Assam Current Affairs – June 07-08, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 07-08 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 07- 08 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

June 07-08, 2022

Assam celebrates Baikho festival

The Baikho festival is celebrated in the state of Assam. This festival is celebrated by Rabha tribes of India. This festival is celebrated annually. 

It is celebrated to bring in auspicious harvest season and to fill it with abundant crops and good health. 

This is a celebration of a good harvest. However, people from other communities also harmonise in the celebrations.

During this festival, various rituals are carried out for warding off evil spirits, for bringing good will to the community and sparking ample rains. 

In the afternoon, people dress in traditional attire and dance to the drum beats. In the evening, they set alight a tall structure made from bundles of bamboo. After the sun sets, priests offer prayers to the God of harvest. After the prayers priests run over hot coals, which are left simmering by the fire. 

This act is meant to honour the harvest deity. Later, women wash the feet of priests and serve them food. In another unique customs, Rabha Tribes smear their faces with rice flour and pour rice beer for others.


Asia University Rankings 2022

Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings 2022 was released by the Times Higher Education (THE). India is the third most-represented country behind Japan and mainland China with 71 institutions. 17 Indian universities topped the list under top 200.

In comparison to the positions achieved in 2021, all the Indian institutes that were placed in the top-100 have slipped down. Among the top 200, there are 17 Indian universities in this year’s rankings whereas in 2021 there were 18.

Among the list of these 17 universities, 14 universities were ranked in the 2021 edition. Positive note is that 8 universities have upgraded themselves.

Ranks of the Indian Universities

Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore- 42 

JSS Academy- 65 Indian Institute of Technology Ropar- 68 

Indian Institute of Technology Indore- 78 

Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar- 120 

Alagappa University- 122 

Thapar Institute – 127 

Saveetha University- 131 

Mahatma Gandhi University- 139 

Delhi Technological University- 149 

Banaras Hindu University- 153 

Institute of Chemical Technology- 158 

Jamia Millia Islamia- 160 

Jawaharlal Nehru University- 167 

International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad- 174 Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology- 177 

Panjab University- 197

Japan is the most-represented nation on this list, with 118 institutions making it this year, up from 116 in 2021. The top two universities on this list are from China. They are Tsinghua and Peking universities holding the first and second places, respectively.


Rafael Nadal wins 2022 French Open

Rafael Nadal won the 2022 French Open in men’s singles. He beat Norwegian Casper Ruud in straight sets 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 in the final held at Paris’ Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Ruud was leading the second set 3-1 but Nadal came back from the deficit to take a 6-3 win in that set, lowering his Norwegian opponent’s guard on the clay court. 

With this victory, Nadal claimed his 14th championship at Roland Garros and 22nd Grand Slam title overall.


State of India’s Environment Report 2022

The State of India’s Environment Report 2022 was recently released by the Center for Science and Environment (CSE). The report is an annual compendium of environment-development data and is derived from public sources.

India has slipped three spots to rank 120 on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) adopted as a part of the 2030 agenda by 192 United Nations member states in 2015. In 2021 India ranked 117 among 192 nations. 

India’s rank dropped primarily because of major challenges in 11 SDGs including zero hunger, good health and wellbeing, gender equality and sustainable cities and communities.

The overall Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) score of India was 66 out of 100.

State-wise rankings 

According to the report, Jharkhand and Bihar are the least prepared to meet the SDGs by the target year 2030.

Kerala topped, with Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh in second position. Karnataka, Goa, Uttarakhand, and Andhra Pradesh tied for third place. 

Union Territory Rankings

According to the report, Chandigarh topped among the Union Territories, followed by Delhi, Puducherry, and Lakshadweep in second place, and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands in the third position.


Environment Performance Index 2022

Recently, the World Economic Forum has released the Environment Performance Index (EPI) 2022. India has been ranked at 180th position, bottom of the 2022 Index. The index measured the environmental performance of all the 180 countries. 

India scored 18.9 and has been ranked last. India has also scored low on rule of law, control of corruption and government effectiveness, according to EPI. India was ranked 168th in EPI-2020, with a score of 27.6.

Denmark has been ranked 1st with EPI score of 77.90 followed by United Kingdom with a score of 77.70. Finland is ranked 3rd, followed by Malta and Sweden.

About Environment Performance Index (EPI)

  • The Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is an international ranking system of countries based on their environmental health.
  • It was developed to evaluate environmental sustainability relative to the paths of other countries.
  • It is a biennial index and was first published in 2002 as Environmental Sustainability Index by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy and the Columbia University Center for International Earth Science Information Network.
  • It was designed to supplement the environmental targets set forth in the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

PM Narendra Modi launches new series of coins with Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav design

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched a special series of coins that are also ‘visually impaired friendly’. 

The coins of Re 1, Rs 2, 5, 10 and 20 denominations will have the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM) design celebrating 75 years of independence. They are not commemorative coins and will be part of circulation.

These new series of coins will remind people of the goal of amrit kal and motivate people to work towards the development of the country.


World Oceans Day

World Oceans Day is celebrated annually on 8 June. The day is celebrated to remind people the importance of the oceans and the major role they play in everyday life. 

The day is also observed to make raise public awareness of the ocean and its resources in order to promote global ocean and resource sustainability. “World Oceans Day” was officially recognised by the United Nations in 2008.

The theme for World Oceans Day 2022 is “Revitalization: collective action for the ocean”

The idea of celebrating World Ocean Day was first proposed in 1992 by Canada’s International Centre for Ocean Development (ICOD) and the Ocean Institute of Canada (OIC) at the Earth Summit – UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 

Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

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Assam Current Affairs – June 09-10, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 09-10 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 09- 10 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 310: June 2022, Week 2 | Watch video explanation

June 09-10, 2022

NHAI creates Guinness World Record by constructing 75 kms lane on NH-53 

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has created a Guinness World Record for constructing the longest bituminous lane of 75 kms in 105 hours and 33 minutes on the National Highway-53 between Amravati and Akola Districts in Maharashtra.

The lane was laid in 105 hours and 33 minutes.  The work on the 75 km single lane concrete road in Maharashtra started on June 3, 2022, and was completed on June 7, 2022 (under 5 days), breaking Qatar’s record. 

Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari congratulated the team workers.  He said, the Amravati to Akola section which is a part of NH-53 in Maharashtra is an important east-east corridor that connects the major cities such as Raipur, Kolkata, Surat, and Nagpur. Once completed, the national highway will play a major role in easing the movement of traffic and freight on this route.

The previous Guinness World Record for the longest continuously laid bituminous was for building the 25.275 kms of road that was achieved in Doha, Qatar in February 2019. The task was completed in 10 days.


India and Vietnam signed “Joint Vision Statement on Defence Partnership towards 2030”

India and Vietnam have signed the ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’, which will significantly enhance the scope and scale of existing defence cooperation.

Both the countries inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Mutual Logistics Support and also agreed on the early finalisation of the $500 million Defence Line of Credit extended to Vietnam.

India will gift two simulators and a monetary grant towards the setting up of Language and IT Lab at the Air Force Officers Training School for capacity building of the Vietnamese Armed Forces.

India and Vietnam “share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership since 2016 and defence cooperation is a key pillar of this partnership.” It is an important partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision” and the two countries “share a rich history of civilisational and cultural linkages spanning over 2,000 years.”


Avani Lekhara wins gold in Para Shooting World Cup 2022

Avani Lekhara won the medal gold at the Para Shooting World Cup with a world record score of 250.6 in women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 event in Chateauroux, France. 

She broke her own world record of 249.6 to secure her a spot at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

Emilia Babska bagged the silver medal with a total of 247.6, while the bronze went to Anna Normann of Sweden after she shot 225.6.

Sriharsha Devaraddi Ramakrishna has won a gold medal with a world record score of 253.1 in mixed 10m air rifle SH2 at the ongoing Chateauroux Para Shooting World Cup. With this he has secured a spot at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. 


Union Health Minister releases FSSAI’s 4th State Food Safety Index

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya released the 4th State Food Safety Index on the occasion of World Food Safety Day. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) compiled the report to assess states’ performance across five food safety categories. 

Key Points 

  • Tamil Nadu topped the State Food Safety Index followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra. 
  • In the category of small states, Goa has been ranked first followed by Manipur and Sikkim. 
  • Among UTs, Jammu & Kashmir has been ranked first, followed by Delhi and Chandigarh.

About Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)

  • Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 with the aim to promote and protect public health by means of various regulations and supervisions of food safety.  
  • It is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India. 
  • It is headed by a non-executive chairperson, appointed by the Central Government, either holding or has held the position of not below the rank of Secretary to the Government of India.
  • Rajesh Bhusan is the current chairperson for FSSAI and Shri Arun Singhal is the current chief executive officer for FSSAI.

About State Food Safety Index

  • The index was developed by FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) in 2018-19 to measure the performance of states on five significant parameters of Food Safety.
  • The parameters include Human Resources and Institutional Data, Compliance, Food Testing facility, Training & Capacity Building and Consumer Empowerment. 
  • The Index is a dynamic quantitative and qualitative benchmarking model that provides an objective framework for evaluating food safety across all States/UTs.

Ramkrishna Mukkavilli becomes the first Indian to be recognised as Global SDG Pioneer by UNGC

  • Ramkrishna Mukkavilli has become the first Indian to be recognised as the Global Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Pioneer for water stewardship by the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). This is for the first time that an Indian has been recognised for the position.
  • He has been recognized for his work in building water security with nature-based water solutions across India and 27 countries. 
  • The United Nations Global Compact has named 10 new SDG Pioneers, who are corporate leaders who are excelling in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by implementing the UN Global Compact Ten Principles on human rights, environment, labour, and anti-corruption.
  • Ramkrishna Mukkavilli is the founder and the Managing Director of Maithri Aquatech, a Make-in-India company. The company’s unique solution- Meghdoot, is based on an alternative water concept which is known as Atmospheric Water Generation that taps into a vast, renewable water resource- AIR, which contains six times as much fresh water as all the rivers on the planet combined.

World’s First ‘Right To Repair’ Law For Digital Electronics Passed by New York Legislature

The New York State Legislature in the United States has passed the world’s first ‘Right to Repair’ law For Digital Electronics.  

The “right to repair” bill enacted by requiring digital electronics makers to make parts, tools, information, and software available to customers and independent repair businesses. 

After government pressure to safeguard customers’ rights to repair and refurbish their purchased products, the “Fair Repair Act” was enacted. 

The “Fair Repair Act” comes after federal pressure to enforce consumers’ rights to repair and refurbish their purchased goods.

This bill will not include motor vehicles, home appliances, medical devices, public safety communications equipment like police radios, agricultural equipment, and off-road equipment.

As per the survey, 59 percent of independent repair firms claimed they could have to close their doors, according to a recent poll.


China releases world’s most detailed map of the moon

Recently, China releases world’s most detailed map of the moon, which is expected to make a great contribution to the scientific research, exploration, and landing site selection on the moon. 

It is the most detailed to date, registering even finer details of the lunar surface than mapped by the US in 2020. 

Key Points

  • The Institute of Geochemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has led the project, along with other organisations such as Chinese Academy of Geological Science, China University of Geosciences and Shandong University. 
  • The most detailed map of the moon was published by Science Bulletin on May 30, 2022.
  • The new comprehensive geological map of the moon released by China is to a scale of 1:2,500,000. It is the most detailed moon map to date. 
  • The moon map includes the 12,341 impact craters, 17 rock types, 81 impact basins, and 14 types of structures. 
  • The new significant details of moon map have provided abundant information about the geology of the moon and its evolution.

Himachal Pradesh becomes the first Indian state to approve a policy for drones

  • The ‘Himachal Pradesh Drone Policy 2022’ was approved by the chief minister Jai Ram Thakur. 
  • It mainly focuses on creating drone-enabled technology, creation of manpower through the establishment of training schools, startup and innovation schemes. 
  • The policy aims to propagate the use of drone-enabled technology in different sectors such as defence, transport, health, agriculture etc. 
  • The policy envisions creating a holistic drone ecosystem built upon the foundation of Governance and Reforms Using Drones (GARUD). 
  • With this new drone policy, Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country to formally acknowledge the public use of drones.
  • The Himachal Pradesh government has already designated ITI Shahpur for training personnel to use drones for successful implementation of drone policy in the state.
  • The Department of Information Technology has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Indian drone companies such as Skye Air and TechEagle to deliver medical and agri commodities within the state.

Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 310: June 2022, Week 2 | Watch video explanation

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Assam Current Affairs – June 07-08, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 07-08 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 07- 08 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022

 

June 07-08, 2022

NHAI creates Guinness World Record by constructing 75 kms lane on NH-53 

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has created a Guinness World Record for constructing the longest bituminous lane of 75 kms in 105 hours and 33 minutes on the National Highway-53 between Amravati and Akola Districts in Maharashtra.

The lane was laid in 105 hours and 33 minutes.  The work on the 75 km single lane concrete road in Maharashtra started on June 3, 2022, and was completed on June 7, 2022 (under 5 days), breaking Qatar’s record. 

Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari congratulated the team workers.  He said, the Amravati to Akola section which is a part of NH-53 in Maharashtra is an important east-east corridor that connects the major cities such as Raipur, Kolkata, Surat, and Nagpur. Once completed, the national highway will play a major role in easing the movement of traffic and freight on this route.

The previous Guinness World Record for the longest continuously laid bituminous was for building the 25.275 kms of road that was achieved in Doha, Qatar in February 2019. The task was completed in 10 days.


India and Vietnam signed “Joint Vision Statement on Defence Partnership towards 2030”

India and Vietnam have signed the ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’, which will significantly enhance the scope and scale of existing defence cooperation.

Both the countries inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Mutual Logistics Support and also agreed on the early finalisation of the $500 million Defence Line of Credit extended to Vietnam.

India will gift two simulators and a monetary grant towards the setting up of Language and IT Lab at the Air Force Officers Training School for capacity building of the Vietnamese Armed Forces.

India and Vietnam “share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership since 2016 and defence cooperation is a key pillar of this partnership.” It is an important partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision” and the two countries “share a rich history of civilisational and cultural linkages spanning over 2,000 years.”


Avani Lekhara wins gold in Para Shooting World Cup 2022

Avani Lekhara won the medal gold at the Para Shooting World Cup with a world record score of 250.6 in women’s 10m air rifle standing SH1 event in Chateauroux, France. 

She broke her own world record of 249.6 to secure her a spot at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.

Emilia Babska bagged the silver medal with a total of 247.6, while the bronze went to Anna Normann of Sweden after she shot 225.6.

Sriharsha Devaraddi Ramakrishna has won a gold medal with a world record score of 253.1 in mixed 10m air rifle SH2 at the ongoing Chateauroux Para Shooting World Cup. With this he has secured a spot at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. 


Union Health Minister releases FSSAI’s 4th State Food Safety Index

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya released the 4th State Food Safety Index on the occasion of World Food Safety Day. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) compiled the report to assess states’ performance across five food safety categories. 

Key Points 

  • Tamil Nadu topped the State Food Safety Index followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra. 
  • In the category of small states, Goa has been ranked first followed by Manipur and Sikkim. 
  • Among UTs, Jammu & Kashmir has been ranked first, followed by Delhi and Chandigarh.

About Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)

  • Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 with the aim to promote and protect public health by means of various regulations and supervisions of food safety.  
  • It is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India. 
  • It is headed by a non-executive chairperson, appointed by the Central Government, either holding or has held the position of not below the rank of Secretary to the Government of India.
  • Rajesh Bhusan is the current chairperson for FSSAI and Shri Arun Singhal is the current chief executive officer for FSSAI.

About State Food Safety Index

  • The index was developed by FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) in 2018-19 to measure the performance of states on five significant parameters of Food Safety.
  • The parameters include Human Resources and Institutional Data, Compliance, Food Testing facility, Training & Capacity Building and Consumer Empowerment. 
  • The Index is a dynamic quantitative and qualitative benchmarking model that provides an objective framework for evaluating food safety across all States/UTs.

Assam Current Affairs – June 05-06, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 05-06 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 05- 06 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

June 05-06, 2022

World Environment Day 2022

The World Environment Day 2022 is observed every year on June 5. It is celebrated every year to raise awareness about the conservation of the environment as well as to encourage people worldwide to take positive environmental actions in order to help in creating a better future.

The theme for World Environment Day 2022 is “Only One Earth”. It focuses on living sustainably in harmony with nature. This year Sweden is the host country. 

Background

The 1972 United Nations Conference on the Environment in Stockholm was the first world conference. It was the first world conference with environment as its major agenda. It declared “right to live in a healthy environment” as “basic human right”. With this, the idea of World Environment Day was formalized. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was created as a result of this conference.


World’s largest plant discovered in Australia 

Scientists recently discovered the World’s Largest Plant growing underwater in Western Australia. Living in the shallow waters off the coast of Western Australia, the marine flowering plant known as Posidonia australis. 

A group of researchers from Flinders University and The University of Western Australia have found that the plant is 4,500 years old. It is believe that the plant is large as 200 square kilometers (77sq miles),

It is a sea-grass which is measured to be 180 km in length. The scientists used genetic testing to identify the sprawling mass to be a single plant. It has double the number of chromosomes than other similar plants, and managed to survive the volatile atmosphere of the Shark Bay.


