Daily Current Affairs and GK | 13 February 2021

Topic: State News/ Karnataka

1. Vijayanagara became the 31st district of Karnataka.

• Karnataka government has formed Vijayanagara district by carving out areas from the Ballari district.
• Vijayanagara district will be comprised of six taluks and Hosapete will be its administrative headquarters.
• The campaign to form a new Vijayanagara district was started by BS Yediyurappa in September 2019.
• The state cabinet had approved the creation of the Vijayanagara district on 18 November 2020.
• Vijayanagara District: It is famous for the Hampi and Virupaksha Temple. It is located in the north-eastern part of Karnataka.
• Karnataka:
  • It is the largest state in South India.
  • It shares its border with Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
  • At present, it has 31 districts.
  • Chief Minister is B S Yediyurappa and Governor is Vajubhai Vala.
  • The Karnataka legislature is a bicameral legislature.

Topic: Books and Authors

2. Hamid Ansari released his book titled ‘By Many a Happy Accident: Recollections of a Life’.

• The former Vice President of India, Mohammad Hamid Ansari, has penned a book named ‘By Many a Happy Accident: Recollections of a Life’. It is the autobiography of him.
• The book narrates his personal life and Public life incidents. Rupa Publications India has published it.
• He has also written about his diplomacy and presidential days experiences.
• Mohammad Hamid Ansari was the Vice President of India from 2007 to 2017. He has written many books, including Citizen and Society, Teasing Questions, Dare I Question books, etc.
• He has also served as the Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations and the Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University.

Topic: State News/Bihar

3. Bihar signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with UNEP.

• Bihar signed MoU with UN Environment Programme (UNEP) for a climate-resilient and low-carbon development path.
• Under partnership, carbon footprint of different sectors in Bihar would be assessed with the support of UNEP.
• A plan would also be prepared with the support of UNEP to minimize carbon dioxide emissions and improve carbon sinks.
• Bihar would prepare climate impact vulnerability assessments and greenhouse gas inventory with the help of UNEP.
• Revision of Bihar’s State Action Plans on Climate Change is also a part of partnership with UNEP.
• Bihar government had launched Jal-Jeevan Hariyali Yojana to promote plantation of trees. It has been working to control pollution in cities such as Patna, Gaya and Muzaffarpur.
• CPCB had identified certain polluted cities as non-attainment cities. In these cities, National Ambient Air Quality Standards are breached.

Topic: Space and IT

4. Partnership announced between Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and MapmyIndia.

• The partnership has been announced between ISRO and MapmyIndia to provide fully indigenous mapping portals, apps and geospatial services.
• These services would be provided through digital maps and technologies of MapmyIndia and ISRO's catalogue of satellite imagery and earth observation data.
• This partnership will help in development of geospatial solutions using Earth Observation Datasets, NavIC, Bhuvan, VEDAS and MOSDAC Geoportals.
• Department of Space has signed MoU with CE Info Systems Pvt Ltd to provide these geospatial services.  ISRO comes under Department of Space.
• CE Info Systems Pvt Ltd owns MapmyIndia. It is an Indian company that builds digital map data and other services. It is India’s leading digital mapping company.
• MapmyIndia had won Aatma Nirbhar App Innovation Challenge 2020 of Government of India.
• Bhuvan is a national geo-portal. ISRO developed it. It was released in 2009.
• VEDAS is an online geoprocessing platform. Its full form is “Visualisation of Earth observation Data and Archival System”. 
• MOSDAC (Meteorological and Oceanographic Satellite Data Archival Centre) is a data repository of ISRO’s meteorological missions.

Topic: State News/ Maharashtra

5. An MoU signed between Maharashtra government and Flipkart.

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Maharashtra government and Flipkart.
• The purpose of signing MoU is to promote wooden toys, local artifacts and handicrafts.
• Under the MoU, Flipkart will provide free training to artisans, weavers, craftsmen & MSMEs from Maharashtra.
• The MoU will help these manufacturers to display their products to millions of customers in India.

Topic: Important Days

6. World Radio Day: 13 February

• World Radio Day is celebrated across the world every year on 13 February. It is celebrated to raise awareness among the people regarding the importance of radio for getting the information.

• The theme of this year’s World Radio Day is “New World, New Radio”, and it is divided into three sub-themes: evolution, innovation and connection.
• This year is the 10^th edition of World Radio Day.

• In its 67^th session in 2012, UNGA had formally adopted the resolution to celebrate 13 February as World Radio Day.
• In India, the first program was aired by the Radio Club of Bombay in 1923. All India Radio (AIR) was established in 1936.
• Radio:
  • Guglielmo Marconi is the inventor of the radio.
  • It uses radio waves for communication. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz).

