gods allowed the weak humans to borrow their powers, creating the "Borrowed Power" system (or "Charyeok" in Korean) so they could defend themselves from the demons who wanted to rule over them. Shortly after the demon defeat, the gods split up the humans, demons and gods among the three Realms. Humans are since able to use Borrowed Power freely but are not allowed to attack gods with it.


title: The God of High School

text: The main protagonist is Mori Jin, a 17-year-old martial artist from Seoul, South Korea. At the beginning of the story, he is invited to join a Martial Arts tournament called "The God of High School" (or GOH). The event, sponsored by a shady corporation, brings together people from high schools all over South Korea on a regional and then, national level in order to select three representatives for the World Tournament. As a prize, the winner gets his wish fulfilled by the hosting corporation, no question asked.


title: The God of High School

text: This intrigues Mori, and as he continues through the tournament, he meets many competitors each with a different way of fighting. Martial arts aside, participants fight by using "Borrowed Power", a mystical energy granted by supernatural entities (gods, demons, mythical creatures...), hence the name Borrowed Power. During the opening rounds, he comes across two other martial arts prodigies: Full-Contact Karate expert Daewi Han and epeeist master Mira Yoo. These two would befriend Mori after their fights with him, and will become teamed together as the Korean Team after the preliminary rounds. As the tournaments preliminary rounds finish, and teams assemble, plans for many different people within the organization, and those pitted against them begin to make their moves to achieve their goals.


title: The God of High School

text: Author Park Yong-Je majored in cartoon animation at Sunchon National University. Inspired by action genre and "Dragon Ball", Park made his debut with ""Tough Guy"" (쎈놈), published on Naver Webtoon from 2008 to 2009. This manhwa, set around high-school brawlers from Park's hometown of Suncheon, was well received and inspired him to pursue a "100% totally unrealistic work of action" where high schoolers from all over the world would compete to become "the God of High School".


title: The God of High School

text: Yongje Park launched "The God of High School" in Naver's webtoon platform Naver Webtoon on April 8, 2011. Its first collected volume was published by Imageframe under their Root label on January 31, 2017. "The God of High School" was one of the first webtoons to receive official English translations by LINE Webtoon in July 2014.


title: The God of High School

text: A spinoff light novel of the webtoon, "The God of High School:Eclipse", which was written by Bloody and illustrated by Park Yongje, was launched on Naver's web novel platform Naver Novel, and ran from 2 April 2015 to 28 July 2016.


title: The God of High School

text: On 14 August 2014, YD Online announced that they had acquired IP rights for "The God of High School" to develop a game based on the webtoon. A team school battle mobile RPG titled "The God Of Highschool" (갓오브하이스쿨) was later released on 25 May 2015.


title: The God of High School

text: A music video from the original soundtrack of the game was released on 11 August 2016 on YouTube with singer Younha as lead vocalist. As of July 2020, the video has attracted over 7 million views.


title: The God of High School

text: A 3D mobile RPG game titled "G.O.H -The God Of Highschool" (G.O.H - 갓오브하이스쿨) developed by SN games Corp., was released on 19 July 2016, with an English version released on 12 September 2018. Jin Mo-ri was voiced by Kang Soo-jin, who is well-known as the Korean voice actor of Luffy from "One Piece".


title: The God of High School

text: In addition, the characters of Jin Mo-ri, Yu Mi-ra and Park Il-pyo appear as playable characters on I.O. Entertainment's 3D combat P.C. "Lost Saga".


title: The God of High School

text: A cross-webtoon RPG game titled "Hero Cantare" was released in 2019, featuring "The God of High School" and other popular titles such as "Tower of God" and "Hardcore Leveling Warrior".