SC directed protected forest, national park and wildlife sanctuary across India should have a mandatory eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of minimum 1 km

The Supreme Court of India recently directed that every protected forest, national park and wildlife sanctuary across the country should have a mandatory eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of a minimum one km starting from their demarcated boundaries.

Directions by the Court

  • In case any national park or protected forest already has a buffer zone extending beyond one km, that would prevail. 
  • Mining within the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries shall not be permitted. 
  • In case the question of the extent of buffer zone was pending a statutory decision, then the court’s direction to maintain the one-km safety zone would be applicable until a final decision is arrived at under the law. 

About Eco Sensitive Zone (ESZ)

  • Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs) or Ecologically Fragile Areas (EFAs) are areas notified by the MoEFCC around Protected Areas, National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries. 
  • The purpose of declaring ESZs around national parks, forests and sanctuaries is to create some kind of a “shock absorber” for the protected areas. 
  • These zones would act as a transition zone from areas of high protection to those involving lesser protection. 
  • An Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs) could go up to 10 kilometres around a protected area as provided in the Wildlife Conservation Strategy, 2002. 
  • To minimize the impact of urbanization and other developmental activities, the areas adjacent to protected areas have been declared as Eco-Sensitive Zones.
  • Activities like industries causing pollution Commercial mining, establishment of major hydroelectric projects (HEP), saw mills, commercial use of wood, Tourism, production of hazardous substances and discharge of effluents or any solid waste are all prohibited.
  • Activities like agricultural or horticultural practices, organic farming, rainwater harvesting, use of renewable energy sources, adoption of green technology etc are permitted.

Turkey changes its official name to Turkiye

The United Nations has changed the Republic of Turkey’s country name at the organisation from “Turkey” to “Türkiye”, following a request from Ankara for the change. 

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric had been received from the Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu addressed to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, requesting the use of “Türkiye” instead of “Turkey” for all affairs.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said  that “Türkiye is the best representation and expression of the Turkish people’s culture, civilization, and values.”

The government of Turkey has started re-branding campaign. It will start featuring “Made in Türkiye” on all exported products.


Blue Duke declared as the state Butterfly of Sikkim

The Chief Minister of Sikkim, Prem Singh Tamang has declared Blue Duke as the state butterfly  on the occasion of World Environment Day at Saramsa Garden near Ranipool during the event organized by the Forest department.

Blue Duke edged past Krishna Peacock, which was to be announced as State Butterfly of Sikkim. The two butterflies, among the 720-odd butterfly species, had been shortlisted for the State Butterfly nominations. 

According to the Forest department, an online voting was conducted between April and September to select the State Butterfly. Among the 4036 votes, 57% of the votes went in favour of Blue Duke while 43% voted for Krishna Peacock.

About Blue Duke 

  • Blue Duke is a native butterfly species of Sikkim which was discovered in the state in 1858.
  • It is also called Bassarona durga durga, which is unique to Sikkim and Eastern Himalayas
  • It is found at an altitude below 1,500 metres in the Himalayas and is commonly found in places like Pakyong, Passingdong and Hee-Gyathang in Dzongu, Lingee in South Sikkim and Yangsum in West Sikkim and closer to the State capital in places like Tadong and Ranka.
  • Blue Duke falls in Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and is a protected species in the Himalayas.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches “Lifestyle for Environment Movement”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches a global initiative “Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE) Movement”, on the occasion of World Environment Day today through video conferencing.  

The idea of LiFE was introduced by the Prime Minister during the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties COP-26 in Glasgow last year.

Mission LiFE borrows from the past, operates in the present and focuses on the future. 

The idea promotes an environment conscious lifestyle that focuses on mindful and deliberate utilisation instead of mindless and destructive consumption.

The launch will initiate the “LiFE Global Call for Papers” inviting ideas and suggestions from academics, universities and research institutions etc to influence and persuade individuals, communities and organisations across the world to adopt an environment-conscious lifestyle.


eSanjeevani integrated with Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission

The National Health Authority (NHA) announced the successful integration of eSanjeevani with Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).

Significance of the integration of eSanjeevani with Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) 

  • The integration will help existing users of eSanjeevani to create their Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA). 
  • This is one such example where the 22 crore ABHA holders can link and store their health records created via eSanjeevani in the health lockers of their choice.
  • The users would also be able to share their health records with doctors on eSanjeevani leading to better clinical decision making and ensuring the continuum of care. 
  • ABHA beneficiaries will now be able to access medical facilities from the comforts of their houses through the eSanjeevani platform that provides telemedicine services. 

 

About eSanjeevani

eSanjeevani is a telemedicine service of the telemedicine service of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). 

eSanjeevani service is available in two variants: 

eSanjeevani Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centre (AB-HWC): It is a Doctor-to-Doctor telemedicine service under Ayushman Bharat-Health and Wellness Centres scheme of the Government of India, to provide general and specialised health services in rural areas and isolated communities. 

eSanjeevani OPD: It is serving patients across the country by connecting them directly to doctors from the comforts of their homes.

Both eSanjeevani AB-HWC and eSanjeevani OPD have been integrated with the ABDM platform and has now joined other 40 digital health applications that have completed their ABDM integration.

Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

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Assam Current Affairs – May 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – May 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the month of May 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022

 

Arunachal Pradesh Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan pact signed with WWF India
  • To develop the State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (SBSAP) a pact has been inked by Arunachal Pradesh with WWF India. The SBSAP will be aligning with the Pakke Declaration and the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework.
  • This pact will be showcasing Arunachal Pradesh’s participatory conservation initiatives and will be looking to develop an action plan that will be inclusive in nature and will be looking to secure nature’s contribution to people.
  • The plan will also be reflecting the people as well as the state’s aspirations toward sustainable development.
FACTFILE – Pakke Declaration
  • In 2021, the “Pakke Tiger Reserve 2047 Declaration on Climate Change Resilient and Responsive Arunachal Pradesh” was adopted by the state government and aims to promote development that is climate-resilient in the state.
  • This declaration also focuses on multi-sectoral approaches for climate-resilient development and low emission which are based on five themes which are Health and Well-being for all; Environment, Forest, and Climate Change; Livelihoods, and opportunities; Sustainable and Adaptive living; and Evidence generation, and collaborative action.

ADB Loan to Nagaland for Urban Infrastructure Projects
  • The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India have signed a USD 2 million Project Readiness Financing (PRF) Loan for strengthening the institutional capacity, designing urban infrastructures that are climate-resilient, and improving the mobilization of municipal resources in Nagaland’s 16 district headquarter towns (DHTs).
  • The loan has been signed by Additional Secretary Rajat Kumar Mishra of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and Country Director of ADB’s India Resident Mission, Takeo Konishi.
  • The PRF loan will help in the facilitation of various key preparatory activities to ensure projects that are aimed to improve urban infrastructure and other services to boost the economic potential of Nagaland.
  • The loan will ensure the state’s project readiness by undertaking feasibility studies, preparing the implementation of detailed engineering designs for selected subprojects and an urban sector strategy, and capacity building of various state-level agencies for the purpose of project implementation, anchoring reforms, and resource mobilization.
  • The cities and towns of Nagaland are facing challenges related to climate change, poor connectivity, and lack of basic amenities.
  • The state’s major transport routes are also affected due to landslides during the monsoon season. The urban roads of the state are in poor condition as they do not have a proper stormwater drainage system.
  • A lot of the cities of the state also face acute water shortages and have inadequate sewerage management systems.
  • The loan will help in designing sanitation, water supply, urban roads, and solid waste management infrastructures having climate-resilient features and improved access to the state’s vulnerable and poor.


 OIL commissioned Jorhat Green Hydrogen Pilot Plant 
  • Oil India Limited (OIL) has commissioned India’s first commercial-grade green hydrogen production plant at Jorhat, Assam.
  • To produce hydrogen, this plant will be using renewable energy from Oil India’s 500kW solar plant pump station. The produced hydrogen will be blended with natural gas to run hydrogen buses in the state of Assam.
  • This newly commissioned pilot project has a daily production capacity of 10kg, which will be increased to 30kg per day.
  • Green Hydrogen is being produced in the plant from the electricity that is generated by the existing 500kW Solar plant utilizing a 100 kW Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) Electrolyser array. This is the first time AEM technology is being used in India.

 NIXI-CSC and Tripura signed MOU to set up International Standard Data Centre 
  • A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been inked between the government of Tripura and the NIXI-CSC Data Services Centre to establish an international standard Data Centre in the state.
  • To set up this proposed data centre, CSE e-governance services Ltd and the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) have floated a joint venture.
  • Rs 150 crore will be invested by the joint venture company while the state government will only be providing the space for setting up the Data Centre.
  • In the next one or two months, the NIXI-CSC Data Services Centre will kick start the Data Centre while it will take a year to raise the Data Centre’s standards to a world-class level.
  • This collaboration will enable the state government to host all of its data in the proposed Data Centre, while the state will also be provided with data free of cost. The company will be charging for data exchange to other private players and governments other than Tripura.

 Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA) Project won UN Award

The government of Meghalaya’s Planning Department’s initiative of the “e-Proposal System”, has won the UN Award – World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum Prizes 2022. The “e-Proposal System” is a part of Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA), which eliminates 75 per cent physical work of files in all government departments in the state.

FACTFILE – MeghEA Project
  • The Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture Project (MeghEA) was launched in 2021 with the aim of improving governance and service delivery for the people of the state using the power of various digital technologies.
  • Enterprise Architecture (EA) is the process by which various organisations standardise and organise their Information Technology related infrastructure to achieve various business objectives.
  • The MeghEA initiative is spread across 6 pillars i.e.  Governance, Human Resources, Entrepreneurship, Primary Sector, Infrastructure and Environment, and envision to make Meghalaya a high income state by 2030.
  • The project aims to improve service delivery and governance for the people using power of Digital technologies.

MeghEA is supporting the digital government goals that are:

  • A planned transformation initiative of the state government which demands efficient coordination among policies, strategies, services, processes, and organizational capacity.
  • All information and communications technology (ICT) initiatives will be coordinated under one umbrella to provide a better holistic perspective.
  • Implementation of ICT enabled state government process with the aim of providing multi-channel service delivery.
  • Ensuring that the systems and applications of the state government provide users with all relevant information.
  • Crafting an ecosystem to boost the digital economy by leveraging ICT for growth and employment.

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022


 Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav – North East Festival
  • The week-long Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav – North East Festival began on 28th April 2022 till 4th May 2022 and it will be showcasing the potential of the Northeast region.
  • This week-long festival will be held across the 8 states of the northeast region in their own significant and special manner.
  • This festival is being leveraged to discuss the various fundamental aspects of the development of India’s Northeast region.
  • This festival will be celebrating aspiration, hope, and vision for a prosperous and developed North East Region.
  • Cultural programs will also be held that will celebrate the uniqueness of this region and will also be highlighting its potential.
  • The valedictory session of this festival would be celebrated on 4th May at Guwahati.
Themes of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav – North East Festival
  • Shillong: Investment Potential and future energy needs of North East (29th April)
  • Itanagar: Welfare of Tribals and Border Management (30th April)
  • Gangtok: The Smart City Revolution in the North East (30th April)
  • Agartala: Role of women in the development of North East (1st May)
  • Aizawl: Eco-Tourism in North East (2nd May)
  • Dimapur: Agri Horti and organic products potential of North East (2nd May)
  • Sports Potential of the North East region will be celebrated as a parallel to Sports week.
  • Imphal: The culmination would be celebrated (3rd May)

 Open Neobank become India’s 100th Unicorn Start-up
  • Open, a Bengaluru-based neobank platform has become the 100th unicorn start-up in India.
  • The start-up has raised fresh funds that increased its valuation to USD 1 billion. The new investment round to raise funds was led by IIFL, a Mumbai-based investment firm along with the existing investors, Temasek, Tiger Global, and 3one4 Capital. USD 50 million was raised in the latest round.
  • Temasek, Google, SoftBank, and Visa have invested USD 100 million in this neobank start-up Open.
FACTFILE – Open Neobank
  • The start-up was founded in the year 2017 by Anish Achuthan, his wife Mabel Chacko, and his brother Ajeesh Achuthan. Deena Jacob is the fourth founding member of this organization. In the month of May 2018, USD 2 million was raised by this start-up.
  • CEO- Anish Achutan, Chief Operating Officer- Mabel Chacko, Chief Technology Officer- Ajeesh Achutan and Chief Financial Officer- Deena Jacob
FACTFILE – Neobanks

Neobanks are digital banks having zero branches. Instead, such organizations have their presence online. Neobank organizations target the tech-savvy customers. Neobanks basically are fintech firms providing mobile-first and digital services like debit cards, payments, lending, money transfers, etc. The services of the neobanks can be accessed via an app.

FACTFILE – Unicorns

A Unicorn is a start-up company that is privately held and has been valued at more than USD 1 billion. This term was made popular by venture capitalist Aileen Lee who is the founder of Cowboy Ventures.


 Rajasthan became the first state to surpass 10 GW solar capacity
  • Rajasthan became the first state in the country to surpass 10 GW of cumulative large-scale solar installations, as per the Mercom’s India Solar Project Tracker.
  • Rajasthan has a total of 32.5 GW of installed power capacity.
  • Renewable energy contributes to 55% of Rajasthan’s total installed power capacity. Whereas thermal energy contributes 43%, and nuclear energy contributes the remaining 2%.
  • Solar is the predominant source in Rajasthan, which accounts for around 36% of the power capacity mix and 64% of renewables.
  • Rajasthan has over 16 GW of solar projects under development.

Some of the favorable conditions for the generation of solar power in Rajasthan are:

  • Rajasthan enjoys the highest solar irradiation levels in India.
  • Availability of land to commission solar projects.
  • Minimal power curtailment issues.
FACTFILE – Rajasthan’s Solar Energy Policy 2019
  • Rajasthan’s Solar Energy Policy 2019, which aims to achieve a target of 30 GW of solar power by the FY 2024-25.
  • Of this, utility or grid-scale solar parks have a major share, which will account for 24 GW.
Installed solar capacity of India

As of December 2021, the cumulative solar installed capacity of India is 55GW. Within the 55GW, grid-connected utility-scale projects contribute 77%.

 


 Cynthia Rosenzweig awarded 2022 World Food Prize
  • Cynthia Rosenzweig, NASA’s head of the Climate Impacts Group and a senior research scientist at Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) received the 2022 World Food Prize from the World Food Prize Foundation. She received USD 250,000 along with a commemorative sculpture and a diploma.
  • She received the award for her research that helped understand the relationship between food systems and climate and the forecast of how both will be changing in the future.
FACTFILE – World Food Prize
  • The World Food Prize is an award that is given with the aim of recognizing the achievements of individuals from across the world who have helped in advancing the development of humans by improving the quantity, quality, or availability of food across the world.
  • The award was conceived by Norman Borlaug, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
  • This prize was established in 1986 and the first prize was given in the year 1987 to S. Swaminathan.
  • This prize has been awarded annually since to recognize contributions in all those fields that involve world food supply like:
    • Aquaculture
    • animal science
    • water conservation
    • soil science
    • health
    • nutrition
    • seed science
    • plant science
    • crop protection
    • plant pathology
    • food safety
    • food technology
    • research
    • policy
    • emergency relief
    • infrastructure
    • hunger
    • poverty alleviation

 India’s first Regional Rapid Transit System Train set handed to NCRTC
  • The first trainset of India’s first Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) was recently handed over to National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC). These trains are 100% indigenous. This is in line with the government’s Make in India program and Aatmanirbhar Bharat’s ambition.
  • The trainset was designed at Alstom’s Hyderabad engineering center and manufactured in Alstom’s factory in Savli (Gujarat). The propulsion systems and electricals are manufactured in Maneja (Gujarat).
FACTFILE – Delhi–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS)
  • It is an 82.15 km long semi-high speed rail corridor connecting Delhi, Ghaziabad, and Meerut. The corridor is under construction.
  • It is one of the three rapid rail corridors planned under Phase I of the Regional Rapid Transport System (RRTS) project of the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC).
  • The Delhi-Meerut RRTS will be the first in India to adopt the European Train Control System (ETCS) hybrid Level 2 signaling system.
  • The RRTS corridors will operate the fastest trains in India with a design speed of 180 kmph.
FACTFILE – National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC)
  • National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) is a joint venture company of the Government of India and the States of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh (UP).
  • It is mandated for implementing the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project across the National Capital Region (NCR) of India.

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022


 World Bank Report on World Governance Indicators (WGI)

The Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) project reports governance indicators for over 200 countries for the following six dimensions of governance:

  1. Voice and Accountability
  2. Political Stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism
  3. Government Effectiveness
  4. Regulatory Quality
  5. Rule of Law
  6. Control of Corruption

These aggregate indicators are based on over 30 individual data sources produced by a variety of survey institutes, think tanks, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, and private sector firms such as Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project and Freedom House, etc.

Concern of the Indian government
  • According to the government, World Governance Indicators (WGI) is based on impressions from the Western press or small surveys of NGOs and a handful of academics, many of them do not even have an India expert.
  • Due to the negative commentary on India by these institutes there will be a drop in WGI scores.
  • This could downgrade India’s Sovereign Ratings.