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Miscellaneous

7. India’s microblogging site Koo gains momentum.

• The indigenously developed microblogging site ‘Koo’ is becoming popular among people.
• The Koo App was launched in November 2019. It is an Indian version of the social networking platform.
• It is the winner of the Atma Nirbhar Bharat App innovation challenge. It was launched to promote the use of made in India apps.
• It is available in many languages and has a word limit of 400 characters.
• The microblogging site was co-founded by Aparmeya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidwatka.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Personality in News

8. Swami Dayanand Saraswati’s birth anniversary has been celebrated across the country.

• The birth anniversary of Swami Dayanand Saraswati has been celebrated across the nation on 12 February.
• Swami Dayanand Saraswati:
  • He was born on 12 February 1824, in Gujarat and his real name was Mool Shankar.
  • He founded the Arya Samaj in Bombay in 1875.
  • He had given the slogan- ‘Go back to the Vedas‘ and ‘the Vedas are the source of all knowledge’. He emphasized the doctrine of Karma and Reincarnation.
  • He was against the caste system, idol worship, and untouchability. He had founded the Dayanand Anglo Vedic schools for the education of men and women.
  • He has written several famous books, including Satyarth Prakash, Sanskarvidhi, Rigvedadi Bhashya Bhumika, etc.

Topic: Appointments

9. Karim Khan elected as new prosecutor of International Criminal Court (ICC).

• A British lawyer, Karim Khan, has been elected as the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. He will replace Fatou Bensouda.
• He will begin his nine-year term in June 2021. He received the vote of 72 countries and defeated the candidates of Ireland, Spain and Italy.
• He will be the third prosecutor in the history of ICC. The first task for him will be to increase the legitimacy of ICC among member states.
• Earlier, the United States, China and Russia have refused to recognize the jurisdiction of ICC. India is not a member of ICC.
• International Criminal Court (ICC):
  • It was established in 2002.
  • It is an intergovernmental organization that can prosecute individuals for international crimes like war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, etc.
  • Its headquarters is located in The Hague, Netherlands.
  • Chile Eboe-Osuji is the current President of the International Criminal Court.
  • It is comprised of 123 members.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

10. Environment Ministry allowed the expansion of Kulda mines despite the fear of air pollution.

• The Environment Ministry expert appraisal committee (EAC) has given the environment clearance to Mahanadi Coalfields Limited for increasing the capacity of Kulda coal mines in Odisha.
• This clearance has been given despite the fear of the adverse impact on health, agriculture and water bodies of the region.
• The clearance has been given on the condition that Mahanadi Coalfields Limited has to plant 100,000 native trees in villages and 50,000 trees along the transportation route in two years.
• Kulda coal mines output will be increased from 4 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 19.60 MTPA.
• Coal mines in Odisha:
  • Odisha has the second-largest reserve of coal in India.
  • It produces around 15 percent of the total coal production of India.
  • Talchar coalfield, located in Angul district of Odisha, has the country’s highest coal reserve of 51.163 billion tonnes. It is spread over an area of 500 km².
  • Rampur-Himgir and Ib River are the other coalfields of Odisha. Ib River coalfield has the third-highest coal reserve in the country.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

11. TIFAC launched Saksham job portal and Seaweed Mission.

• The Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) has launched SAKSHAM (Shramik Shakti Manch) job portal and Seaweed Mission.
• The initiatives have been launched on the occasion of the 34^th foundation day of TIFAC. TIFAC has also released two reports- ‘Techno-economic feasibility on Indian bamboo as Wood Substitute’ and ‘Opportunities for Fruit and Vegetable Processing in North Eastern region of India’.
• SAKSHAM (Shramik Shakti Manch) job portal:
  • It is a dynamic job portal that provides a common platform to connect the requirements of MSME sector and the skill of workers across the country.
  • It will use algorithms and Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools for the geospatial information on demand and availability of workers.
  • It will help in eliminating the role of middle man between worker and MSME.
  • It will create 10 lakh jobs in the country and it will help workers in getting jobs in the nearest MSME.
• Seaweed Mission:
  • Seaweed Mission has been launched to promote seaweed production in India. At present, India produces only 0.01-0.02% of the global seaweed production.
  • According to an estimate, seaweed cultivation in 5% of the EEZ area of India can generate 50 million employment.
  • This mission has been launched on the recommendation of a report developed by CSIR- CSMCRI and other stakeholders.
• Features of Seaweed Mission:
  • It aims to establish model farms in more than 1 hectares for the cultivation of seaweeds in different states along the coast of India.
  • It will establish seaweed nurseries for supplying seed material for seaweed cultivation.
  • The processing plant will also be set up for the industrially important algae such as seaweeds such as agar, agarose, carrageenan and alginates.
  • The TIFAC, CSIR labs, ICAR labs and state Fisheries Departments will be the implementing agencies of this mission.