Daily Current Affairs and GK | 26 August 2023

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

1. First meeting on ‘delimitation of boundary’ was held between China and Butan.

• China and Bhutan held their first meeting of the newly set up joint technical team on the delimitation of their disputed boundary.
• The meeting of the Joint Technical Team on the Delimitation of the China-Bhutan Boundary was held in Beijing.
• They agreed to speed up a boundary resolution and decided to hold the next meeting as soon as possible.
• They also agreed to hold the 25th round of boundary talks to “keep the positive momentum”.
• The boundary talks between Bhutan and China began in 1984. The 24th round of talks was held in 2016.
• The talks are largely focused on disputed areas to Bhutan’s north, and to its west.
• China and Bhutan also agreed to accelerate and coordinate the implementation of the Three-Step Road Map.
• India would be very concerned about any agreement between Bhutan and China that includes a “swap arrangement” between areas to the North (Jamparlung and Pasamlung valleys) with Doklam.
• It will increase China's proximity to India’s narrow “Siliguri corridor” that connects northeastern states with the rest of India.

Topic: Miscellaneous

2. Infosys makes tennis World No.1 Iga Swiatek its Brand Ambassador.

• It has made Iga Swiatek and Rafael Nadal as its Brand Ambassadors to promote its Digital Innovation.
• Infosys has entered into a multi-year partnership with women’s tennis World No.1 Iga Swiatek. 
• It announced aligning a three-year deal with tennis icon Rafael Nadal.
• Infosys is an Indian multinational information technology company headquartered in Bengaluru. Its CEO is Salil Parekh.

Topic: Books and Authors

3. A coffee table book on the traditional and local architecture of different terminal buildings at AAI airports has been released.

• The book was released by Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on 25 August 2023.
• The book showcases the facade of terminal buildings at 19 airports.
• The book is titled ‘Traditional & Local Architecture on Elevation & Design of Upcoming New Terminal Buildings’.
• The launch event of the book was attended by senior civil aviation ministry officials and heads of AAI, DGCA, and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), among others.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Rankings

4. Out of 338 bird species, 60% declined over a period of 30 years according to a report. 

• The report is based on data from about 30,000 birdwatchers across the country.
• 338 bird species were studied in India for changes in numbers over the last 30 years.
• Long-term trends for 338 of the 942 species studied could be determined.
• Out of 338 species, 204 species have declined, 98 are stable and 36 have increased according to the report.
• The report is titled "State of India's Birds". According to the report, 40% of the 359 species studied for change over the last seven years have declined.
• The report relies on three indices. Two are related to the change in abundance-long-term trend (change over 30 years) and current annual trend (change over the past seven years).
• The third is a measure of distribution range size within India.
• The report is published by a group of 13 government and non-government institutions.
• These institutions include the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), and the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI).
• The report classifies 178 species as "high conservation priority". Fourteen species have declined by 30% or more and have been recommended for IUCN Red List reassessment.
• Generalist species like feral Rock Pigeon, Asian Koel and Indian Peafowl are doing very well. Habitat specialist species are declining rapidly.
• As per the report, carnivores, insectivores, and granivores species are declining more rapidly than omnivores or fruit-and-nectar eaters.
• As per the report, migratory species are under greater threat than non-migrants.
• The report emphasizes on the need to conserve the most critically threatened species in the country.
• These species are Jerdon’s Courser, Great Indian Bustard, White-bellied Heron, Bengal Florican, and Finn’s Weaver.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

5. PM Modi conferred with the Grand Cross of the Order of Honour in Greece.

• On 25 August, the President of Greece Ms. Katerina Sakellaropoulou conferred the Grand Cross of the Order of Honor on Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.
• In 1975, the Order of Honor was established.
• The head of the goddess Athena is depicted on the front side of the Star with the inscription “ONLY THE RIGHTEOUS SHOULD BE HONOURED”.
• The Head of State of Greece confers the Grand Cross of the Order of Honor on Prime Ministers and eminent personalities who have contributed to the advancement of the status of Greece while holding distinguished positions.
• The award was presented to Modi, who is the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Greece in four decades.
• Modi is also the first foreign head of government to receive this honor.
• Besides this, PM Modi also paid homage at the "Tomb of the Unknown Soldier" in Athens.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