title: The God of High School

text: An anime television series adaptation was announced in February 2020. MAPPA animated the series and Sola Entertainment provided production management. The anime is directed by Sunghoo Park, with scripts by Kiyoko Yoshimura, Manabu Akita designing the characters, and Alisa Okehazama composing the music. The opening theme is "Contradiction feat. Tyler Carter" by KSUKE, and the ending theme is "WIN." by CIX. It aired from July 6 to September 28, 2020 on Tokyo MX and AT-X in Japan, and on Aniplus and Naver Series On in South Korea. Crunchyroll is on the production committee of the series and simulcasts the Japanese broadcast of the anime. Muse Communication has licensed the series in Southeast Asia and South Asia and released on its Muse Asia YouTube channel and iQIYI. On August 11, 2020, Crunchyroll announced that the series would receive an English dub and premiere on August 24, 2020. Viz Media will release the series on home video.


title: The God of High School

text: The anime also has an easter egg in it, where the fighting ring has the Crunchyroll and the Naver Webtoon logos on it, implying that the competition is sponsored by them.


title: The God of High School

text: Nicole Mejias of Crunchyroll said that the series, when on Line Webtoon was an easy sell as it evoked memories of "classic school battling anime" like "Tenjho Tenge" and fighting games, saying that the series has "top-notch" action with "gorgeous art," along with "various martial arts and skills" from the main cast.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Nitin Jairam Gadkari (; born 27 May 1957) is an Indian politician from Maharashtra who is the current Minister for Road Transport & Highways in the Government of India. He is also the longest serving Minister for Road Transport & Highways currently running his tenure for over 8 years. Gadkari earlier served as the President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from 2009 to 2013. He is also known for his work as the Public Works Department Minister of the State of Maharashtra, where, under his leadership, a series of roads, highways and flyovers across the state were constructed – including the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India's first six-lane concrete, high-speed expressway. Gadkari is closely associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is headquartered in his home constituency of Nagpur. He currently represents the Nagpur constituency in the Lok Sabha, and is a lawyer by occupation. During the cabinet reshuffle on 7 July 2021 the portfolio for Ministry of MSME which was under him was reassigned to Narayan Rane, another BJP MP from Maharashtra as a part of cabinet expansion.In popular culture he is remembered as the "Highwayman of India" for the incredible road infrastructure Planned, Executed and delivered in his tenure in India.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Nitin Gadkari was born into a Marathi family in Nagpur, India to Jairam Gadkari and Bhanutai Gadkari on 27 May 1957. During his adolescence, he worked for the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and the student union Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad. He completed M.Com. and L.L.B. from Nagpur University.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Nitin Gadkari served as the Minister of Public Works Department (PWD) of the Government of Maharashtra from 1995 to 1999 and restructured it from top to bottom. He has served as the president of the Maharashtra state unit of BJP.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari strongly supported privatisation while he campaigned for investments in infrastructure from private firms. He addressed several meetings between private investors, contractors, builders and various trade organisations and diverted large amounts of budgeted projects towards privatisation. Subsequently, the state government allocated 7 billion for rural connectivity. Over the next four years, all-weather road connectivity in Maharashtra was extended to 98% of the population. The project aimed to connect 13,736 remote villages which remained unconnected since independence by road. It also helped ameliorate malnutrition in remote Melghat-Dharni area of Amravati district, which previously had no access to medical aid, ration or educational facilities.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: The Union Government appointed him as the Chairman of National Rural Road Development Committee. After a series of meetings and studies, Gadkari submitted his report to the central government and gave the presentation to Atal Bihari Vajpayee, then Prime Minister of India. His new report was accepted and Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, an ambitious rural road connecting scheme worth ₹600 billion, was launched.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: He received the Late Madhavrao Limaye Award by Public Library Nashik, for Most Efficient Member of Parliament for 2020-21.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: As PWD Minister of Maharashtra, Gadkari played a crucial role in expediting the construction of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. In 1990, the Government of Maharashtra conducted feasibility studies for the new expressway to be operated on a toll basis, however, it was only after Gadkari took over as PWD Minister that the construction of this project was fast-tracked. Gadkari entrusted the work of the construction of Mumbai-Pune expressway to MSRDC in March 1997 on Build-Operate-Transfer basis with permission to collect toll for 30 years. The tender notice was published in leading newspapers all over India and also on the Internet. Due to the wide publicity, 133 tenders were sold and on 18 December 1997, 55 tenders were received. After technical and financial evaluation, tenders were accepted and work orders were given on 1 January 1998 to four contractors. Thereafter tenders for widening of the Khandala and Lonavala-Khandala bypass works were invited. The tenders were received on 24 August 1998 and orders were issued on 4 September 1998. The first sections of the Expressway opened in 2000, and the entire route was completed, opened to traffic and made fully operational from April 2002.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: The other major achievement of Gadkari as state minister was the construction of 55 flyovers in Mumbai, which eased the city traffic problems significantly.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari was appointed the president of the BJP in December 2009. This was considering a tough phase for the BJP as the party had lost two successive Lok Sabha elections and needed a quick revamp.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: In his book "India Aspires", co-authored with Tuhin Sinha, Gadkari spells out his development ideas for the country in great detail. Increased institutional support to green energy, alternate fuel and effective waste management hold special importance in Gadkari's development plan.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: As party president, Gadkari, re-emphasised on legendary Jan Sangh leader Deen Dayal Upadhya's principles of Integral Humanism and "Antyodaya" (upliftment of the poor). At the same time, various cells were constituted within the party to regularly monitor the develop work undertaken by various BJP state governments and to come up with new policy inputs.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari contested 2014 Lok Sabha election successfully from Nagpur constituency and won. He defeated Congress party candidate Vilas Muttemwar by margin of . He retained his seat in 2019, defeating Nana Patole of Congress party by margin.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari became the Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Minister of Shipping in May 2014. Out of the stalled projects he inherited, projects worth were terminated and others worth were put up for rebidding. He increased the pace of road creation in the country from 2 km/day to 16.5 km/day in his first year and to 21 km/day in the second year and end of 2018 30 km/day. He reserved an amount of one per cent of the total projects awarded in his tenure worth for trees and beautification.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: During the Second Modi ministry, Gadkari retained Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, while the Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation were replaced with Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises on 31 May 2019. Highway construction pace post 2019 was 36 km per day in 2020 and Gadkari aims to take it to 68 kms per day with a target of 25000 kms in 2022-23. In line with the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat green fuel adoption and fuel self sufficiency Gadkari drove to the parliament in a hydrogen powered FCEV Toyota Mirai car. He asked people to opt for green fuel vehicles.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari, who was virtually present at the inauguration of the headquarters of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on 28 October 2020, made a speech that was highly critical of the NHAI officials and bureaucracy.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: During his career in politics, Gadkari set up a number of private industries and companies. These include –