The government reached out to sovereign rating agencies. On October 5, 2021, Moody’s Investors Service raised the outlook on India’s sovereign rating to ‘stable’ from ‘negative’.


  B.V. Doshi conferred with the Royal Gold Medal 2022
  • Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi has been conferred with the prestigious Royal Gold Medal 2022, which is one of the world’s highest honours in the field of architecture.
  • Simon Allford who is the president of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) presented this award to B.V. Doshi at his residence in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
  • This award is presented to recognize a lifetime’s work of an individual that had a significant impact on advancing the field of architecture. Queen Elizabeth of the United Kingdom personally approves this prestigious medal.
BIOGRAPHY – B.V. Doshi

·         B.V. Doshi became the first Indian to be conferred with the Pritzker Architecture Prize when he was awarded it in 2018.

·         After receiving the Royal Gold Medal, he became the first Indian and very few from across the globe to have received both prizes.

·         He was conferred the Padma Bhushan by the Indian central government in the year 2020. It is the country’s third-highest civilian award.

·         B.V. Doshi has worked on 100 projects that include educational facilities, cultural buildings, housing developments, etc. Some of his important projects include:

  • Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore
  • Ahmedabad School of Architecture
  • Aranya Low-Cost Housing
  • Indian Institute of Management, Udaipur
  • Tagore Hall and Memorial Theatre, Ahmedabad
  • NIFT Delhi

 National Technology Day celebrated on May 11
  • Every year, May 11th is celebrated in India as National Technology Day, to mark the anniversary of the Pokhran nuclear tests (Pokhran-II) conducted in May 1998.
  • Pokhran-II nuclear tests were a series of five nuclear tests conducted under the administration of Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam at the Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan’s Thar desert from 11th to 13th May 1998.
  • Pokhran-II nuclear tests was code named Operation Shakti.
  • The first nuclear tests were conducted by India in 1974. It was code-named, Smiling Buddha.
  • Theme for this year’s National Technology Day is Integrated Approach in Science & Technology for Sustainable Future.

  Tomato Flu Outbreak in Kerala
  • Kerala has been struck by another viral disease known as the Tomato Flu. It is a rare viral disease due to which blisters shaped like tomatoes are formed. As of 11th May 2022, around 80 children of the state who are under the age of five have already been affected.
  • All the 80 cases in Kerala have been detected from the Kollam district. Due to this outbreak, the neighbouring states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have increased their border surveillance.
  • This disease has no specific treatment for Tomato Flu. This disease is also highly contagious.
FACTFILE – Tomato Flu
  • This is a flu that causes red blisters and rashes on the body of the infected child. They are mostly generally red in colour and hence it is known as Tomato Fever or Tomato Flu. The main symptoms of this disease include:
  • Large blisters that are red in colour and are tomato sized
  • Body ache
  • High fever
  • Swelling of joints.
  • Nausea
  • Abdominal cramps
  • Fatigue
  • Vomiting
  • Discolouration of knees, hands, and buttocks.

 Rajiv Kumar elected New Chief Election Commissioner of India
  • From May 15th, 2022, Rajiv Kumar, the current Election Commissioner (EC), will take over as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). This announcement was made by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice.
  • Since September 1st, 2020 Rajiv Kumar is serving as the Election Commissioner (EC).
  • Sushil Chandra is the incumbent Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) who will demit his office on May 14th, 2022.
FACTFILE – Election Commission of India (ECI)
  • According to Article 324 (2) of the constitution, the Election Commission of India (ECI) shall consist of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and other election commissioners, if any, as the President may from time to time fix. 
  • Currently, ECI consists of the CEC and two Election Commissioners (ECs).
  • The salary of the CEC is the same as the salary of a Judge of the Supreme Court of India.
  • Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) can be removed from office only in a manner and on grounds similar to a Judge of the Supreme Court of India.

 Czech Republic to replace Russia on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) 
  • The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in a secret ballot voting elected the Czech Republic to replace Russia on the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
  • 157 countries voted in favor of the Czech Republic in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and there were 23 abstentions. 
  • The Czech Republic retains the UNHRC seat till 31 December 2023.
  • Russia was suspended from UNHRC by a vote in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for its human rights violations in Ukraine. Still Russia can participate in the UNHRC sessions as it has observer status.
FACTFILE – United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)
  • The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a UN organization that aims to protect human rights.
  • It was established by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 2006.
  • It replaced the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR).
  • The headquarters of UNHRC is in Geneva in Switzerland.
  • The UNHRC has 47 members elected for three-year terms and the seats are divided on a regional group basis.
  • No member can occupy the UNHRC seat for more than two consecutive terms.
  • The UNHRC seats are divided into the following regional groups: 13 for Africa, 13 for Asia, 6 for Eastern Europe, 8 for Latin America and the Caribbean (GRULAC), and 7 for the Western European and Others Group (WEOG).

 Niti Aayog launced National Data & Analytics Platform
  • NITI Aayog launched the National Data & Analytics Platform (NDAP) for open public use. In August 2021, a beta version of the platform was released, which provided access to only a few users for testing and feedback.
  • National Data & Analytics Platform (NDAP) aims to make public government data accessible, interoperable, and available on a user-friendly platform. The platform contains data from different government agencies. It provides tools for analytics and visualization of the data.
  • It has 203 datasets from 46 central government ministries and agencies which were selected based on use cases and expert advice. These datasets are interoperable with each other. The datasets will be regularly updated to ensure that it remains relevant.
  • The datasets will be available in multiple languages. Users can follow any particular dataset they’re interested in. When there is an update in the dataset followed by the users, they will notification. The platform can be easily accessed by visually-impaired users as it will have audio and video tutorials in Hindi and English.
  • The NDAP makes the datasets interoperable with each other, which will enable easy cross-sectoral analysis. It will also democratize the use of public government data, by ensuring its availability till the last mile. It will promote data-driven policy-making and evidence-based decision-making.

 Manik Saha became Tripura’s New Chief Minister
  • Manik Saha has taken oath as the new Chief Minister of Tripura on 15th May 2022. He was elected as the new Chief Minister of the state after former CM Biplab Kumar Deb resigned.
  • The Governor of the state Satyadeo Narain Arya had administered the oath of secrecy to Manik Saha at a ceremony that was held at Raj Bhawan.
  • Manik Saha is the BJP State unit president of Tripura as well as the only Rajya Sabha MP from the state.

 India wins Thomas Cup for the first time
  • India created history by winning the Thomas Cup title for the first time. Thomas cup 2022 was held in Bangkok, Thailand.India defeated defending champions Indonesia in the Thomas cup finals by 3-0. 
  • India’s Lakshya Sen won the first match against Anthony Sinsuka Ginting. In the second match, Satwik and Chirag defeated the Indonesian pair of Ahsan and Sukamuljo. In the third match, K. Srikanth defeated Jonathan Christie in straight. In this tournament, Srikanth played won all the six matches played by him.
  • Badminton Association of India (BAI) President announced prize money of Rs 1 crore for the Thomas Cup-winning team. Prize money of Rs 20 lakh will be given to the support staff.
FACTFILE – Thomas Cup
  • It is an international badminton competition among men’s teams of various countries of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
  • Since 1982, Thomas cup championships are held every two years. Before that, they were conducted once every three years. The first Thomas cup tournament was conducted in 1948–1949.
  • Indonesia is the most successful team, as it won the Thomas cup 14 times. China comes second with 10 titles. Malaysia is ranked third with 5 titles.
  • Only six countries have won the Thomas cup title. India is the sixth country to win the Thomas Cup.

 Bangladesh offered India the use of the Chittagong Port
  • Bangladesh Prime Minister offered India the use of the Chittagong Port. Access to Bangladesh’s Chittagong Port will benefit India’s northeastern states like Assam, Tripura, Meghalaya, and Mizoram.
  • Chittagong Port, Bangladesh’s principal seaport is built on the Karnafuli River. It is the busiest port along the coastline of the Bay of Bengal. It is also used for transshipment by India, Nepal, and Bhutan.
  • In March 2021, the Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh inaugurated the Maitri Setu Bridge. It was built over the Feni River and reduced the distance between Tripura and the Chittagong port in Bangladesh.
  • Road infrastructure in Meghalaya’s Dawki, Assam’s Sutarkandi, and Tripura’s Akhaura linking Bangladesh is also being improved.
  • Mizoram is planning to build bridges across the Khawthlangtuipui river for faster access to the Chittagong port.

Historical Prospective

  • Before India’s independence, the northeastern part of India had access to Chittagong Port via the Brahmaputra and Barak River systems. After partition in 1947, India’s Northeast lost access to the sea. The Chittagong Port had gone to East Pakistan and India lost a major trade route. However, India continued to use the ports of East Pakistan until the 1965 war with Pakistan. After that, the northeast had to depend on a narrow strip in West Bengal for goods and passenger transportation.The revival of pre-Partition trade routes would improve the trade for the Northeast region and generate revenue for Bangladesh.


 Novak Djokovic and Iga Świątek won Italian Open 2022 singles
  • Novak Djokovic and Iga Świątek won Italian Open 2022 Men’s singles and Women’s singles respectively. The 2022 Italian Open was concluded recently on 15th May 2022.
  • Men’s doubles winners are Nikola Mektić and Mate Pavić (Croatia) and Women’s doubles: Veronika Kudermetova and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (Russia).
  • The Prize money in Italian Open 2022 is €6,008,725 for men and USD 2,527,250 for women.
FACTFILE – Italian Open 2022
  • The Italian Open is a professional tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It is held in Rome, Italy.
  • Italian Open 2022 was the 79th edition of the Italian Open. It was classified as an Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tour Masters 1000 event on the 2022 ATP Tour and a non-mandatory event on the 2022 Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour. It was held from 2 May 2022 – 15 May 2022.
  • Rafael Nadal (Spain) won the Italian Open men’s singles title a record 10 times.

 First Incredible India International Cruise Conference (IIICC) organised
  • Recently, the first Incredible India International Cruise Conference (IIICC), a two-day event jointly organized by the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
  • Strategies for developing India as a cruise hub, port infrastructure, and the potential of river cruise tourism in India were some of the issues focused on at the conference.
 Some of the MoUs signed are
  1. Mumbai Port signed MoUs with Angriya Sea Eagle Ltd and Waterways Leisure Tourism P. Ltd for homeporting their cruise ships in Mumbai and Chennai respectively for the upcoming cruising season.
  2. Mumbai Port and Training Ship Rahaman signed MoU for being an existing service provider in the field of Maritime Training for Cruise Vessels.
  3. Mumbai Port and The Apollo Group USA signed MoU for being an existing service providers to cruise operators in the country.
  4. Chennai Port and Waterways Leisure Tourism P. Ltd. Signed MoU for home porting their cruise ship in Chennai for the upcoming cruising season.
  5. A MoU was signed between the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and Adventure Resorts and Cruises for the Development of Long Cruise on Backwaters of Kerala.
  6. Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) signed MoUs with JM Baxi River Cruise and Antara Luxury River Cruises for River Cruise between Varanasi and Bogibeel via Kolkata under the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route.

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022


 Mayiladumparai is India’s earliest Iron Age site
  • Mayiladumparai is the oldest Iron Age site currently found in India. Radiocarbon dating Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (C14-carbon dating) method of excavations from the Mayiladumparai site confirmed that it is the oldest Iron Age site currently found in India.
  • After excavations at the Mayiladumparai site, it is now confirmed that iron was used in Tamil Nadu state as early as 2172 BCE or 4,200 years ago.
  • Mayiladumparai site is located in the Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu. It is habitation-cum-burial site.
  • The Mayiladumparai site was first excavated in 2003 by K Rajan of the Thanjavur-based Tamil University. In 2021, excavations were resumed by Tamil Nadu’s Department of Archaeology.
  • Iron Age in Tamil Nadu has been identified as early as 2172 BCE or 4,200 years ago. The late Neolithic phase (the last part of the Stone Age) is identified before 2200 BCE.

 World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) Report
  • According to the World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) report that was released by the United Nations, the global economy this year is expected to grow by only 3.1 per cent. The earlier prediction in January was 4.0 per cent but the rate was slashed mainly due to the war in Ukraine. This report has been published by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) of the UN.
  • The forecast has revealed that the Ukraine conflict and the COVID-19 pandemic have increased commodity and food prices, thus increasing the inflationary pressures. Global inflation this year is set to reach 6.7 per cent. The high inflation rate in the developing and least developed countries is reducing the real income of the households.
  • Higher food and energy prices are mostly affecting the developing economies that import a lot of commodities, especially the African countries.
  • The growth prospects downgrade is affecting all countries across the world including major economies like the United States, the European Union, China, etc as well as other major economies.
  • Due to this war between Russia and Ukraine, energy prices have increased drastically. The European Union faced a blunt of this effect as around a quarter of Europe’s energy consumption is in the form of natural gas and oil imports from Russia.
  • This report has highlighted that India is still the world’s fastest-growing major economy across the globe. In 2022, India has been projected to grow by 6.4 per cent. This is slower than 2021’s 8.8 per cent.

 ‘India International Centre for Buddhist Culture & Heritage’ to be setup in Lumbini, Nepal 
  • Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba recently laid the foundation stone for the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage in Lumbini, Nepal.
  • The construction of the center is undertaken by the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) on a plot allocated by the Lumbini Development Trust (LDT), under an agreement between the IBC and the LDT signed in March 2022. Ministry of Culture, Government of India is providing financial support to the center.
  • The center will be a world-class facility and pilgrims from all over the world can have the essence of the spiritual aspects of Buddhism at this center. The center will also be Nepal’s first ‘Net Zero Emission’ building.
  • International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) was formed in 2013 and has its headquarters in New Delhi, India. IBC serves as a common platform for Buddhists all over the world. IBC aims to preserve and promote Buddhist values and teachings.
FACTFILE – Lumbini
  • Lumbini is the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha).
  • This Buddhist pilgrimage site is declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997.
  • The Indian emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini and erected a commemorative pillar.

 Sweden and Finland request to join NATO

Finland and Sweden submitted their application to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Although Finland and Sweden have a non-alignment policy, they were always close to NATO. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine prompted them to join NATO and seek its safety net.

FACTFILE – North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
  • NATO is an intergovernmental military alliance consisting of 30 ember states belonging to Europe and North America (28 European states, USA, and Canada). NATO takes all decisions by consensus. The last country to join NATO was North Macedonia in 2020. 
  • NATO headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium.
  • NATO aims to guarantee the security of its members through political and military means.
  • According to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, an armed attack against any NATO member in Europe or North America will be considered an attack against all NATO members. Article 5 is invoked only once, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks against the USA.

 India Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) program
  • India President Ram Nath Kovind highlighted India’s assistance to Jamaica in capacity building and skill development through various courses under the India Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme.
  • India Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme is India’s bilateral assistance program that focuses on addressing the needs of developing countries.
  • Union Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) administers ITEC.
  • Around USD 2 billion has been spent by the Indian government under the program till now.
  • Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) played a crucial role in facilitating ITEC assistance.
  • Earlier, India was the world’s largest recipient of aid, but since the 2000s India emerged as a net donor of foreign aid.
  • Along with the Special Commonwealth Assistance for Africa Programme, ITEC covers around 158 countries across Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and Caribbean nations. 70% of the grants under ITEC go to South Asian countries. African countries are the major beneficiaries of Lines of credit (LoC).

 Nanjarayan Tank declared 17th Bird Sanctuary of Tamil Nadu
  • The Nanjarayan Tank, a bio-diversity hotspot, has just been announced as the 17th bird sanctuary of Tamil Nadu. 
  • The Nanjarayan Tank also known as Sarkar Periyapalayam Reservoir, is located on the outskirts of Tirupur city near Koolipalayam, about 60 kilometres from Coimbatore.
  • It was built by King Nanjarayan as a source for irrigation.
  • The undisturbed mudflats in the middle of the lake ensure a thriving ecosystem and also attract many birds. Pelicans, painted storks, coots, etc can be found here.  It is also a haven for migratory birds. In 2010, four bar-headed geese, one of the world’s highest-flying birds from Europe were spotted in the tank. A flock of 14 ruddy shelducks that breed in parts of Europe and Central Asia was spotted in 2020.

 State of Inequality in India Report
  • Bibek Debroy, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) recently released the “State of Inequality in India” Report, which was written by the Institute for Competitiveness.
  • The report puts forward a comprehensive analysis of inequality in the country. It collates data on inequities across various sectors such as health, education, and the labor market, which makes people more vulnerable to poverty and leads to multidimensional poverty.
  • The report is an attempt to stock-take measures introduced by the government. It also contributes to the policy debates, formulation of strategies, and preparing a roadmap for social progress.
Highlights of the report
  • Using income data from PLFS 2019-20, the report showed that a salary of Rs 25,000 per month is amongst the top 10% of total incomes earned in India.
  • There is a significant improvement in the infrastructural capacity of the health sector. However, nutritional deprivation remains a big concern.
  • High out-of-pocket expenditure also directly affects inequality.
  • Cognitive development from the foundational years of a child is a long-term corrective measure for inequality.
  • The government’s focus on providing access to sanitation and safe drinking water ensured dignified life for many. According to NFHS-5 (2019-21), 96% of households have access to safe drinking water.


