Daily Current Affairs and GK | 20 April 2021

Topic: Space and IT

1. NASA will launch Second Commercial Crew Rotation Mission.

• On April 22, NASA and SpaceX will launch the second crew rotation mission with four astronauts.
• NASA’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission will be launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Falcon 9 rocket will be used to launch this mission.
• It will carry astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur of NASA, Akihiko Hoshide of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and ESA’s (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet.
• The Crew-2 astronauts will spend six months at the International Space Station.
• Earlier, NASA had launched the Space-X Demo-2 mission. It was the first human space flight of a private sector commercial company.
• NASA:
  • It is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government.
  • It is responsible for the regulation of the space programme of the United States.
  • Headquarters: Washington D.C

Topic: Awards and Prizes

2. Gallantry Awards portal organised an ‘Innovative Tributes to Bravehearts’ competition.

• The Gallantry Awards portal has organised an ‘Innovative Tributes to Bravehearts’ competition.
• The Gallantry Awards portal has organised this competition in remembrance of the Gallantry Award winners of the country.
• The competition is being held from 15^th April to 15^th May 2021.
• The main objective of this competition is to create a series of tribute messages for the Gallantry Awardees.
• The winners of this competition will get a chance to witness the Republic Day Parade 2022 in New Delhi.
• The Gallantry Awards portal work as a dynamic, interactive, and participative platform. Its main aim is to develop a sense of patriotism, devotion, and dedication among the citizens.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

3. Hydrogen Roundtable organized by The Energy Forum (TEF) and FIPI on 15 April.

• On 15 April, The Energy Forum (TEF) and Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI) organized Hydrogen Roundtable under the aegis of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
• Hydrogen Roundtable was organized to discuss emerging hydrogen ecosystems and to explore opportunities for collaboration, cooperation and coalition.
• It comprised of a High-level Ministerial Session, followed by five Panel Discussions. It had 25 panelists from 15 countries. It had a separate session devoted to India's Hydrogen Mission.
• Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, delivered the inaugural keynote address.
• The Energy Forum (TEF) is a think tank that carries out research and analyses on global energy markets.
• Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry (FIPI) is an apex society of hydrocarbon sector entities.

(Source: DD News)

Topic: Committees/ Commissions/Taskforces

4. RBI sets up a six member Committee under chairmanship of Sudarshan Sen.

• RBI has set up a six member Committee under chairmanship of Sudarshan Sen for a comprehensive review of the working of ARCs in financial sector ecosystem.
• The committee will also recommend measures to enable Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) to meet growing requirements of the financial sector.
• The Committee will give its report within three months from its first meeting.
• The Committee will review all current legal and regulatory frameworks that apply to ARCs.
• Measures to improve efficiency of ARCs will be recommended by the Committee.
• Role of ARCs in the resolution of stressed assets including under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016 will also be reviewed.
• The committee will also review any other matter related to the functioning, transparency and governance of ARCs.
• Vishakha Mulye, P N Prasad, Rohit Prasad, Abizer Diwanji and R Anand are names of members of the Committee.
• In July 2020, ARCs were advised by RBI to establish Fair Practices Code (FPC) to achieve transparency and fairness in dealing with stakeholders.

Topic: State News/ Rajasthan

5. Rajasthan government announced a ‘Jan Anushasan Pakhwara’ after Corona cases increased.

• The Rajasthan government has announced the Jan Anushasan Pakhwara (JAP) or the Public Discipline Fortnight after the rapid increase in the Corona cases. 
• It is the extension of the weekend curfew. However, Government has not named it lockdown or curfew.
• It has been imposed till 3 May 2021 to curb the spread of Covid-19.
• Important provisions of ‘Jan Anushasan Pakhwara’:
  • All government offices, markets, malls, commercial establishments, and workplaces will remain closed.
  • Wearing masks will be mandatory in public places and in workplaces.
  • Home delivery by restaurants, confectionaries, etc. will be allowed till 8 pm.
  • Wholesale and retail shops will be permitted to be open till 5 pm.
  • All industrial and construction work will be permitted.
• Rajasthan:
  • It is a state in Northern India whose capital is Jaipur.
  • It is the largest state in India in terms of area and the seventh-largest in terms of population.
  • The governor of Rajasthan is Kalraj Mishra and the Chief Minister of Rajasthan is Ashok Gehlot.
  • Ranthambore National Park and Sariska Tiger Reserve are also located in Rajasthan.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

