Daily Current Affairs and GK | 25 October 2024

Topic: Defence

1. Singapore India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) started at Visakhapatnam on 23rd October.

• The 31st edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) is scheduled to be organized from 23 to 29 Oct 2024.
• Singapore Navy Ship RSS Tenacious is participating in the SIMBEX2024.
• The exercise is scheduled to be conducted in two phases - the Harbour Phase from 23 to 25 October at Visakhapatnam and the Sea Phase from 28 to 29 October in the Bay of Bengal.
• The main aim of the exercise is to further strengthen the strategic partnership between India and Singapore by enhancing interoperability and improving maritime domain awareness.
• Cross-deck visits, sports fixtures, and pre-sail briefings between personnel from both navies will be part of the Harbour Phase.
• SIMBEX started as 'Exercise Lion King' in 1994 between Singapore and India.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

2. 17th Urban Mobility India Conference and Exhibition started in Gandhinagar.

• Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel inaugurated the three-day conference organized by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• More than 3000 dignitaries including senior officials and policy makers from Central and State Governments and experts in urban transport participated in this conference.
• Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar will preside over the concluding session of the conference.
• The conference will be focused on the standardization of urban mobility solutions and the integration of various modes of urban mobility.

Topic: Summit/Conference/Meeting

3. WTSA-24 concluded with adoption of 8 proposals to upgrade telecommunications standards.

• International Telecommunication Union ITU - World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA) 2024 was held in New Delhi from 15 to 24 October 2024.
• WTSA-24 adopted eight new resolutions targeting emerging areas of standardization in telecommunications.
• Key Proposals by India

• The 10-day event of WTSA-24 concluded with significant progress in the adoption of new proposals aimed at advancing global telecommunications and information and communication technologies.
• These resolutions and actions reaffirm the ITU's commitment to advancing global telecommunications standards and addressing the challenges of the digital age.
• The outcomes of WTSA-24 will guide future standardization efforts, and ensure that telecommunications infrastructure continues to develop in a secure, sustainable, and inclusive manner.
• The event saw the largest ever participation of 3,700 delegates from 164 countries.

Topic: National News

4. Two railway projects have been approved by the government to double the length of 256 km of railway line at a cost of Rs 6,800 crore.

• On October 24, two rail projects with an estimated cost of Rs 6,798 crore approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) to provide connectivity, ease travel and reduce logistics costs.
• The first project includes doubling of the railway line from Narkatiaganj to Raxaul, Sitamadhi and Darbhanga, as well as the Sitamadhi-Muzaffarpur section covering a distance of 256 km in Bihar.
• This project will strengthen connectivity between Nepal, North-East India and border areas, facilitate movement of goods trains as well as passenger trains and lead to socio-economic development of the region.
• An amount of Rs 4,453 crore has been approved for the doubling of railway lines in Bihar.
• The project will connect Ayodhya to Sitamarhi, Kathmandu, Janakpur and Lumbini and will generate 87 lakh human -days of employment.
• In addition, A new railway line for Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, has been approved by CCEA.
• With an estimated cost of 2 thousand 245 crore rupees, a new 57 km railway line will be constructed between Errupalem and Namburu via Amaravati.
• The setting up of a 1000 crore rupee venture capital fund dedicated to the space sector was approved by the Union Cabinet.

Topic: Sports

5. Former Indian women's hockey captain Rani Rampal announced her retirement on 24 October.

• Rani Rampal's illustrious 16-year career has come to an end, during which she rose from a small town in Haryana to become an inspiration for her phenomenal rise.
• The 29-year-old departed as one of India's most successful hockey players, having led the women's team to its best-ever finish at the Olympics - fourth place at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
• Rani is a skilled forward who made her international debut in the Olympic qualifiers in 2008 at the age of 14.
• She scored 205 goals in 254 matches for India.
• She was awarded the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award in 2020.
• In 2020, she was also awarded the Padma Shri, the country's fourth highest civilian award.
• Recently, she has been appointed as the national coach for sub-junior women players.

Topic: MoUs/ Agreements

6. An Mou signed between the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) and Sikkim government to increase the adoption of GeM.

• This is a significant milestone for GeM's collaboration with various state governments to act as a facilitator for public procurement of goods and services in an efficient, transparent and inclusive manner.
• With this MoU, GeM has covered all states and union territories.
• As of October 23, buyers from the Sikkim government have made purchases worth around Rs 90 crore.
• Currently, more than three thousand sellers from Sikkim are connected on the GeM portal.
• Of these, 2,720 sellers are registered as "micro" sellers.
• Through the GeM portal, Sikkim-based sellers get access to bids issued by the purchasing agencies of the Central Government, Sikkim and other State Governments.
• GeM is a one-stop online platform for procurement of goods and services for all Central Government Agencies, Central Public Sector Undertakings, State Governments and all the concerned departments including buyers from cooperative societies.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

7. PM Modi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz co-chaired the 7^th Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) in New Delhi.