 Cotton Council of India set up
  • Cotton Council of India has been recently set up by the Union government. The objective of the council is to resolve the issues related to cotton & yarn pricing and bring substantial improvements in the sector.
  • Suresh Bhai Kotak is appointed as the chairman of the Cotton Council of India.
  • In 2021-22, the Cotton textile exports, including raw cotton were USD15.29 billion. The cotton prices increased by more than 100% during the last one and half years.
  • More than 60% of cotton and cotton yarn are exported to countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam, which are competitors for India in the textiles sector.

 BioRRAP: National Portal for Biotech Researchers and Start-ups
  • Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (IC) Ministry of Science and Technology, has launched a “Single National Portal for Biotech researchers and start-ups”, named Biological Research Regulatory Approval Portal (BioRRAP) will be catering to the needs of all those seeking regulatory approval for biological development and research in India.
  • The portal will help to strengthen the interdepartmental synergies and will also bring transparency, accountability, and efficacy to the functioning of various agencies that are regulating the various aspects of biological research and also issuing permissions.
  • This portal is in line with the government’s “ease of start-ups” and “ease of doing science and scientific research.”
  • This portal is only for research-related activities and cannot be used for the purpose of product development.

FACTFILE –  Indian biotechnology industry

  • Over 2,700 biotech start-ups and more than 2,500 biotech companies are currently working in India. By the year 2025, India will become a Global Bio-manufacturing Hub and will also be featured among the top five countries across the globe in this field.
  • The Indian biotechnology industry, which stood at US$ 63 billion in 2019, is expected to reach US$ 150 billion by 2025, with a CAGR of 16.4%.
  • By 2025, the contribution of the Indian biotechnology industry to the global biotechnology market is expected to grow to 19%

 International Day for Biological Diversity observed on 22nd May
  • On the 22nd of May, the International Day for Biological Diversity is observed annually across the globe. This day is observed to generate awareness about the biodiversity issues that are overwhelming the world.
  • Biodiversity is the foundation of the planet’s ecosystem services and this is tied to the well-being of humans as well as other species. The world is filled with a variety of plants, animals, fungi, as well as microbes such as bacteria, hence, each of these species works in tandem to preserve the balance of the ecosystem and support life. 
  • In the year 2000, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) designated 22nd May as the International Day for Biological Diversity.
  • After the United Nations conducted the “Earth Conference” in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in the year 1992, special emphasis was given to conserving and protecting the environment. Following that conference, on 29th December, Biodiversity Day was observed till the year 2000.

 


 Centre of Excellence for Hyperloop Technology setup in IIT Madras
  • The Ministry of Railways will collaborate with the Indian Institute of Technology Madras to develop an indigenous Hyperloop system. The ministry will also help to set up a Centre of Excellence for Hyperloop Technologies at IIT Madras.
  • The Centre will be built by IIT Madras through its existing Centre of Railway Research (CRR). This project is a significant step towards the ‘Make in India’ and the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiatives.
  • For this project, IIT Madras will receive Rs 8.34 crore in funding from the Indian Railways. Along with the financial support, the Indian Railways will also help in the manufacturing, and formulation of safety standards. Also, access to electrical testing facilities of the railways will be provided.
  • IIT Madras will be responsible to deliver design documentation for pod, tube, and track for the hyperloop system.
FACTFILE – Hyperloop
  • Hyperloop is a new type of transport technology that uses magnetic levitation in low-pressure tubes or tunnels to transport people and goods. In 2020, the US-based company “Virgin Hyperloop” tested the Hyperloop system with passengers for the first time.
  • There are two major differences between hyperloop and standard rail. One is passengers sit in pods that travel via tubes or tunnels in which most of the air is removed to reduce friction. The second difference is that instead of using wheels, the pods will float on air skis or use magnetic levitation.
  • Hyperloop is faster and less expensive to construct than regular high-speed rail. The energy requirement is also less.

 Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF)
  • Joe Biden, the President of the United States unveiled a discussion on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). This discussion has been held with a dozen initial partner countries that also include India. The countries represent 40 percent of the world’s GDP.
  • The IPEF framework discussion was launched with the vision of an open, free, resilient, and secure Indo-Pacific region where economic growth is inclusive and sustainable.
  • The IPEF is also looking to strengthen economic partnerships among the countries with the aim of boosting resilience, sustainability, economic growth, inclusiveness, competitiveness, and fairness in the Indo-Pacific region.
  • On 23rd May 2022, India and the United States signed an Investment Incentive Agreement (IIA). This agreement was signed to make a path for strengthening and promoting Development Finance Corporation’s (DFC) investments in India in various key sectors.

 India’s FDI Inflow in Fiscal year 2021-22
  • India’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in the Financial Year 2021-22 reached an all-time high of USD 83.57 billion, despite the Russia-Ukraine war and Covid-19 pandemic.
  • India’s foreign investment inflows increased 20-fold since the financial year 2003-04 when it was mere USD 4.3 billion. Post Covid-19 pandemic, FDI inflow increased by 23%. In the financial year 2020-21, the FDI inflow stood at USD 1.60 billion.
  • In FY 2021-22, the “computer software and hardware” sector with a share of 25% remained the top sector, followed by the services sector and automobile sector. FDI inflow in the manufacturing sectors increased by 76% in 2021-211 as compared to 2020-21.
  • In FY 2021-22, Singapore with a share of 27% is the top investor country of FDI equity inflow. Singapore is followed by the U.S. (18%) and Mauritius (16%).
  • Karnataka is the top recipient state with a 38% share of the total FDI Equity inflow, followed by Maharashtra (26%) and Delhi (14%).
 World Economic Forum 2022- Key Facts 
  • The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland scheduled from May 22nd to 26th The theme for WEF annual Meeting 2022 is ‘working Together, restoring Trust’. This year’s WEF meeting will be the first global in-person leadership event since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Around 2,500 world leaders from business, politics, and civil society took part in the meeting. The meeting provides the leaders from all over the world an opportunity to take stock of the world’s situation and shape policies for the future.
  • From India Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas will attend the event on Energy Outlook: Overcoming the Crisis. YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, CM of Andhra Pradesh, will attend the event on Future-proofing Health Systems. Aaditya Thackeray, Tourism Minister of Maharashtra will attend Forum Initiative Briefing – Global Plastic Action Partnership event, and Embracing Climate Adaptation Action event. KT Rama Rao, Information Technology Minister of Telangana will attend the event on AI on the Street: Managing Trust in the Public Square.
The focus areas of the WEF meeting are
  • Pandemic recovery
  • Tackling climate change
  • Building a better future for work
  • Accelerating stakeholder capitalism
  • Harnessing the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

 India Bangladesh Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) Exercise
  • The fourth edition of the two-day India-Bangladesh Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) exercises began on 22ndst May in the Bay of Bengal. The exercise aims to strengthen mutual understanding and enhance the interoperability between the navies of India and Bangladesh in countering maritime threats.
  • For the exercise, the Indian Navy deputed two indigenous warships (INS Kora and INS Sumedha). INS Kora is a guided-missile corvette and INS Sumedha is an offshore patrol vessel (OPV).  Bangladesh Navy deputed BNS Ali Haider and BNS Abu Ubaidah.
  • Maritime patrol aircraft of navies of both countries will also undertake joint patrols along the international maritime boundary line (IMBL).

 India ranked 54th in WEF Travel and Tourism Development Index
  • In the WEF Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021, India has been ranked at 54th In 2019, India had ranked at 46th position. India topped within the South Asia region.
  • In the 2021 index, the top place has been grabbed by Japan, followed by the United States, Spain, France, and Germany respectively.
Top 10 countries are
  1. Japan (5.2)
  2. United States (5.2)
  3. Spain (5.2)
  4. France (5.1)
  5. Germany (5.1)
  6. Switzerland (5.0)
  7. Australia (5.0)
  8. United Kingdom (5.0)
  9. Singapore (5.0)
  10. Italy (4.9)

FACTFILE – Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021

Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021 of the World Economic Forum comprises 117 countries. This index has shown that despite various positive trends, the tourism and travel industry is still facing hurdles and are yet to recover properly. 117 countries have been assessed by this index and it has identified certain key factors for enabling resilient and sustainable growth of tourism and travel economies.

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022


 India and US signed Investment Incentive Agreement 
  • On 23rd May 2022, India and the USA signed the Investment Incentive Agreement (IIA) in Tokyo. The agreement was signed by India’s foreign secretary and CEO of the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). The investment Incentive Agreement (IIA) is a legal requirement for DFC to continue providing investment support to India.
  • The agreement will help in increasing the investment support from USA’s development finance institutions in various sectors. The investment support is given in the form of debt, equity investment, investment guaranty, reinsurance, grants, etc.
FACTFILE – US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC)
  • US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is the successor agency of the erstwhile Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), established after the enactment of the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development (BUILD) Act of 2018.
  • DFC provided investment support worth USD 5.8 billion since 1974.
  • DFC provided investment support in various sectors such as healthcare, renewable energy, financial inclusion, etc.
  • DFC is also involved in funding the vaccine manufacturing capabilities under the vaccine partnership of Quad.

 Bongosagar: India-Bangladesh Bilateral Naval Exercise
  • The third edition of the Bongosagar Naval exercise commenced at Port Mongla, Bangladesh on the 24th of May 2022 between the navies of India and Bangladesh.
  • The harbour phase of this naval exercise was held from 24th to 25th May 2022. This will be followed by the sea phase which is scheduled to be held in the Northern Bay of Bengal from 26th to 27th May 2022.
  • This exercise is aimed to develop a high level of interoperability as well as joint operational skills through conducting various maritime operations and exercises between both navies.
  • During the exercise, the Navies from both countries will be discussing various operational procedures, conducting joint drills, and exchanging best practices. Apart from this, there will be discussions on tactical level planning regarding the conduct of the exercises at sea.
  • The sea phase of this Naval exercise will facilitate the participation of the ships from both the navies in intensive weapon firing drills, surface warfare drills, coordinated air operations in a tactical scenario, and seamanship evolutions.

 India joins First Movers Coalition
  • India joined a global public-private partnership initiative called the First Movers Coalition. The First Movers Coalition initiative was launched by President of the USA Joe Biden and the World Economic Forum (WEF) at COP26. It was joined by 50 new corporate members with a collective market capitalization of USD 8.5 trillion.
  • The First Movers Coalition aims to decarbonize the most carbon-intensive sectors such as the heavy industry and long-distance transport sectors, which are responsible for 30% of global emissions.
  • It is expected that emissions from these sectors will increase to around 50% by mid-century unless urgent actions are taken on clean technology innovation. The targeted sectors of the First Movers Coalition include aluminum, aviation, chemicals, concrete, shipping, steel, and trucking.
  • Apart from India, Denmark, Italy, Japan, Norway, Singapore, Sweden, and the UK joined the First Movers Coalition as government partners. India, Japan, and Sweden also joined the steering board of the First Movers Coalition.

FACTFILE – First Movers Coalition

  • The First Movers Coalition is a global initiative harnessing the purchasing power of companies to decarbonize seven “hard to abate” industrial sectors that currently account for 30% of global emissions: Aluminum, Aviation, Chemicals, Concrete, Shipping, Steel, and Trucking; along with innovative Carbon Removal technologies.
  • The First Movers Coalition’s unique approach assembles ambitious corporate purchasing pledges across the heavy industry and long-distance transport sectors responsible for a third of global emissions. For these sectors to decarbonize at the speed needed to keep the planet on a 1.5-degree pathway, they require low-carbon technologies that are not yet competitive with current carbon-intensive solutions but must reach commercial scale by 2030 to achieve net-zero emissions globally by 2050.
  • The 50+ companies who make up the Coalition seek to send a powerful market signal to commercialize zero-carbon technologies.

 Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022
  • The biggest drone festival Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022 is being celebrated at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi on 27th and 28th May 2022. The Prime Minister will also be interacting with Kisan drone pilots and with start-ups in the drone exhibition centre and will be witnessing the open-air drone demonstrations.
  • Drones are unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), i.e. an aircraft without any human pilot, passenger or crew on board. These UAVs are making the lives of security, farmers, and defence personnel easier.
  • More than 1,600 delegates comprising foreign diplomats, government officials, central armed police forces, armed forces, private companies, PSUs, drone start-ups etc. will be participating.

 Captain Abhilasha Barak appointed Army’s First Woman Combat Pilot
  • Captain Abhilasha Barak of Haryana has become the Indian Army’s first woman combat aviator. On 25th May 2022, she successfully completed her Combat Army Aviation Course which was of six months to join the Army Aviation Corps as a helicopter pilot. Captain Barak has been designated to the 2072 Army Aviation Squadron’s second flight which operates the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH).
  • Till now, women were only given the posts of ground duty and traffic control in the Aviation Department, but Captain Barak will be taking over the responsibility of being the first woman pilot.
FACTFILE – Army Aviation Corps
  • The Army Aviation Corps was established on 1st November 1986 and it is the component of the Indian Army. The corps was inducted immediately into ‘Operation Pawan’ (operation of the Indian Peace Keeping Force to take control of Jaffna from the LTTE) and this played a crucial role in testing the newly formed corps.
  • The Army Aviation Corps carries out the primary operations of evacuating injured troops during operations or during health emergencies from the high-altitude areas. The Aviation Corps are also deployed for reconnaissance, observation, combat search and rescue, casualty evacuation, and dropping essential supplies.

 National Achievement Survey 2021 released by Union Education Ministry 
  • The National Achievement Survey 2021 report was released by the Union Ministry of Education. National Achievement Survey (NAS) is a national-level assessment survey conducted to evaluate the progress and learning achievement of school students. It provides a system-level reflection on the effectiveness of school education and is useful to chalk out new educational policies. 
  • The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) developed the Assessment Framework to assess the competencies attained by the students vis-a-vis learning outcomes.
National Achievement Survey 2021 – Highlights
  • NAS has registered a dip in performances across subjects and grades at the national level as compared to the last achievement survey conducted in 2017.
  • Punjab was the best performer in India across all grades and subjects.Punjab has the highest mean score for subjects across Classes 3, 5, 8, and 10.

 WMO released State of Global Climate Report 2021
  • The State of the Global Climate Report 2021 has been released by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). According to the report, four key climate change indicators which are sea-level rise, greenhouse gas concentrations, ocean acidification, and ocean heat set new records in 2021. The report shows that human activities are causing planetary level changes in the ocean, land, and the atmosphere, with long-lasting and harmful effects on ecosystems and sustainable development.
  • Due to extreme weather, the world has witnessed hundreds of billions of dollars worth of economic losses. It has also wreaked a heavy toll on the lives of humans and their well-being and triggered shocks for water and food displacement and security that have accentuated in the year 2022.
  • The past seven years are the warmest seven years that have been recorded. In 2021, the average global temperature was around 1.11 (± 0.13) °C above the pre-industrial level.
State of Global Climate Report 2021 – Highlight
  • Greenhouse gas concentrations: In 2020, the concentrations of greenhouse gases reached a new global high as carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration reached 413.2 parts per million (ppm) globally which is 149 percent of the pre-industrial level.
  • Global Annual Mean Temperature: In 2021, this was around 1.11 ±0.13 °C above the pre-industrial average of the 1850s and the 1900s. This was less warm compared to some recent years due to the cooling La Niña conditions at the beginning and end of the year. On record, the seven warmest years are from 2015 to 2021.
  • Ocean Heat: In 2021, the upper 2000m depth of oceans continued to warm up. It is expected to rise in the future, a change that is irreversible. The rates of ocean warming have increased in the past two decades.
  • Ocean acidification: 23 percent of the annual emissions of anthropogenic CO2 are absorbed by the oceans. This reacts with seawater which leads to ocean acidification. This is threatening the ecosystem, organisms, tourism, food security, and coastal protection.
  • Global Mean Sea Level: In 2021, it reached a new record high after it increased from 2013 to 2021 at an average of 4.5 mm per year. This is mainly attributed to the accelerated loss of ice sheets and ice mass.
  • Food security: Due to economic shocks, extreme weather events, and the COVID-19 pandemic the food security of the globe worsened.
  • Displacement: Due to hydrometeorological hazards, internal displacement has increased.
  • Ecosystems: A lot of the world’s ecosystems such as water towers, mountain ecosystems, etc, are degrading at an unmatched rate. The increase in temperature is increasing the risk of irreversible coastal and marine ecosystem loss.

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022

Assam Current Affairs – June 03-04, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 03-04, 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 03- 04, 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022

 

June 03-04, 2022

India’s first Liquid Mirror Telescope sets up in Uttarakhand

India’s first liquid-mirror telescope- International Liquid Mirror Telescope (ILMT) has been established on the campus of the Devasthal Observatory of the Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) in Nainital.

About the International Liquid Mirror Telescope (ILMT)

  • The International Liquid Mirror Telescope facility is the result of collaborative work between astronomers from Canada, Belgium and India. 
  • It will keep a close watch on the skies to identify transient or variable objects such as asteroids, space debris, supernovae, and gravitational lenses.
  • Unlike the conventional telescopes that can be steered to track specific stellar source objects, the ILMT will be stationary. 
  • It will basically carry out observations and imaging at the zenith, that is, of the overhead sky. 
  • It is the only liquid-mirror telescope operational anywhere in the world.

Caste-based census to be held in Bihar

The government of Bihar is set to conduct a caste-based census in the state. The decision was taken at an all-party meeting chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. 