6. Ministry of Tourism signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Cleartrip and Ease My Trip.

• To strengthen the Hospitality & Tourism Industry, the Ministry of Tourism signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Cleartrip and Ease My Trip.
• Its main aim is to provide extensive visibility to accommodation units that have self-certified themselves on SAATHI (System for Assessment, Awareness & Training for the Hospitality Industry) on the OTA platform.
• The MoU will encourage these Units to register on NIDHI and SAATHI app. It will also help in encouraging the local tourism Industry.
• The Ministry of Tourism & the Online Travel Companies will collaborate to encourage and promote strategic and technical co-operation in the tourism sector.
• The MoU will also help to collect information on accommodation units to promote safe and sustainable tourism.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Sports

7. Max Verstappen won Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix 2021.

• Max Verstappen has won the Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix 2021 in Italy.  It was the second race of the 2021 Formula 1 season.
• Lewis Hamilton finished on the second spot, while Lando Norris finished in the third position in the race.
• Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz had ended the race on fourth and fifth positions.
• Max Verstappen has won this race from Lewis Hamilton by 21 seconds.
• Emilia Romagna F1 Grand Prix is a motor racing championship. Formula One will organize 23 races in 2021.

Topic: National News

8. Labour Bureau opened an additional office in Salt Lake City, Kolkata.

• An additional office of the Labour Bureau has been inaugurated in Salt Lake City, Kolkata.
• It will work as a hub for survey-related activities in the entire Eastern Region.
• It will coordinate and monitor the field work through Subject Matter Experts and officers of the Labour Bureau.
• Labour Bureau has started the field work for All-India Survey of Migrant workers and All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey from 1^st April 2021 in many states.
• Labour Bureau will conduct five All-India surveys, namely:
  • All India Survey of Domestic Workers
  • All India Survey of Migrant workers
  • All India Survey on Employment generated by Transport Sector
  • All India Survey on Employment generated by Professionals
  • All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey
• The survey will be done by the Labour Bureau and technology for the survey will be provided by BECIL. It will provide crucial data on migrant workers and the employment condition in formal and informal sectors.
• Labour Bureau: It is an attached office of the Ministry of Labour & Employment. It is responsible for the collection and publication of statistics and related information.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Space and IT

9. Russia will launch a lunar mission in 2021.

• Russia’s Roscosmos space agency will launch Luna 25 lunar lander mission in October 2021. It will be the first Russian moon mission since 1976.
• It will land near the South Pole region of the Moon. It will study the composition of the polar regolith and plasma and dust components of the lunar polar exosphere.
• Luna-25 spacecraft will be comprised of a lander. The lander has a Lunar Robotic Arm (LRA) to remove and collect the surface regolith.
• The other instruments of this mission are:
  • ADRON-LR is a gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer to study the surface regolith.
  • ARIES-L will detect the charged particles and neutrals in the polar exosphere.
  • The PML detector will study dust in the polar exosphere.
  • The LASMA-LR spectrometer will measure the composition of regolith samples.
  • LIS-TV-RPM will measure the surface water and OH in the sample.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

10. Government launched the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme.

• Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal launched the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) on 19 April 2021.
• It was announced by the Prime Minister on 16^th January 2021 during ‘Prarambh: StartupIndia International Summit’.
• It will provide financial assistance of 945 Crore to startups over the next four years. It will provide financial aid for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry, and commercialization.
• It will support 3,600 startups through 300 incubators. It will help in creating a robust startup ecosystem in Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns of India.
• It will mainly focus on the innovators of rural areas. The scheme will act as a bridge between ideas and their implementation.
• An online portal has also been created for this scheme. An Experts Advisory Committee (EAC) set up by DPIIT will execute and monitor the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme.
• The selected incubators will receive grants of up to Rs 20 lakhs for validation of Proof of Concept or prototype development.

Topic: Space and IT

11. NASA’s helicopter made history by flying on Mars.

• NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter became the first aircraft to fly on another planet. The miniature robot helicopter performed successful take-off and landing on Mars.
• It is the first powered, controlled flight on another planet. It is a solar-powered helicopter.
• It performed the 40-second flight up to a maximum height of 10 feet (3 meters). The weight of the Ingenuity Helicopter is around 4-pound (1.8-kg).
• The helicopter will perform more flights in the atmosphere of Mars. The helicopter will likely go slightly higher in second and third flights.
• ‘Perseverance’ rover supported the flight mission. It is NASA’s fifth rover to land on Mars.