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Gadkari has registered himself as an agriculturist for tax purposes. He also started a fruit export company under the banner of "Ketaki overseas Trading Company". He owns a total of 17 sugar plantations in Vidarbha under the banner of the Purti group. Nitin Gadkari floated the Purti Power and Sugar Ltd (now Purti Group) in 1995, when he started as PWD minister in Maharashtra. In 2012, the companies came into the media glare based on irregularities unearthed by RTI activist Anjali Damania, the Income Tax department investigated a number of firms that had invested in Purti, and found more than a dozen of these to be bogus addresses. Another three investing firms were found co-located with the Somani Group, but no one knew of these firms. Following this, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal amplified the allegations accusing Gadkari of irregularities. However, Kejriwal apologised unconditionally after Gadkari filed a defamation case against him.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: In 2010, when the Purti group had incurred losses of Rs. 640 million, the firm IRB, which had obtained hefty road contracts under Gadkari's term as PWD minister, loaned the group Rs. 1.64 billion, which was higher than Purthi's turnover of Rs. 1.45 billion. When questioned on Marathi channel IBN-Lokmat, about why he did not avail a loan from banks, Gadkari explained that the balance sheets of the company were not in a suitable state, so he had requested his friend Dattatray to help him out. Also, Gadkari's son Nikhil was allegedly a director with IRB at the time. Gadkari argued that there was nothing wrong in having contractors invest in one's firms.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: The news of these allegations broke a few months before Gadkari was to seek re-election as president of the BJP. At the time, Gadkari was to address several rallies for the 2012 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election. India Today reported that BJP leader Shanta Kumar had suggested that Gadkari's presence was "affecting BJP's anti-corruption campaign." Subsequently, Gadkari cancelled his scheduled rallies at Bilaspur and Solan on 30 October.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: In early 2013, in the elections for BJP president, for which Gadkari was "close to clinching a second innings" his chances unravelled with several senior leaders suggesting that the I-T indictment of the Purti groups investments had damaged his image, and Gadkari was not re-elected. Gadkari told the "Times of India" that he was stepping down until the inquiry proved him innocent. Some RSS functionaries have suggested that his exit was the result of infighting. Subsequently, Gadkari threatened the I-T officers, saying "when our party comes to power, there would be no Chidambaram or Sonia to save them (I-T officials)"; Gadkari said,"Earlier CBI was doing Congress's bidding and now the I-T people are following suit." The I-T officers association took umbrage at these remarks and demanded an apology.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Eventually, in May 2013, the Income Tax department assessed that Gadkari's firms had evaded Rs. 70 million via such benami investments and other practices. On 30 April. 2014, then Congress union Minister Manish Tewari apologised to Nitin Gadkari when he was dragged in to a defamation suit by the latter. This apology was based on the judicial commission mention that Gadkari had played no role or had no concern with the scam. On 13 May 2014, the Income Tax department of Maharashtra state cleared Nitin Gadkari's name and gave him a clean chit saying there is no investigation presently pending.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: Nitin Gadkari is married to Kanchan Gadkari and they have three children, Nikhil, Sarang and Ketki. His eldest son Nikhil is married to Rutuja Pathak and Sarang Gadkari is married to Madhura Rodi. Gadkari family follows a vegetarian diet.