The exercise would be called Jaati Aadharit Ganana and the state government will publish the data related to the census through advertisements in newspapers. The aim of this exercise is to carry out developmental work for people who are deprived.

This census will be conducted for people belonging to every caste and religion. This exercise will be helpful in developmental work for people of the state who are deprived. 

 


ISRO inaugurated new spacecraft manufacturing facility

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Chairman S Somanath inaugurated ANANTH Technologies’ spacecraft manufacturing unit at Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) Aerospace Park. 

About the Ananth Technologies Private Limited

The new state-of-the-art spacecraft manufacturing facility can conduct assembly integration and testing of four large spacecraft simultaneously.

The 15,000 sqm facility is capable of conducting the assembly, integration and testing of four large spacecraft at the same time, with four separate units present within the facility.

It is a first of its kind facility in India and that Ananth Technologies has contributed to the manufacturing of 89 satellites and 69 launch vehicles built/launched by ISRO since its establishment in 1992.

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June 04, 2022

A new species of dragonfly ‘Platygomphus benritarum’ discovered in Assam

A new species of dragonfly ‘Platygomphus benritarum’ discovered in Assam and has been named after Monisha Behal, a founder member of Northeast Network (NEN) and Rita Banerji, founder of Green Hub for their pioneering work in the northeast.

Initially, two researchers, Shantanu Joshi and Anuja Mital, found the species near the banks of the Brahmaputra in Assam’s Tezpur district in 2020. The species were seen resting on a huge tree which lies 5-6 metres away from the Brahmaputra’s banks. 

An article on the discovery has been published in the International Journal of Odonatology, produced by the World Dragonfly Association.


Meghalaya’s ‘e-Proposal System’ wins UN Award

The Meghalaya government’s key initiative of the “e-Proposal System”, wins the coveted UN Award – World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum Prizes 2022 at Geneva in Switzerland. The “e-Proposal System”, part of Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA), which eliminates 75 per cent physical work of files in all government departments in the state. 

Secretary General of ITU, Houlin Zhao presented the winner award to Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma in the WSIS Forum Prizes 2022. 

Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA) is the only project from India to win the winner award this year. 

About Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA) Project

  • Meghalaya Enterprise Architecture (MeghEA) Project is being implemented by the Planning Department of the Meghalaya government with the aim of improving governance and service delivery for the people of the state using the power of various digital technologies. 
  • It has several components such as government to citizen or business services, government to employee services, and government to government services. 
  • The e-proposal system, a part of the government-to-government component, enables faster processing and tracking of schemes. The system transforms the entire administrative approvals and sanctions of citizen’s schemes.

 


Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has launched the scheme “SHRESHTA”

Union Minister of social Justice and empowerment Dr. Virendra Kumar has launched the Scheme “SHRESHTA”-Scheme for residential education for students in High school in Targeted Areas. 

The Scheme for Residential Education for Students in Targeted Areas (SHRESHTA) has been formulated with the objective to provide quality education and opportunities for even the poorest.

About the SHRESHTA Scheme

  • This Scheme will provide for high quality education for meritorious but poor SC students in CBSE-affiliated reputed residential schools across the country.
  • The students, belonging to Scheduled Castes, studying in class 8th and 10th in the current academicyear are eligible for availing the benefits of scheme are selected through a transparent mechanism through a National Entrance Test for SHRESHTA (NETS), which is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for admission in class 9th and 11th. 
  • Students belonging to marginalized income groups within the SC community, whose parental annual income is upto Rs.2.5 Lakh are eligible. 
  • Successful candidates, after following the e-counselling process, are given admission in the school of their choice anywhere in the Country for their academic persuasion. 
  • The Department shall bear the total cost of the school fee and hostel charges till completion of their academic upto class 12th. Thereafter the students of the scheme may avail benefits of other schemes of the Department for their higher education.

Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh inaugurates Kangra Valley Summer Festival-2022 

Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh inaugurates Kangra Valley Summer Festival-2022 at Dharamshala. The Kangra Valley Summer Festival-2022 is being organized from 2nd June to 9th June, 2022 with four cultural evenings.

The festival is organised to familiarize tourists arriving in the state during summers with the culture and traditions of Himachal Pradesh.This year the festival is organised after the gap of 10 years. 

Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – May 2022

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Assam Current Affairs – June 01-02, 2022

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – June 01-02 2022

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the June 01- 02 2022)

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Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

June 01-02, 2022

Loving Borgohain Elected Chair of IBA Athletes Committee

Lovlina Borgohain has been elected as chairman and voting member on the Board of Directors for the IBA’s Athletes Committee. 

Indian boxer and Tokyo Olympics Bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain had received the highest number of votes during the election held at the 2022 Women’s World Championship and thus has been elected as chair of the board.

Indian boxer Shiva Thapa has also been elected as a member of the IBA Athletes Committee following the election held during the 2021 IBA Men’s World Championships.


Appeal in Supreme Court against Assam Repealing Act converting state-funded madrassas to govt schools

A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court challenging a Gauhati High Court’s order of upholding Assam Repealing Act 2020 which converted state-funded madrassas into regular schools. 

The Assam Repealing Act, 2020 repealed Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialisation) Act, 1995 and the Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Reorganisation of Educational Institutions) Act, 2018. The Governor of Assam granted his assent on January 27, 2021.

The plea contended that the Act takes away property coupled with statutory recognition of madrassa education and the impugned order dated February 2, 2021 issued by the Governor disbands the ‘Assam State Madrasa Board’ created in 1954. It amounts to an arbitrary exercise of both legislative and executive powers and amounts to a denial of the petitioner madrassas’ ability to continue as madrassas providing religious instruction coupled with religious education,” the plea added.

The plea contended that Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialisation) Act, 1995 (repealed by the Act of 2020) is only limited to the state undertaking to pay the salaries and provide consequential benefits to the teaching and non-teaching staff employed in madrassas as also the administration, management and control of these madrassa.


Tripura gets first virtual court for traffic e-challan cases

The Chief Justice of Tripura High Court unveiled the first virtual court for traffic e-challan cases. 

Justice S Talapatra, Justice T Amarnath Goud, Justice Arindam Lodh, Justice SG Chottapadhyay and senior state government officials also attended the inaugural ceremony.

Justice Mohanty proclaimed the day as ‘another red letter day’, which eliminates the necessity for litigants to appear in court for paying fines. The e-court was introduced in the state so that litigants don’t need to come to the court for justice. 

Asserting that litigants are the focus of the judiciary, the chief justice said, Whatever may be we are or working in whatever category – judges, registry and police officers – we all come under the umbrella of the Constitution. Everything we do or don’t do is aimed at serving the people of our country.

Justice Mohanty also lauded the role of the state government for extending fullest support to the High Court. Justice Talapatra while speaking at the programme exhorted the state government to make all out efforts to popularize the virtual court for e-challan cases.


Prime Minister Narendra Modi releases PM CARES for Children Scheme

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi released benefits under PM CARES for Children Scheme via video conference. The scheme was launched by the Prime Minister on 29 May 2021.

The scheme aims to support children who have lost both the parents or legal guardian or adoptive parents or surviving parent to Covid-19 pandemic,  during the period from 11 March 2020 to 28 February 2022. 

The objective of the Scheme is to ensure comprehensive care and protection of children in a sustained manner by providing them boarding and lodging, empowering them through education and scholarships, equipping them for self-sufficient existence with financial support and ensuring their wellbeing through health insurance. 

PM Modi has promised Rs 4,000 a month for basic needs, financial support for schooling, scholarship for higher education, and free treatment upto Rs 5 lakh.

A portal named pmcaresforchildren.in was launched to register the children. The portal is a single window system which facilitates approval process and all other assistance for children.


NTPC releases ‘Biodiversity Policy’ for conservation, restoration of biodiversity.

NTPC Ltd has issued a renewed Biodiversity Policy 2022 to establish a comprehensive vision and guiding principle for conservation, restoration, and enhancement of biodiversity. This Biodiversity Policy is an integral part of NTPC’s Environmental Policy. 

The power major aims to mainstream the concept of biodiversity across NTPC’s value chain and adopt a precautionary approach for sustainable management of biodiversity in all the decision-making processes to ensure the Earth’s variety of life in and around the business units of NTPC. 

The policy also aims to adopt systematic consideration of local threats to biodiversity beyond the company’s business activities.

NTPC is raising awareness among local communities, employees, and its associates across the supply chain about biodiversity through project-specific and national level trainings in collaboration with experts and also with local communities, organizations, regulatory agencies and research institutes of national/international repute in the field of biodiversity. 

NTPC was the first PSU to issue a Biodiversity Policy in 2018. In the same year, NTPC became a member of the India Business & Biodiversity Initiative (IBBI).


Justice PK Mohanty gets additional charge of Lokpal chairperson

Justice Pradip Kumar Mohanty has been given the additional charge of Lokpal chairperson after justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose completed his term as the Lokpal chief.

At present, there are six members in the Lokpal. President Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath of office to justice Ghose as the Lokpal chairperson. 

The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act envisages the appointment of a Lokpal at the Centre and Lokayuktas in states to look into cases of corruption against certain categories of public servants, was passed in 2013.

A Lokpal chief and members are appointed for a term of five years or until attaining the age of 70 years. They are appointed by the President after obtaining the recommendations of a selection committee headed by the Prime Minister and comprising the speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Leader of Opposition in the lower house, the Chief Justice of India or a judge of the Supreme Court nominated by him, and an eminent jurist as recommended by the chairperson and members of the selection panel.

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June 02, 2022

Maharashtra sets the highest sugar production in the 2021-22

Maharashtra has recorded an all-time high sugar production of 132 lakh tonnes in the 2021-2022 season, state sugar commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad has claimed. 

Maharashtra had a record of all-time high sugar production of 107 lakh tonnes in 2019-20. This year, it has reached nearly 132 lakh tonnes, which is again an all-time high record for the state, while Uttar Pradesh has so far produced 80 lakh tonnes of sugar so far this year,” Gaikwad said. 


‘Tomb of Sand’ by Geetanjali Shree becomes first Hindi Novel to win International Booker Prize 2022

Geetanjali Shree’s ‘Tomb of Sand’ has become the first Hindi novel to win the International Booker Prize. ‘Tomb of Sand’ which was originally published in Hindi as Ret Samadhi is translated into English by Daisy Rockwell.

The translated Hindi novel has become the first book written in an Indian language to win the prestigious 2022 International Booker Prize. 

The novel ‘Tomb of Sand’, in Hindi titled ‘Ret Samadhi’, was published in Hindi in 2018. The novel narrates the story of an 80-years old woman who experiences a deep depression after the death of her husband. 

Eventually, she overcomes the depression and decides to visit Pakistan to finally confront the past that she had left behind during partition. 


PARAM ANANTA Supercomputer commissioned at IIT, Gandhinagar

PARAM ANANTA, a state-of the art Supercomputer at IIT Gandhinagar dedicated to the nation under National Supercomputing Mission (NSM). 

It is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST), which was commissioned. This indigenous software stack is developed by C-DAC and is a Make in India initiative.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between IIT Gandhinagar and Centre for Development in Advanced Computing (C-DAC) to establish this 838 TeraFlops Supercomputing Facility under NSM.  

The system is equipped with a mix of CPU nodes, GPU nodes, High Memory nodes, High throughput storage and high performance Infiniband interconnect to cater the computing needs of various scientific and engineering applications.

About the PARAM ANANTA Supercomputer

PARAM ANANTA system is based on Direct Contact Liquid Cooling technology to obtain a high power usage effectiveness and thereby reducing the operational cost.  

It will benefit to IIT Gandhinagar to pursue the Research and Development (R&D) activities in multidisciplinary domains of science and technology at the Institute, including, but not limited to, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Data Science; Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD); Bio-engineering for Genome Sequencing and DNA studies

Energy studies which will help in carrying out design simulation and optimization of energy conversion devices at various scales; Fire Dynamics Simulation; Nanotechnology; Robotics; Applied mathematics; Astronomy and Astrophysics; Material Sciences; Quantum Mechanics; Studies on Civil Engineering and structural mechanics to understand the dynamic behaviour of buildings, bridges; and complex structure.

Computational Biology and Bioinformatics used in prediction and detection of gene networks; Atomic & Molecular Sciences that helps in understanding how a drug binds to a particular protein; Climate Change and Environment studies for extreme weather predictions and simulation of models which can predict the onset of a cyclone;


India win bronze at the Men’s Hockey Asia Cup 2022

India won bronze after defeating Japan 1-0 in the third-Place match at the Men’s Hockey Asia Cup 2022 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

India were down to 10 men in the last minute of the match but they managed to hold on and win their second bronze medal at the Asia Cup. India’s Rajkumar Pal gave the team an early lead in the first quarter of the match itself, which they held on to till the end. 

South Korea has lifted the prestigious trophy for the fifth time. They have won the title in 1994, 1999, 2009 and 2013.

Current Affairs GK & Quiz Monthly – June 2022

Assam Current Affairs and GK Quiz – Set 309: June 2022, Week 1 | Watch video explanation

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Assam Current Affairs – July 15-21, 2021

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – July 15-21, 2021

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of July 15-21, 2021)

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July 15, 2021


Cachar District received National SKOCH award 

  • Cachar Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli received the prestigious National Silver SKOCH award under the health category on the project called ‘Pushti Nirbhor’. 
  • The ‘Pushti Nirbhor’ is a convergence project with transformation and development along with Panchayat and Rural Development Department in one of the” Axom Adarxo Gram yojna” villages name Dinnathpur Bagicha near Indo-Bangladesh Border under Katigorah, Cachar District of Assam. 
  • The main objectives were to train the villagers towards becoming self-reliant especially during the pandemic situation, to explore the household Nutri gardens and earn the marketing value and meet up the nutritional need of the families. 

Tripura’s Famous ‘Gandharaj’ Lemon Flies to Germany
  • After gaining popularity in India, the famous ‘Gandharaj’ lemon of Tripura has now been exported to Germany. Notably, 500 ‘Gandharaj’ lemons have been sent to Germany on an experimental basis. 
  • The 500 ‘Gandharaj’ lemons are accompanied by paper lemons and 1 metric tonne of jackfruit. Those agricultural products from Tripura will go to Germany via Guwahati. If the demand increases, the fortunes of the farmers of Tripura will be escalated. 
  • Earlier, Kazi Nemu,’ the Assamese lemon, which is one of the main food items of every Assamese people, has made its way into the markets of London. This Assamese lemon is exclusively grown and found in Assam.
  • As the Kazi Nemu consignment came to light, many people from London are excited to buy the Assamese Kazi Nemu/ Assam lemon to taste. 
  • Prior, between December 2020 and January 2021, a massive consignment of ‘Kazi Nemu’ weighing almost 6 MT was exported to the European business sectors. ‘Kazi Nemu’ is utilized for preparing refreshing drinks and pickles as well as garnishing curry and other dishes. 
  • In June 2021, ‘Leteku,’ the Burmese grapes, grown in the Darrang district of Assam, were exported to Dubai.

US Aviation Administration approves Blue Origin for Human Space Travel
  • Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved “Blue Origin license” in order to carry humans on New Shepard launch system into space.
  • Former Amazon.com Chief Executive, Jeff Bezos, is to fly to space on July 20, 2021 through Blue Origin’s maiden crewed voyage.
  • Blue Origin is authorized to carry humans while FAA license is valid through August. Blue Origin is approved to conduct these missions from its Launch Site One facility in Texas.
  • Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, spaceX firm are working to usher in new era of routine commercial civilian space travel. Space travel has been popularized as “billionaire space race.” Proving rocket travel is safe for public is a significant key of developing a space tourism market which is going to be $3 billion market.

FACTFILE – Space Tourism

  • Space Tourism is human space travel for recreational purposes. There are different types of space tourism such as orbital, suborbital and lunar space tourism. 
  • Till date, orbital space tourism has been performed only by Roscosmos. 
  • Various agencies like Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic & SpaceX are working to develop suborbital space tourism vehicles.

FACTFILE – Blue Origin

  • Blue Origin, LLC is an American privately funded aerospace manufacturer and sub-orbital spaceflight services company headquartered in Kent, Washington.
  • It was founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos, the founder and executive chairman of Amazon, the company is led by CEO Bob Smith and aims to make access to space cheaper and more reliable through reusable launch vehicles..

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July 16, 2021


Six universities to be set up in Assam under Tejasvi Navadhitamastu Edu-Infra Funds
  • Six universities are to be set up in Assam under Tejasvi Navadhitamastu Edu-Infra Funds (TNEIF). This scheme was launched in the 2017-18 budget to re-imagine and re-structure higher education in the state. 
  • Each of the six institutions to be established under the Tejasvi Navadhitamastu Edu-Infra Funds (TNEIF) would receive a budget allocation of Rs 8 crore (2021-22), Rs 22 crore (2022-23), and Rs 20 crore (2023-24).
  • The six universities that are to be established under this scheme are: 
  • 1. Majuli University of Culture 
  • 2. Rabindranath Tagore University (Hojai) 
  • 3. Bhattadev University (Pathsala) 
  • 4. Madhabdev University (Narayanpur) 
  • 5. Birangana Sati Sadhini State University (Golaghat) 
  • 6. Aniruddhadev Sports University (Chabua) 

 

Key Highlights of State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021 report

  • The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recently published its “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021 report” which highlights the a grim scenarios of the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on Food security.
  • FAO’s study was conducted in 63 low- and middle-income countries. They covered a population of 3.5 billion on changes in income of people.
  • Global Food Policy Report 2021 is published by International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). As per report, impacts of rising poverty and reduced livelihoods are reflected in rising food insecurity & decreasing diet quality. This in turn have devastating consequences for health & nutrition in low- and middle-income countries.