• German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is on a three-day visit to India.
• The IGC is a whole-of-government framework.
• Under IGC, Ministers from both sides hold discussions in their respective areas of responsibility.
• The Ministers report on the outcome of their deliberations to the Prime Minister and the Chancellor.
• Both leaders also addressed the 18th Asia Pacific Conference of German Business.
• The IGC format was launched in 2011. It allows for a comprehensive review of cooperation.
• It also allows for identification of new areas of engagement at the Cabinet level.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

8. Weather forecast has been launched by government at Gram Panchayat Level in New Delhi.

• The initiative is aimed at enhancing disaster preparedness at the grassroots level.
• It is also aimed at empowering rural communities. It will directly benefit farmers and villagers across India.
• The initiative will provide weather updates via e-GramSwaraj, the Meri Panchayat app, and Gram Manchitra. 
• The Panchayati Raj Ministry, the Earth Sciences Ministry, and the India Meteorological Department have laid the cornerstone of this initiative.
• Jitendra Singh, the minister of earth sciences, emphasised that space technology has helped weather forecasting accuracy rise by 40% over the past ten years.
• The Minister also emphasised the allocation of 2000 crore rupees under the government's Mission Mausam.
• Mission Mausam was approved by the union cabinet on September 11, 2024, with a budget outlay of 2,000 crores over two years.

Topic: National News

9. Union Cabinet approved a 1000 crore rupees Venture Capital Fund for the space sector.

• It has been approved under the aegis of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe).
• The deployment period of the proposed Venture Capital Fund will be up to five years from the actual date of the start of the fund operations.
• The average allocated amount could be 150 to 250 crore rupees per year.
• The indicative range of investment is proposed to be Rs 10-Rs 60 crore.
• Indicative Equity Investment Range could be Rs 10 crore–Rs 30 crore for the growth stage and Rs 30 crore to Rs 60 crore for the late growth stage.
• This fund will support approximately 40 startups.
• The Government established IN-SPACe to promote and oversee private sector participation in space activities.

Topic: Defense

10. Government approved a new missile testing range in Andhra Pradesh.

• The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has approved the establishment of a new missile testing range in Nagayalanka, Andhra Pradesh.
• It aims to strengthen the defence capabilities, particularly in testing tactical missile systems.
• The new facility will support the testing of surface-to-air missiles, anti-tank missiles, and other projects under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
• The DRDO is developing a large number of weapon systems for the defence forces including the Very Short Range Air Defence Systems, man-portable anti-tank guided missiles.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

11. New species of snake discovered in the Himalayas, named after Leonardo DiCaprio.

• A team of researchers in the western Himalayas have discovered a new snake species named after Leonardo DiCaprio, Hollywood actor and producer, in recognition of his conservation efforts.
• The new species, named ‘Anguiculus dicaprioi’ or DiCaprio’s Himalayan snake, was discovered by a team of researchers from India, Germany, and the United Kingdom in 2020 while they were exploring lesser-known species of snakes as part of a project on reptiles of India.
• Their discovery and study of the new species was published October 21, 2024 in a peer-reviewed journal called Scientific Reports.
• The researchers classified the new species under a new genus called 'Anguiculus,' which means 'little snake' in Latin.
• The specific epithet "dicaprioi" is a patronymic in honor of Leonardo DiCaprio, an American actor, filmmaker, and environmentalist.
• He has been actively involved in creating awareness about global climate change, increasing biodiversity loss, and human health issues through pollution.

Topic: State News/ Bihar

12. Bihar Industry Minister Nitish Mishra on October 21 inaugurated the state's first dry port at Bihta.

• In collaboration with a private company, this dry port is being seen as a major initiative of the state to promote the export of goods produced in Bihar.
• A dry port, or inland container depot (ICD), provides a logistics facility away from a port or airport for cargo handling, storage, and transportation.
• It acts as a bridge between sea/air ports and inland areas, facilitating efficient movement of goods.
• The Bihta Dry Port is spread over seven acres.
• It is being run by Pristine Magadh Infrastructure Pvt Ltd and the state industries department in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode.
• Bihar is a major producer of fruits and vegetables such as potatoes, tomatoes, bananas, litchis and makhana.
• In addition, it also has significant potential for exporting maize (11 out of 38 districts in Bihar focus on maize production), sponge iron, packaged food, waste paper, newsprint, rice and meat.
• According to Bihar government data, the state recorded exports worth Rs 20,000 crore in 2022-23.
• Now, with the availability of ICD Bihta, the state is looking to enhance its export potential.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

13. India’s expenditure on education is higher than countries like China and Japan: UNESCO’s report.

• As per a report by UNESCO, between 2015 and 2024, India spent about 4.1 percent to 4.6 percent of its GDP on education.
• The UN 'Education 2030 Framework for Action' recommends countries allocate 4-6 percent of their GDP to education.
• A new series of reports from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics on world education statistics has revealed that government expenditure on education was between 13.5 per cent and 17.2 per cent during 2015-2024.
• The report mainly focused on the global education investment trends, particularly in achieving sustainable development goals (SDG) 4.
• India has been investing more in education in terms of both GDP percentage and government expenditure as compared with other Central and Southern Asian countries.
• South Asian countries Nepal and Bhutan allocate around 4-6 per cent of their GDP to education.
• The world average of public expenditure on education has declined from 13.2 per cent in 2010 to 12.5 per cent in 2020.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Important Days

14. World Polio Day: 24 October

• Every year on 24 October, World Polio Day is celebrated around the world.
• Polio is a life-threatening disease caused by the poliovirus, which the World Health Assembly committed to eradicating in 1988.
• The WHO European Region was declared polio-free in 2002.
• The polio vaccine is a critical tool in the global effort to eradicate poliomyelitis.
• There are different types of polio vaccines, inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) and oral polio vaccine (OPV).
• In India, OPV has been used exclusively in India since 1978.