title: Nitin Gadkari

text: In August 2019 Gadkari created controversy when he stated that he had advised the then Union Finance Minister to sack the RBI Governor because the latter was inflexible and adamant.


title: John McTiernan

text: John Campbell McTiernan Jr. (born January 8, 1951) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his action films, especially "Predator" (1987), "Die Hard" (1988), and "The Hunt for Red October" (1990). His later well-known films include the action-comedy-fantasy film "Last Action Hero" (1993), the action film sequel "Die Hard with a Vengeance" (1995), the heist-film remake "The Thomas Crown Affair" (1999), and "The 13th Warrior" (1999). His last completed feature film was the mystery-thriller "Basic", released in 2003.


title: John McTiernan

text: He pleaded guilty to perjury and lying to an FBI investigator in regard to his hiring of the private investigator Anthony Pellicano in late 2000 to illegally wiretap the phone calls of two people, one of whom was Charles Roven, a co-producer of his action film remake "Rollerball" (2002). He was incarcerated in federal prison from April 2013 to February 2014. During his imprisonment, he filed for bankruptcy amidst foreclosure proceedings for his large ranch residence.


title: John McTiernan

text: McTiernan was born in Albany, New York, the son of Myra and John Campbell McTiernan Sr., a lawyer and actor. He attended the Juilliard School before graduating with a Master of Fine Arts from the AFI Conservatory in 1975.


title: John McTiernan

text: In 1986, he wrote and directed his first feature film, "Nomads", starring Pierce Brosnan (Brosnan's first lead role in a film). It was not well received by critics, receiving only one positive review out of eight according to the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. Roger Ebert of the "Chicago Sun-Times" rated it 1.5 stars out of four and said that even if viewers cared about the characters, the film is too confusing to understand. "Variety" wrote, ""Nomads" avoids the more obvious ripped-guts devices in favor of dramatic visual scares. [...] In fact, everything seems to come naturally in a tale that even has the supernatural ring true." Walter Goodman of "The New York Times" called the Innuat "as menacing as the chorus from "West Side Story"". In his memoir, "Total Recall", Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was so impressed by the film's tense atmosphere made with a low budget that he hired McTiernan to direct "Predator".