Highlights of the Global Food Policy Report 2021

  • As per study, there is a significant decrease in the affordability of healthy food because of loss in income.
  • Covid-19 pandemic led to an additional 141 million people being unable to afford healthy diet because of loss of income and rising food price
  • As the 2020 ended, global consumer food prices were highest in six years which continued to increase in first four months of 2021.
  • Cost of healthy diet was 60 percent more than diet that meets “requirements for essential nutrients”.
  • Overall decline in food intake has increased hunger levels in 2020. It thus made primary Sustainable Development Goal of ending hunger by 2030 impossible.

Nepal, India sign deal for Lower Arun Hydropower project
  • Nepal has inked a USD 1.3 billion deal with Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) of India to develop a 679-megawatt hydropower project in eastern Nepal.
  • This will be the second mega venture in Nepal, undertaken by India. It is the single largest foreign investment project.
  • To develop the project, a memorandum of understanding was signed by Chief Executive Officer of Investment Board of Nepal Sushil Bhatta and Chairman & Managing Director of SJVN Nand Lal Sharma in Kathmandu.
  • The 679-megawatt Hydropower project is the second mega project undertaken by India after USD 1.04 billion 900-MW Arun-3 hydroelectric project in Nepal.

FACTFILE – Arun River

  • It is the largest trans-Himalayan River that passes through Nepal. River drains into Sapta Kosi river system.
  • In Tibet, it is known as Men Qu in upper reaches and as Peng Qu for most of its course towards north of Himalayan crests.

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July 17, 2021


Govt launched ‘School Innovation Ambassador Training Program’
  • Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan and tribal affairs minister Arjun Munda jointly launched ‘School Innovation Ambassador Training Program’ on July 16, 2021.
  • School Innovation Ambassador Training Programme was designed by the innovation cell of education ministry and All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) for school teachers for first time.

FACTFILE – School Innovation Ambassador Training Program

  • This Programme will provide training to teachers from Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)- affiliated schools including Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, Kendriya Vidyalayas, and Eklavya Residential Model Schools in India.
  • Teachers will be trained in online mode only for a duration of two months. Training will be provided in five modules to encourage innovation and creativity among school students.
  • Five modules include- entrepreneurship, innovation, intellectual property rights, product development, design thinking and idea generation etc.

FACTFILE – All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)

  • AICTE is a statutory body and a national-level council for technical education. It was established in November 1945 as an advisory body under the Department of Higher Education. In 1987, it was given statutory status by an Act of Parliament.
  • It is involved in proper planning and coordinated development of technical education & management education systems across India.

Bhutan became the second country to adopt BHIM UPI
  • Bhutan has become first country to adopt Unified Payment Interface (UPI) standards of India for its quick response (QR) code.
  • Bhutan after Singapore has become the second country to have BHIM-UPI acceptance at merchant locations.
  • International wing of the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) called NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL) announced partnership with Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) of Bhutan to implement BHIM UPI QR-based payments in Bhutan.
  • Bhutan will also become the only country to issue & accept RuPay cards and accept BHIM-UPI.
  • BHIM-UPI is a very important achievement of India in area of fintech. During covid-19 induced lockdown, BHIM-UPI became an effective mechanism of payment. In 2020-21, it processed 22 billion financial transactions of worth rupee 41 lakh crore.

FACTFILE – National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) 

  • National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) is an umbrella organisation involved in operation of retail payments and settlement systems in India. It was launched by Reserve Bank of India and Indian Banks’ Association to create a robust payment and settlement infrastructure.

FACTFILE – Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) App

  • It is an Indian mobile payment App developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). It is based on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and named after B. R. Ambedkar. It was launched on December 30, 2016. 
  • BHIM app facilitates e-payments directly through banks and supports all Indian banks which use UPI.

FACTFILE – Unified Payments Interface (UPI)

  • UPI is built over Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) infrastructure that allows user to instantly transfer money in real-time.
  • It allows users to transfer money in multiple bank accounts without revealing bank account details to other party.

‘RBI Retail Direct’ scheme – Key Highlights
  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) introduced the “RBI Retail Direct facility” scheme on July 12, 2021.
  • RBI’s Retail Direct Scheme is a one-stop solution to facilitate investment in Government Securities (G-Sec) by individual investors.
  • Under this scheme, retail investors will be provided a facility to open and maintain Retail Direct Gilt Account (RDG Account) with RBI.
  • This facility was launched as part of continuing efforts towards increasing retail participation in government securities. It was launched to improve ease of access by retail investors by online access to primary as well as secondary government securities market.

Key Features of the ‘RBI Retail Direct’ scheme

  • Under the scheme, Retail investors (individuals) will have the option to open & maintain ‘Retail Direct Gilt Account’ (RDG Account) with RBI.
  • RDG Account can be opened using an ‘Online portal’ provided for the purpose of this scheme.

FACTFILE – Government Securities (G-Sec)

  • G-secs are debt instruments issued by government to borrow money. These instruments are not tax-free. They are the safest form of investment because they are backed by government. They are however, subject to fluctuations in interest rates. It can be issued in- 
  • Short term- such a treasury bills for 91-days, 182-days and 364 days
  • Long term- with bonds maturity of one year or more.

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July 18, 2021

Cachar inaugurated ‘Mamoni Bazar’ exclusively for women 
  • With a vision to explore the power of women, Cachar Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli inaugurated a market shed christened as ‘Mamoni Bazar’ for women at Dinnathpur Bagicha under Katigorah.
  •  The market shed was constructed at a cost of Rs 10 lakh under the DMFT (District Mineral Foundation Trust).
  • Mentionably, this market shed is the first of its kind in the Barak Valley and it is among the identified ‘Adarsh Villages’ of Cachar District. The scheme has been taken up under a sustainable ‘Convergence’ project that will be carried out under the regular monitoring of the District Heads of Agriculture, Zilla Parishad, Fishery, Handloom & Textile and NRLM among others.

India’s first monk fruit cultivation begins in Kullu, H.P
  • Cultivation of China’s  ‘monk fruit’ from has started in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh. The fruit was introduced for field trials in Himachal Pradesh by Palampur-based Council of Scientific Research and Industrial Technology-Institute of Himalayan Bio-resource Technology (CSIR-IHBT).
  • Monk fruit is known for its properties as non-caloric natural sweetener. Field trials have begun three years after CSIR-IHBT imported its seeds from China and grew it in house. Fifty seedlings of fruit were planted in fields of a farmer from Raison village for field trials and a ‘Material Transfer Agreement’ was signed with the farmer.
  • Flowering pattern, pollination behaviour and fruit setting time were also documented in order to draw complete life-cycle of monk fruit in agro-climatic conditions of the region.
  • Monk fruit is “a perennial crop”. It is having a life span of four to five years. Fruiting on this crop starts eight to nine months after germination.

FACTFILE – Monk Fruit

  • Monk Fruit took its name from Buddhist monks who first used it. During the 20th century, Professor G W Groff had also made an unsuccessful attempt to grow Monk plant because flowers did not appear.
  • Monk fruit (siraitia grosvenorii), is known for its intensely sweet taste. It is used as a non-caloric natural sweetener. The sweet taste of monk fruit is because of content of group of cucurbitane-type triterpene glycosides called mogrosides.

Integrated Ratings for State Power Distribution Utilities launched
  • Union Power Minister, R.K. Singh, released 9th Integrated Ratings for State Power Distribution Utilities on the occasion of on the occasion of 36th Foundation Day of Power Finance Corporation (PFC).
  • While releasing Integrated Ratings for State Power Distribution Utilities, minister underlines that, Annual Integrated Rating exercise for rating period 2019-20 covering 41 State Power Distribution Utilities has been completed with participation of all utilities.
  • Indian Power sector will benefit from a fair and accurate assessment of true position of distribution sector. It will also help in assessing & improving its performance.

FACTFILE – Power Finance Corporation Ltd.

  • PFC is an Indian financial institution under Ministry of Power. It was established in 1986. PFC works as the financial backbone of Indian Power Sector. It is also India’s largest infrastructure finance company.

 

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July 19, 2021


Meghalaya Govt clears State PPP policy to facilitate private investment
  • The Meghalaya Cabinet cleared the Meghalaya Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Policy 2021 to facilitate more private investment in the state. Meghalaya was one of the three states in the country that don’t have a PPP policy and with this new policy, the state government aims to “promote growth by attracting investments while safeguarding and promoting the interests of the communities.”
  • Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said that one unique aspect incorporated in this policy is Community PPP, whereas in most of the other states, PPP policy mostly deals with large infrastructural projects but we have introduced this concept. 
  • The Community PPP idea is to enable communities to work with private parties in the field of tourism, agriculture, horticulture, veterinary and others. Under the CPPP, the community shall be actively involved and contribute through the entire process.
  • Various aspects like the Land Transfer Act, land ownership and protection of the people have been taken into consideration while formulating this policy. 
Requirement of a PPP Policy in Meghalaya
  • Meghalaya has a severe deficit of infrastructure, be it roads, telecom or power. Eg. the road density in the State is only 47.8 Km per 100 square km which is way lower than the national average of 180. The per capita annual consumption of electricity in Meghalaya, at 880 kWh, is also much below the national average of 1,200 kWh.
  • To achieve the vision of being among the Top 10 Indian states within the next 10 years, it would be required to not just deficit these gaps, but surpass the national average on many counts.
  • All these would require massive investments, estimated at about Rs. 25,000 Cr over the next 10 years. The Government with an annual budget size of approx. 17,000 Cr (of which the development budget is only about Rs. 3,000 Cr) does not have the quantum of resources to undertake all these activities.
  • The Public-Private Partnership Policy would help the state leverage investments along with sector-specific expertise from the private sector.

Proposed Institutional Framework: 

  • An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGM), headed by the Chief Minister, shall be set up to approve projects greater than Rs. 50 Cr.
  • An Empowered Committee on Infrastructure (ECI), headed by the Chief Secretary, shall be set up to approve projects up to Rs. 50 Cr.
  • A State PPP Cell, headed by a senior Secretary from the planning department shall be set up as the nodal agency. It would be housed within Meghalaya Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation (MIDFC) under the Planning Department.
  • Land belonging to Government Departments or taken on lease from communities/individuals shall be used for the project. And all provisions related to the Meghalaya Land Transfer Act, 1971 will be applicable to ensure that the rights of the communities/individuals are protected.

 

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Tripura to promote commercial cultivation of agar
  • The government of Tripura has taken initiatives to promote commercial cultivation of Agar trees and has set a target of achieving Rs 2,000 crore business from this sector in the next three years.
  • Tripura has also plans to export 1,500 kg of Agar oil and 75,000 kg of Agar chips in the year 2021-22.
  • Tripura government has launched a draft named Tripura Agar Wood Policy 2021 and a target has been set up of doubling the plantation by the year 2025. Presently, there are over 50 lakh agar trees in the state.
  • Agar (Aquilaria malaccensis) is an evergreen tree that grows in abundance in the state of Tripura. This species has a huge potential of creating an economic revolution in the state after bamboo, rubber and other major forestry crops. Due to low input cost for its growth and management and its intercropping adaptation could make agar a cash crop.

FACTFILE – Agarwood

  • Agarwood (Aquilaria malaccensis) is a fragrant dark resinous wood used in incense, perfume, and small carvings.
  • Prior to infection, the heartwood is odourless, relatively light and pale coloured; however, as the infection progresses, the tree produces a dark aromatic resin, called aloes or agar, in response to the attack, which results in a very dense, dark, resin-embedded heartwood.
  • The resin-embedded wood is valued in Indian-North Eastern culture for its distinctive fragrance, and thus is used for incense and perfumes.
  • The aromatic qualities of agarwood are influenced by the species, geographic location, its branch, trunk and root origin, length of time since infection, and methods of harvesting and processing.

Indian Govt announces launch of National Logistics Excellence Awards
  • On July 19, 2021, to turn the spotlight on the logistics sector, the Govt of India announced the launch of a new category of awards named the National Logistics Excellence Awards, to provide due recognition to the various players involved in the logistics supply chain in the country.
  • The first category of the awards includes service providers and logistics infrastructure and second category will be awarded for the various user industries.
  • The launch of the National Logistics Excellence Awards will highlight best practices which include process standardisation, consolidation, digital transformations, technological upgrade and sustainable practices in the logistics sector.
  • Through these awards, the govt aims to turn the spotlight on logistics service providers who have attained adopted digitisation and technology, operational excellence, pursued sustainable practices and improved customer service among the many other achievements.
  • For the user industries, these awards will showcase efforts towards supplier ecosystem development, supply chain transformation, automation, skill development and other similar endeavours.

 

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July 20, 2021


IIM Shillong holds Virtual Workshop for Business Incubators of NE India
  • The ‘Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Centre for Policy Research & Analysis and Incubation and Enterprise Support Centre’ at IIM Shillong hosted a two-day virtual workshop cum roundtable discussion for ‘Business Incubators of North-East India’. 
  • The virtual workshop cum roundtable discussion was attended by representatives of various incubators from the North Eastern (NE) States.
  • Several topics were covered with such as status of business incubators in NE, managing incubators in Indian context, technology commercialization through incubation, offering specialized services, implementing a mentoring program, raising finance for incubated startups marketing and stakeholder management.

Assam to form ‘Population Army’ to curb Birth Rate
  • The Assam government is mulling to form a ‘population army’ to spread awareness especially in the Muslim-dominated areas where the state has witnessed a population explosion.
  • Assam Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma said that a team of around 1000 youngsters will be sent to various areas including the char areas, sandbars, to distribute contraceptives and to talk about the benefits of a small family.
  • In 2017, Assam had brought in the Population and Women Empowerment Policy or bill in which government employees were asked to strictly follow the two-child norm. The new law may bring loan waiver and other government schemes under this population rule.

India becomes world’s 5th largest Forex reserve holder
  • Recently, India has surpassed Japan, China, Russia and Switzerland to become the world’s fifth-largest foreign exchange reserve holder with $608 billion.
  • The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Govt of India are actively monitoring the country’s external position and accordingly fine-tuning the various policies and regulations so as to ensure strong macroeconomic growth of India.
  • India’s balance of payments has surplused in both the capital and current accounts in the year 2020-21 which largely contributed to the gains in the foreign exchange reserves of the country.
  • India’s present foreign exchange reserves are sufficient enough to provide a buffer against unforeseen external shocks and also to cover imports for more than 18 months.
  • The RBI regularly undertakes various measures to diversify the currency reserves of the country by increasing operations in the Forex swap and repo markets, exploring new markets or products and purchasing of gold.
  • The RBI’s intervention in the foreign exchange market to smooth out valuation changes due to movement of the US dollar against other international currencies in the reserve basket, exchange rate volatility, movement in gold prices, inflow of aid receipts and interest earnings from the deployment of foreign currency assets are the main causes for the variation in the country’s Forex reserves.

FACTFILE – Forex Reserves

  • The Forex reserves are assets which are held by the central bank of a country and it mainly comprise of bonds, foreign currencies, gold, bank deposits, financial assets and special drawing rights.

Asian Development Bank has downgraded India’s economic growth forecast
  • The Asian Development Bank has downgraded India’s economic growth forecast for the current financial year to 10 % from 11% that it had previously projected in April 2021. This downgrade was done taking into account the adverse impact of the second wave of the Coronavirus pandemic.
  • In the last quarter of fiscal year which ended in March 2021, India’s GDP growth recovered to 1.6%. A second wave of the pandemic induced many state governments to impose strict containment measures hence, the growth projection for FY2021-2, was downgraded to 10% from the previously predicted 11%.
  • For South Asian countries, ADB said that the economic outlook for this sub region is being hit by the new waves of COVID-19 from the months of March to June 2021. The GDP growth forecast for the South Asian region has been downgraded from 9.5% to 8.9 % for the year 2021-22.

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July 21, 2021


Rs 370 Crores Approved for Brahmaputra River Front Project 
  • In order to move on with the concept of developing Guwahati into a Smart City, a 1.3-kilometer length of the Brahmaputra Riverfront project has been approved at a cost of Rs. 370 crore.
  • The Riverfront is located on the south bank of the Brahmaputra River and is part of Guwahati’s core business district. Between Rajbhawan (Kharghuli Hill) and Kamakhaya Temple is a six-kilometer-long riverfront (Nilachal Hill).
  • Visitors and locals of Guwahati will benefit from amenities such as a walkway, a cycle track, and a jogging track, among others. 
  • Viewpoints, Waterstairs, Fountains, Interactive Ponds, Ramps, Stairs, Jetty, Ferry Terminals, Kiosks, Bridges across outflow structures, and other infrastructure improvements are proposed for the Brahmaputra Riverfront. 

IOC to build India’s first green hydrogen plant at Mathura
  • IOC, India’s largest oil firm will build the country’s first ‘green hydrogen’ plant at its refinery in Mathura. This decision has been undertaken with the view of preparing for a future to cater to the growing demands cleaner forms of energy.
  • Earlier, ‘grey hydrogen’ production projects have been announced making use of fossil fuels such as natural gas. Several hydrogen production units are being planned to be set up by IOC.
  • Forecasts state that Indian fuel demand will climb to 400-450 million tonnes by 2040 as against 250 million tonnes and hence, it will be important to invest in CNG, LNG, ethanol and biodiesel.
  • Hydrogen is is a clean fuel but manufacturing it causes carbon by-products and it is energy-intensive. Through the process of coal gasification brown hydrogen is created while this process throws off carbon waste.
  • The ultimate clean hydrogen resource is green hydrogen production and it uses renewable energy to create the hydrogen fuel.

China rolls out high speed 600km/hr Maglev train
  • On 20th July, 2021 China rolled out a 600km per hr high-speed  magnetic levitation (maglev) train in Qingdao located in the Shandong Province of East China.
  • Currently, maglev train is the fastest available ground vehicle. Shenzhen to Shanghai trip which took 10 hours will now be shortened to only 2.5 hours.
  • The new maglev train displays a number of technological advancements which also include a 30% more efficient self-developed brake system.
  • This project was started in the year 2016 and a prototype vehicle was developed in the year 2019 which made a trail run in June 2020.
  • Shanghai, the financial hub of China, is currently the only Chinese city which operates a high-speed maglev line. This line is operational since 2003 and the Shanghai maglev train connects the Pudong airport to downtown Shanghai.

China’s High-speed railway network

  • China has the largest high-speed railway network and covers 95% of its cities. By 2035, China aims to build 4,60,000 kilometres of highways, 25,000 kilometres of high-level sea lanes and 2,00,000 kilometres of railways.
  • The Shanghai maglev train or Shanghai Transrapid is a maglev train line that operates in Shanghai. It is the oldest commercial maglev still in operation, and the first commercial high-speed maglev with cruising speed of 431 km/h. It is also the fastest commercial electric train in the world.

 

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Assam Current Affairs – July 08-14, 2021

Assam & NE Current Affairs & GK – July 08-14, 2021

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of July 08-14, 2021)

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July 08, 2021


Assam govt to use only hand-woven gamosa and traditional food items in official events
  • Assam Govt decided to use only hand-woven gamosa and traditional food items in official events, in an effort to support and promote locally available products. 
  • The move will come as a huge relief to those producing and trading gamosas and traditional delicacies because sales have been hit by the restrictions imposed to check the spread of the Covid-19.
  • This step will come as a huge relief to those producing and trading gamosas and traditional delicacies because sales have been hit by the restrictions imposed to check the spread of the Covid-19.
  • State Govt also decided to play the state anthem – O Mur Apunar Dex – at the beginning of all government programmes and the national anthem Jana Gana Mana at the end. 
  • Govt also decided a one-year service extension to best-performing non-gazetted employees.
  • There are over 4,000 primary weaver cooperative societies in Assam, producing handloom fabrics, including gamosas which earned the geographical indication (GI) tag in 2019. Last year, Assam had tied up with e-commerce firm Flipkart to promote its artefacts and handloom products.

GIS-based India Industrial Land Bank (IILB) gaining popularity
  • According to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, India Industrial Land Bank will achieve pan-India integration by December 2021. The India Industrial Land Bank system (IILB) has been integrated with industry-based GIS systems of 17 states. System was integrated so that details can be updated on the portal in a real-time basis.
  • IILB has grown in popularity after its website is registering 30 per cent increase in page views per month since April 2021. It has received 55,000 page views in June 2021 as compared to 44,136 page views in May. United States have maximum number of visitors after India. It is followed by Australia, United Kingdom, Singapore, UAE, Germany, and Indonesia.

FACTFILE – India Industrial Land Bank (IILB)

  • IILB is a GIS-based portal and acts as one-stop repository of all industrial infrastructure-related information. Land Bank System was developed by Integrating Industrial Information System (IIS) with state GIS (Geographic Information System). 
  • It currently comprises 4,000 industrial parks mapped over an area of 5.5 lakh hectares of land. This portal serves as a decision support system for investors who scout for land remotely.
  • Information regarding connectivity, infrastructure, natural resources & terrain are shared through this portal. Portal also share plot-level information regarding vacant plots, line of activity, and contact details.

 

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July 09, 2021

Assam Cabinet has approved bill for protecting cattle
  • The Assam Cattle Preservation Bill, 2021, will be placed before the State Assembly in the upcoming session. It seeks to replace the existing The Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 1950, that allows the slaughter of cattle above 14 years of age with proper approval by local veterinary officers.
  • The move aims to stop cattle being smuggled into Bangladesh via the international border. The legislation would prohibit cattle movement from other parts of the country into Assam as well as from the state to the rest of the country.

Cattle Slaughter Laws in India

  • In 2005, the Supreme Court of India upheld the constitutional validity of anti-cow slaughter laws enacted in different states of India. Around 20 states in India currently have laws to regulate cow slaughter (it includes cattle slaughter as well).

Software Technology Parks of India to launch five Centres of Excellence in 5 NE States
  • The Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) will soon launch 12 more Centres of Excellence (CoE) in various parts of the country. 
  • The Five CoEs will come up in North East, one each in 5 north-east capital cities — Gangtok (IT Applications in Healthcare and AgriTech), Itanagar (GIS Applications including Drone Tech), Kohima (IT Applications in Graphic Design), Aizawl (Gaming), and Agartala (Data Analytics)
  • For nurturing start-up ecosystem and to create world class software products by Indian start-ups, STPI has embarked the journey of establishing domain-centric CoEs in various emerging technology areas such as Artificial Intelligence and Computer Vision, Internet of Things (IoT), Fintech, Block chain, Augmented and Virtual Reality, Gaming and Animation etc through collaborative model.
  • STPI has in the past launched 13 CoEs at Chennai, Bhubaneswar, Mohali, Bengaluru, Pune, New Delhi, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Shillong, Imphal and Lucknow.
  • STPI under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Indian government, working with the objective of encouraging, promoting, boosting software exports, and nurturing the startup ecosystem in the country.

 

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July 10, 2021

Fish Farming emerging as “go-to” profession in Assam 
  • Assam has been making steady progress in the fish farming sector since 2016 with fish production of 3.93 lakh metric tonnes in the last six years, informed state’s Fisheries Minister Parimal Suklabaidya. 
  • Exuding optimism that the fish production in the state would increase up to five lakh metric tonnes with the creation of gene bank, the minister informed that the government had spent Rs 10 crore for this purpose. 
  • State Government in Assam has been making concerted efforts to make use of the vast water resources of the state to increase fish production. 
  • Many youths who have come back to the state due to the COVID-induced lockdown have taken up fish farming by constructing individual and community ponds with Government subsidies.  Of the 12,000 individual and community ponds, 10,000 ponds have been constructed.

New Department to be created in Assam to protect Indigenous Faith, Culture
  • The Assam cabinet decided to create a new department to protect the culture and practices of people belonging to tribal and other indigenous communities. The new department would ensure that the state’s indigenous population gets to preserve their faith and traditions, while providing requisite support to them.
  • The indigenous people of Assam are people belonging to ethnic groups who have been living in this region before colonialism in 1826 (when NE became a part of India) as per the United Nations Indigenous or Native or original inhabitants definition. 
  • The indigenous people of Assam belong to the following ethnic groups:

Khasis, Keot(Kaibarta), Jaintia, Dom/Nadiyal Kaibarta, Koch-Rajbongshis, Bodo, Mising, Rabha, Deori, Tiwa(Lalung), Ahom, Moran, Koch-Rajbongshi, Motok, Dimasa, Karbi, Sutiya, Sonowal Kachari, Thengal Kachari, Sarania Kachari, Mech Kachari, Tai Phake, Tai Khamyang, Tai Aiton, Tai Turung, Tai Khamti, other Tai ethnic groups, various Naga ethnic groups, Mizo, various indigenous Arunachali ethnic groups like Adi, Nyishi, Mishmi, Apatani, Barman Kachari, Tripuri, Kalitas of North and Upper Assam are mostly Mongoloid converts, etc., Assamese Brahmins including Ganaks, Assamese Kayasthas, Kalitas of Lower Assam (not Kalitas of North and Upper Assam as most of them are Mongoloid converts), other indigenous ethnic groups of neighbouring North-East states.


Department of Biotechnology & National Institute of Biomedical Genomics creates world’s 1st database of Oral Cancer variants dbGENVOC
  • The Department of Biotechnology under the Ministry of Science and Technology & National Institute of Biomedical Genomics (NIBMG) has created a first of its kind database of genomic variation in oral cancer, called dbGENVOC.

FACTFILE – dbGENVOC

  • It is a free resource and a browsable online database of GENomic Variants of Oral Cancer. First release of dbGENVOC comprises of 24 million somatic and germline variants which have been derived from whole exome sequences of 100 oral cancer patients & whole genome sequences of 5 oral cancer patients.
  • Somatic variation data from 220 patient samples were collected from USA and analyzed by TCGA-HNSCC project.
  • dbGENVOC is a catalogue of genomic variants as well as a built-in search engine. It allows a reasonable extent of statistical and bioinformatic analysis to be carried out such as identification of variants in associated altered pathways in oral cancer.
  • It will be updated annually with variation data of new oral cancer patients from India southeast Asia. It will support advances in oral cancer research.

 

APSC Prelims 2020 Test Series

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July 11, 2021

Assam-origin Indian-American Samir Banerjee wins 2021 Junior Wimbledon title
  • Indian-American Samir Banerjee, having roots in Assam, won the junior Wimbledon title after defeating Victor Lilov in the boys’ singles final at the All England Club. He became the first American to lift the junior Wimbledon title in six years.
  • Samir Banerjee is an American tennis player. He has a career high ITF junior combined ranking of 2 achieved on 12 July 2021.
  • Samir’s grandfather, Hiranmay Banerjee, was a resident of Assam and served as the General Manager at Oil India Limited (OIL), which has its headquarters at Duliajan in Assam’s Dibrugarh district.

Novak Djokovic won Grand Slam Wimbledon Tennis Championship Title 2021
  • Novak Djokovic has won his 6th Grand Slam Wimbledon Tennis Championship men’s singles title 2021. Wimbledon Championship 2021 was the 134th edition, 53rd Open Era, and the third Grand Slam Tournament of 2021.
  • Wimbledon Championship 2021 tournament was started on June 28, 2021 for which finals were played in London, England on July 11, 2021. The tournament in 2020 was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic for the first time since World War II.
  • Wimbledon Men’s Single Championship 2021 was held at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London, England. Roger Federer, with 8 titles, won maximum number of titles in 2021 tournament.

FACTFILE – Wimbledon Championship

  • Wimbledon Championship is the oldest tennis tournament worldwide, and is widely regarded as most prestigious championship. It has been held since 1877 at All England Club in Wimbledon, London.
  • Wimbledon is one among four Grand Slam tennis tournaments. Other tournaments are Australian Open, French Open and US Open. 
  • Wimbledon is the only major tournament which is still played on traditional tennis playing surface, Grass.

BIOGRAPHY – Novak Djokovic

  • He is a Serbian professional tennis player, ranked as world No. 1 Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).
  • He has been No. 1 for record of 334 weeks. He has also finished as year-end No. 1 on Open Era joint record six occasions (shared with Pete Sampras).
  • As of now, he has won an all-time joint record 20 Grand Slam men’s singles titles (shared with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal)  and 85 ATP singles titles.

India’s First Private LNG Facility plant inaugurated at Nagpur

  • Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, inaugurated India’s first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility plant at Nagpur, Maharashtra. Union Minister emphasized on the importance of alternate biofuels and diversification of agriculture towards the energy & power sector.
  • Union Ministry have also designed a policy that encourages development of imports substitute, cost-effective, pollution-free and indigenous ethanol, LNG, bio CNG and hydrogen fuels. Surplus in rice, corn and sugar can be used as alternative fuel in order to prevent it from going to waste.

FACTFILE – Liquefied natural gas (LNG)

  • LNG is natural gas, mainly methane (CH4) with some mixture of ethane (C2H6), that has been cooled down to liquid form for easier non-pressurized storage & transport. It takes up around 1/600th of volume of natural gas in gaseous state. It is odorless, colorless, non-toxic and non-corrosive gas.
  • LNG is produced from hydrocarbon deposits containing a wide range of hydrocarbon products like methane (CH4), ethane (C2H6), propane (C3H8) and butane (C4H10).
  • Acidic elements like hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and carbon dioxide (CO2) along with oil, mud, water, and mercury, are removed from LNG to deliver clean sweetened stream of gas.

 

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July 12, 2021

Dibrugarh-Imphal flight becomes operational under UDAN programme
  • Domestic carrier Indigo started another flight from Dibrugarh to Imphal, under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) – UDAN programme of the Government of India. The Indigo flight will now connect Kolkata and Imphal with Dibrugarh on a daily basis, and the flight will take around 1 hour and 15 Minutes to reach Imphal from Dibrugarh.
  • The RCS- UDAN scheme has added wings to the existing travel experience, especially for first-time travellers. At present, there are nine flights departing from Dibrugarh Airport.
  • Dibrugarh Airport is now connected to four state capitals of North East India- Guwahati, Agartala, Imphal and Dimapur. 
  • The flights under the RCS- UDAN scheme have connected various remote areas of North-East India, making travelling convenient for the public in the region. This is the third flight under RCS- UDAN scheme to start its operations from Dibrugarh Airport.

FACTFILE – UDAN-RCS

  • UDAN-RCS, UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) is a regional airport development and “Regional Connectivity Scheme” (RCS) of Government of India, with the objective of “letting the common citizen of the country fly”, aimed at making air travel affordable and widespread, to boost inclusive national economic development, job growth and air transport infrastructure development of all regions and states of India.
  • At the beginning of the scheme, out of total 486 airports, 406 were participating unserved airports, 27 were well served airports out of 97 non-RCS airports and 12 were operational airports out of 18 participating underserved regional operational airports with regular fixed-wing scheduled flights.
  • UDAN scheme will add to this number by expediting the development and operationalisation of India’s potential-target of nearly 425 unserved, underserved, and mostly underdeveloped regional airports with regular scheduled flights.

Assam Govt presents deficit budget of Rs 566 crore for Fiscal Year 2021-22
  • Assam’s first woman Finance Minister Ajanta Neog presented a deficit budget of Rs 566 crore for the Fiscal Year 2021-22. 
  • Minister Neog stated that the aggregate income of the government has been calculated at Rs 2,89,770.68 crore for FY 2021-22, and the total expenditure for the financial year has been estimated at Rs 2,89,367.10 crore.

Key highlights of the Assam Budget 2021-22

  • The government has allocated Rs 40 crore for aiding the families who lost their loved ones due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The budget promises Rs 1 lakh one-time compensation to the next of the kins of those who have died due to COVID-19.
  • The budget also promises smartphones to class IX and X students in government schools.
  • Assam government will recruit 1 lakhs youths for government jobs in the state.
  • The Budget will provide microfinance loan waivers to economically vulnerable people through incentives.
  • The government has also proposed to build 1000 KM of embankments and roads so as to make Assam flood-free.
  • The budget made no new tax proposal, and tax rates remain unchanged.
  • The budget also allocated funds for 5 new medical colleges at Golaghat, Dhemaji, Morigaon, Bongaigaon and Tamulpur.
  • Under the poverty alleviation Orunodoi scheme, financial assistance has been increased from Rs 830 to Rs 1,000 per month to ensure support for financially weaker families.
  • Budget proposed piped gas supply to 2,69,648 families of tea garden workers.

National Dolphin Research Centre to be set up in Patna
  • The National Dolphin Research Centre (NDRC) will be set up in Patna, Bihar. Opening up of the research centre will be a big step towards conservation of endangered Gangetic River dolphins.
  • To set up the research centre, NDRC is coming up on 4,400 square metre plots of land in premises of Patna University.
  • Bihar urban development department has already cleared construction of NDRC’s building at a distance of 200 metres from the Ganga.
  • Dolphin habitat has been threatened and disturbed in River Ganga. Thus, NDRC is now conservation efforts of dolphins. NDRC will provide an opportunity for in-depth research on dolphins including on changing behavior, food habits, survival skills, cause of death and other such aspects.

FACTFILE – Project Dolphin

  • Project Dolphin was started on the lines of Project Tiger, which has helped in increasing tiger population. This initiative got in-principle approval in December 2019 at first meeting of National Ganga Council (NGC), headed by the Prime Minister.
  • This is a “Special Conservation program” taken up to save the Gangetic Dolphin. This project will be implemented by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

FACTFILE – Gangetic River dolphin

  • Gangetic Dolphin is India’s national aquatic animal. It has been listed as Schedule I animal under Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. It has been declared “endangered” by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
  • Gangetic Dolphin is one among four freshwater dolphin species across world. Other three freshwater dolphins are found in Yangtze River in China, Indus River in Pakistan and Amazon River in South America.
  • Dolphin is found in India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Bihar is home to half of estimated 3,000 Gangetic dolphins in India.

 

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July 13, 2021

National Asset Reconstruction Company became a legal entity
  • The National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARC) has finally become a legal entity registered with the Registrar of Companies, Mumbai. NARC is also called as bad bank is finally here in India. It is considered as a one-stop solution for banking systems stressed assets menace.
  • Under the first phase, 22 stressed accounts amounting to Rs 89,000 crore has been identified to transfer to NARC. With this, Rs 2 lakh crore worth of bad loans accounts will be transferred to the newly incorporated bad bank.
  • SBI is expected to transfer bad loans worth Rs 20,000cr. PNB will transfer about Rs 8,000cr stressed assets while Union Bank of India will transfer about Rs 7,800cr NPAs to NARCL.
  • Total stress in the banking system is more than Rs 15 lakh crore. So, banks burdened with stressed assets and limited capital find it difficult to manage NPAs. Further, Government can only provide a limited capital. Thus, this bad bank model will help both government and banks to manage NPAs.

FACTFILE – National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARC)

  • NARC was Incorporated on July 7, 2021 and it has an authorised capital of Rs 100 crore and paid-up capital of Rs 74 crore.
  • Sixteen banks, 12 state-owned and 4 private banks will invest in NARCL. Canara Bank will be the sole sponsor of NARL with 12% stake and SBI is going to be the second-largest shareholder with 9.9%.

Ladakh is 1st UT to achieve 100% first dose coverage
  • Ladakh has become first Union Territory to vaccinate all residents and guest population; comprising of migrant labourers, hotel workers and Nepalese citizens earning their livelihood in the territory; with first dose of Covid-19 jab.
  • As per data, total of 89,404 people from all eligible age groups have been administered with first dose of Covid vaccine. Second dose has been administered to 60,936 people.

FACTFILE – Ladakh

  • Ladakh is a region administered by India as union territory. It comprises of part of larger Kashmir region, which has been a subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China.
  • Ladakh was established as a Union Territory on October 31, 2019 after passing “Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act”.
  • Ladakh is bordered by Tibet Autonomous Region in east, Himachal Pradesh in south, Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan in west while southwest corner of Xinjiang along the Karakoram Pass in north.
  • Ladakh extends from Siachen Glacier in Karakoram range in north to main Great Himalayas in south. Eastern end of UT comprises of uninhabited Aksai Chin plains. Aksai Chin is claimed by Indian Government as part of Ladakh, however it is under Chinese control since 1962.

World Population Day 2021 observed on July 11, 2021
  • World Population Day has observed on July 11 every year and highlights problems of overpopulation. The day also raises awareness about the effects of overpopulation on environment and development. 
  • The year 2021 marked the 32nd world population day. The day is observed every year with a specific theme. Theme for World Population Day 2021 is “Rights and choices are the answer: Whether baby boom or bust, the solution to shifting fertility rates lies in prioritizing the reproductive health and rights of all people.”
  • Every year events and activities like seminar discussions, educational information sessions etc are organized across schools and colleges to draw attention towards issues of growing population.
  • To raise people’s awareness on issues related with population like importance of family planning, poverty, gender equality, maternal health and human rights, the day becomes significant.

FACTFILE – World Population Day

  • First World Population Day was observed on July 11, 1989. This day was established by the Governing Council of United Nations Development Programme in 1989.
  • This day was suggested by Dr. K. C. Zachariah when population reaches Five Billion. Dr Zachariah was working as Senior Demographer at World Bank then.

 

APSC Prelims 2020 Test Series

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July 14, 2021

Italy wins the  European Championship trophy 2020
  • Italy has won second European Championship trophy after defeating England by 3-2 in penalty shoot-out in final of Euros 2020 trophy at Wembley Stadium in London.
  • This is the first major international trophy won by Italy since their 2006 FIFA World Cup win.

FACTFILE – UEFA European Football Championship

  • It is the primary association football competition among senior men’s national teams of members of Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). Competition has been held every four years since 1960.
  • Euros 2020 was postponed until 2021 because of COVID-19 pandemic in Europe. It was originally called as “European Nations’ Cup”.
  • In the tournament, the host nations qualify automatically while other members are required to compete in the qualifying process.

India’s first 5-star Hotel atop Railway Track in Gandhinagar
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to inaugurate a newly-built five-star hotel on the top of redeveloped Gandhinagar railway station on July 16, 2021.
  • This project on redevelopment of Gandhinagar railway station and construction of five-star hotel started by Indian Railway Stations Redevelopment Corporation (IRSDC) in January 2017.
  • The Luxury hotel atop the railway station is having 318 rooms.Hotel is spread across 7,400 square meters. It was built at a cost of Rs 790 crore.

NTPC to set up India’s largest solar park at Rann of Kutch, Gujarat
  • Govt owned company NTPC Ltd is to set up India’s largest solar park at Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. The solar park will have the capacity of 4.75 gigawatt.
  • NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd got the go-ahead from ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE) for this project under “ultra-mega renewable energy power parks (UMREPP) scheme”.
  • NTPC plans to list NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd. NTPC has also announced its target to reduce net energy intensity by 10% under its energy compact goals.
  • NTPC has planned to invest ₹1 trillion between 2019 and 2024 in order to become a 130 GW power producer by 2032.

FACTFILE – Green Energy Parks

Under the ultra-mega renewable energy power parks (UMREPP) scheme, several state-run companies including NTPC have planned to build massive green energy parks in wind & solar resource rich states like Jammu & Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

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APSC Prelims 2020 Test Series

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Assam Current Affairs – August 29-31, 2020

Assam Current Affairs & GK – August 29-31, 2020

( Covers all important Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of August 29-31, 2020)

August 2020 Current Affairs Monthly PDF  |  Assam 2020 Yearbook  | July 2020 Quiz Monthly PDF

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Test Series for Junior Admin Asst (Assam Secretariat) 2020

 

August 29, 2020


Assam’s Ranjan Bezbaruah bestowed with Rashtriya Sanskrit Geetikavi title
  • The Lokobhasha Prachar Samitih has bestowed the title of Rashtriya Sanskrit Geetikavi on Assam’s noted Sanskrit singer, teacher and translator Ranjan Bezbaruah.
  • Lokobhasha Prachar Samitih, Bhubaneswar-based organization, is a national organization that promotes Sanskrit. It has 42 branches in different countries of the world and in different states of India, will confer the title and hand over a certificate to Bezbaruah in a online event.
  • The title was bestowed on Bezbaruah for his excellent, outstanding and continuous contribution in presenting songs popular in other languages in a modern and attractive style in Sanskrit.
  • Bezbaruah’s avowed aim is to take the hits of Bhupen Hazarika and other greats like Jyoti Prasad Agarwalla and Bishnu Rabha to the rest of the country by translating and singing them in Sanskrit without deviating from tune and cadence.
  • His ‘Saare Jahaan se accha Hindustan Hamara’, sung on August 16, 2016, in the Vartavalli programme of Doordarshan, is considered to be one of the most popular Sanskrit songs by the exponents of the language.

Union Social Justice Ministry to launch ‘VISHVAS’ scheme for Loan Beneficiaries
  • Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will come up with the “VISHVAS (Vanchit Ikai Samooh aur Vargo Ke Liye Arthik Sahayta Yojana)” scheme, under which, people from underprivileged sections who have taken bank loans will get five per cent subsidy per annum through direct cash transfer.
  • Union Minister Ramdas Athawale said that the government is diligently working towards promoting economic development of the underprivileged through various focused schemes.
  • Minister Athawale also said that banks need to play a more proactive role in order to help the underprivileged by providing loans to the aspiring entrepreneurs, instead of discouraging them.

New rules for J&K’s governance, law and order under Lt Gov
  • The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has notified new rules for administration of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir ‘The Transaction of business of the government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Rules, 2019’.
  • It specify the functions of the Lt Governor and the Council of Ministers. These rules provide that “police, public order, All India Services and anti-corruption,” will fall under the executive functions of the Lt Governor.
  • Proposals or matters which affect or are likely to affect the peace and tranquility of the UT or the interest of any minority community, the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Backward Classes “shall essentially be submitted to the Lt Governor through the Chief Secretary, under intimation to the Chief Minister, before issuing any orders”.
  • The Chief Minister led Council of Ministers will decide service matters of non-All India Services officers, proposals to impose new taxes, land revenue, sale grant or lease of government property, reconstituting departments or offices and draft legislations.
  • I n case of difference of opinion between the Lt Governor and a minister, the decision of the Lt Governor “shall be deemed to have been accepted by the Council of Ministers”.

IIT Alumni Council signs MOU with Russia for building Quantum Computers
  • The Indian Institute of Technology’s Alumni Council has signed an MoU with Lomonosov Moscow State University and Russoft to access and transfer key technologies from Russia to build the world’s largest and fastest hybrid quantum computer in India.
  • Under the agreement, the Russian state-owned companies will transfer critical modules in cryogenics, cryptography and modularised cloud management technology to IIT Alumni Council.
  • These technologies will support solutions for solving infrastructure challenges in areas such as healthcare, agriculture, transport and logistics, pollution and weather forecast.
  • Quantum Computing is million times faster than the supercomputer and thus will drastically reduce the cost of genome testing from over ₹1 lakh per sample to under ₹1,000.
  • The IIT Alumni Council is the largest global body of alumni, students and faculty, spread across all the 23 IITs and partnering Technical Institutes of Excellence.

FACTFILE – Quantum computing

  • Quantum computing is the use of quantum phenomena such as superposition and entanglement to perform computation.
  • Quantum computers are believed to be able to solve certain computational problems, such as integer factorization (which underlies RSA encryption), substantially faster than classical computers.
  • Quantum computing began in the early 1980s, when physicist Paul Benioff proposed a quantum mechanical model of the Turing machine. Richard Feynman and Yuri Manin later suggested that a quantum computer had the potential to simulate things that a classical computer could not.
  • In 1994, Peter Shor developed a quantum algorithm for factoring integers that had the potential to decrypt RSA-encrypted communications.
  • In recent years, investment into quantum computing research has increased in both the public and private sector.

 August 30, 2020


President Kovind virtually presents Arjuna Award to Assam’s boxer Lovlina Borgohain
  • President Ram Nath Kovindvirtually presented the prestigious Arjuna Award to Assam’s boxer Lovlina Borgohain for her outstanding performance in boxing.
  • All the winners of National Sports Awards were connected virtually to President Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan from 9 different Sports Authority of India-designated locations.
  • Lovlina Borgohain from Golaghat district, is the first woman from Assam to qualify for the Olympics and the second boxer from the state to represent India after Shiva Thapa.
  • Lovlina won a gold medal at the 1st India Open International Boxing Tournament held in New Delhi and a silver medal at the 2nd India Open International Boxing Tournament held in Guwahati. She also won a bronze medal at the 2019 AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships held at Ulan-Ude in Russia.
  • The other players who won the Arjuna Awad aree Dutee Chand, Sawant Ajay Anant, Sandesh Jhingan, Aditi Ashok, Akashdeep Singh, Deepak, Kale Sarika Sudhakar, Divya Kakran, Rahul Aware, Suyash Narayan Jadhav, Sandeep Para, Manish Narwal, Chirag Chandrasekhar Shetty, Vishesh Bhriguvanshi, Subedar Manish Kaushik, Ishant Sharma and Deepti Sharma.
  • Recently, prize money for the Arjuna Award has been enhanced to Rs 15 lakh from Rs 5 lakh.

Union IT Minister launches “Chunauti” Next Generation Start-up Challenge
  • Union Minister for Electronics and IT Ravi Shankar Prasad launched next-generation startup contest `Chunauti” which aims to encourage startups and software products with special focus on Tier-II towns.
  • With Rs 95 crore outlay over a three-year period, the challenge programme aims to identify around 300 startups working in identified areas and provide them seed fund of up to Rs 25 lakh and other facilities.
  • Ministry of Electronics and IT will invite startups in areas such as edu-tech, agri-tech and fin-tech solutions for masses; supply chain, logistics and transportation management, infrastructure and remote monitoring, medical healthcare, diagnostic, preventive and psychological care; and jobs and skilling, linguistic tools and technologies.
  • Startups selected through ”Chunauti” will be offered various support from the government through the Software Technology Parks of India(STPI) centers across India.
  • The startups will be provided cloud credits from leading cloud service providers and they will also get incubation facilities, mentorship, security testing facilities, access to venture capitalist funding, industry connect as well as advisories in legal, Human Resource (HR), IPR and patent matters.

Kerala’s inaugurated its first Marine ambulance
  • Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the first marine ambulance ‘Pratheeksha’ acquired by the state fisheries department. The marine ambulance, having a length of 23m and a width of 5.5m, can move at a speed of 14 knots per hour and are being acquired to rescue fishermen in distress at sea.
  • The boats have facility to provide medical assistance to 10 people at a time. This will help provide first aid to rescued fishermen and shift them to shore as soon as possible. 
  • Each boat will have four sea rescue guards, paramedical staff, emergency medicines and a mortuary. While Pratheeksha will be stationed at Vizhinjam in Thiruvananthapuram, Prathyasa and Karunya will be stationed at Vypeen and Beypore in Kozhikode.

14th India-Singapore Defence Policy Dialogue
  • India and Singapore agreed to further enhance the security partnership, while participating in the 14th India-Singapore Defence Policy Dialogue (DPD) via video-conferencing.
  • The dialogue, co-chaired by Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar and Permanent Secretary (Defence), Singapore Chan Heng Kee, discussed on various issues of bilateral defence engagements between India and Singapore.
  • The Implementing Arrangement on Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR) between India and Singapore was also signed.

August 31, 2020


Cotton University to launch BA programme for sportspersons
  • Cotton University to launch BA programme for sportspersons. The eligibility criteria are 10+2 qualified or equivalent from a recognised Board or Council with proficiency in sports.
  • The applicant must have represented the National Team in International Events or secured one of the first three positions in National Level competitions organised by the respective federation in any SAI recognised sports events.
  • In case of cricket, being a member of the National team (Junior or Senior) selected by BCCI will be considered.

FACTFILE – Cotton University

  • Cotton University is a public state university located in Guwahati.
  • It was established under The Cotton University Act, 2017 of the Assam Legislative Assembly to merge the Cotton College State University and Cotton College.
  • The university made its way to become one of the top 200 institutions of the country by claiming rank in the band of 150–200 in the NIRF 2020 Ranking.

FACTFILE – Cotton College

  • Cotton College was established in 1901 by Sir Henry Stedman Cotton, the Chief Commissioner of the erstwhile British province of Assam.
  • It had been the oldest institute of higher education in Assam and Northeast India.
  • It became the constituent college of Gauhati University in 1948, and then that of the Cotton College State University, when Cotton College State University was established by an Act (Act XIX of 2011) of the Assam Government in 2011.

BHU forms committee to implement National Innovation and Startup policy
  • The Banaras Hindu University (BHU) Varanasi has formed a 21-member committee to implement the new National Innovation and Startup policy-2019 introduced by the Union Ministry of Education, at the university level.
  • The committee, headed by Vice-Chancellor Prof. Rakesh Bhatnagar will comprises academicians as well as students and alumni, entrepreneurs and experts from different fields.
  • The Design Innovation Centre and Atal Incubation Centre were established in 2015 and 2018 at the BHU campus to promote innovation.
  • The BHU, which was ranked 11th, jumped to fifth position under the public funded institutions category of the country in the recently released Atal Innovation Rankings.

Karnataka plans for India’s 1st toy cluster
  • India’s first toy making cluster would be built at Koppal in Karnataka state’s northwest region.
  • Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa said Koppal will be India’s first toy making cluster in a 400-acre special economic zone, with Rs 5,000-crore investment to create 40,000 jobs over the next 5 years.
  • India’s share in the global toy industry was very small, the Prime Minister said it was not fair to have such a small share and all have to work towards improving it. He also referred to the world famous Channapatna toys from the Karnataka’s Ramanagara district.
  • State-run Karnataka Handicrafts Development Corporation provides assistance to the artisans with marketing efforts to promote and market the toys across the country and overseas.

Karnataka starts RO-RO train service between Bengaluru and Solapur
  • Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa flagged off Roll-On/Roll-Off (RO-RO) train between Bengaluru (Nelamangala) to Solapur (Maharashtra) through video conferencing.
  • The RO-RO service reduces accidents on the road, improves safety, saves fuel, and foreign exchange. And ensures faster transport of essential goods, perishables, food items and smaller cargo.
  • It facilitates large-scale movement of goods and reduces pollution, and the cost of transport is lesser than transport by road.

Centre’s borrowing options to states to settle GST compensation
  • States will have to forego borrowing flexibility of 1 percent of state GDP given under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package if they opt to settle their entire GST compensation shortfall for FY21 through market borrowings.
  • As per the design of the options given to the states by the Union Govt to meet GST compensation gap, if the states decide to meet the entire shortfall of Rs 235,000 crores through issue of market debt, then additional unconditional borrowing limit of 0.5 percent and the final (bonus) tranche of 0.5 percent provided under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package.
  • Under option one, the Centre has offered a special borrowing window to states, in consultation with the RBI, for an amount of Rs 97,000 crore (the shortfall arising out of GST implementation) at a “reasonable” interest rate.
  • The second option given by the Centre allows states to borrow entire projected GST compensation shortfall of Rs 2,35,000 crore (total shortfall of Rs 3 lakh crore minus Rs 65,000 crore collected as GST compensation cess) for FY21.

 

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