6. National Health Authority launched the first ABDM microsite under 100 microsites project in Aizawl, Mizoram.

• 100 microsites project was announced by the National Health Authority (NHA) for the rapid adoption of the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) across the country.
• Mizoram has become the first state in India to launch an ABDM microsite in its capital Aizawl.
• Under this, all health facilities including private clinics, small hospitals, and laboratories in the region will be made ABDM-enabled, and digital health services will be provided to patients.
• The 100 Microsites project under ABDM is a very important initiative to reach out to small and medium-scale healthcare providers in the private sector in a big way.
• The concept of microsites has been envisaged to provide a boost to the healthcare digitization efforts across the country.
• ABDM microsites are defined geographic areas where focused efforts will be made to reach out to small and medium scale private healthcare providers.
• These microsites will be primarily implemented by the State Mission Directors of ABDM, while financial resources and overall guidance will be provided by the NHA.
• Under this program, an interfacing agency will have an on-ground team to reach out to healthcare providers in the area.
• Mizoram appointed Youth for Action as the interfacing agency to implement the ABDM microsite in Aizawl.
• The team will spread awareness about the benefits of ABDM and promote the use of ABDM-enabled digital solutions.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Summit/Conferences/Meetings

7. Delhi Police will set up a virtual help desk, which will provide the details regarding the traffic movement during the G20 Summit in New Delhi.

• Special Commissioner of Police Traffic, SS Yadav said this virtual help desk will provide information to users visiting Delhi as delegates and as a tourist.
• According to Mr Yadav, users can access relevant information on MapMyIndia and Google Map Services.
• He said restrictions will be imposed in New Delhi area from the night of 7th September.
• Only authorized and permitted vehicles will be allowed. Restrictions on entry of heavy commercial vehicles will be imposed in Delhi. 
• New Delhi area will be a controlled zone. Private vehicles will not be allowed to enter in the controlled zone.
• G20 Summit under the Presidency of India is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on 9th and 10th of September, 2023.
• It is likely to be attended by 29 heads of states, top officials of the European Union and invited guest countries and 14 heads of international organisations.
• 2023 G20 New Delhi summit is the 18th meeting of G20. It will be the first ever G20 summit to be held in India and in South Asia.
• 19th meeting of G20 is scheduled to take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2024.
• 17th meeting of G20 was held in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia on 15–16 November 2022.

Topic: Defence

8. Defence Ministry has signed a contract with Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam.  

• The contract has been signed for acquisition of the 5 Fleet Support Ships for the Indian Navy at an overall cost of nearly 19,000 crore rupees.
• These ships will be indigenously designed and constructed by HSL, Visakhapatnam.
• The acquisition of these ships had been approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security on 16th of August during its meeting.
• Fleet Support Ships will be used for replenishing ships at sea with fuel, water, ammunition and stores.
• This would enable the Indian Naval Fleet to operate for prolonged periods.
• As a result, the strategic reach and mobility of the Fleet would be enhanced.
• The Fleet Support Ships of 44,000 Tons will be the first of its kind to be constructed in India by an Indian Shipyard.

Topic: India and its neighbours

9. India and Iran agreed to drop the arbitration clause in Chabahar port issue.

• To boost commercial relations between India and Iran, both countries have agreed to remove the clause for arbitration in foreign courts concerning the Chabahar port.
• It was one of the hurdles in framing a long-term agreement related to Chabahar port.
• They agreed on investment arbitration or any other mode of dispute settlement. It will remove the necessity of Iran to amend its constitution.
• Both sides have agreed to pursue arbitration under rules framed by the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).
• Now, India and Iran can sign a long-term agreement related to the Chabahar port.
• The resolution of this contentious issue will also help sanctions-hit Russia, which wants to reach the Indian Ocean region through the International North-South Transport Corridor that passes through Chabahar.
• Iran PM Ebrahim Raisi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have reiterated their commitment to further strengthen bilateral cooperation.
• Chabahar Port:
  • Chabahar is a port located on the coast of the Gulf of Oman.
  • It is strategically important for India as it provides connectivity to Iran and Afghanistan bypassing Pakistan
  • It is jointly developed by India, Iran and Afghanistan.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

10. Indore bagged the best "National Smart City Award" of 2022.

• Indore, the cleanest city in India for the past six years, has won the best "National Smart City Award" of 2022 for exemplary performance among the 100 smart cities.
• Indore has been the top performer in all the missions of the urban affairs ministry.
• In the fourth edition of the India Smart Cities Award Contest (ISAC), Surat and Agra emerged as the second and third winners.
• New Town won second prize in mobility and third in built environment.
• Among states, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu got first and second places, respectively.
• Rajasthan and UP have jointly bagged the third position.
• Among the Union Territories, Chandigarh got the first spot with the highest score.
• Indore bagged six awards while Agra won four awards.
• Under the Smart City mission, Out of the total proposed 7,938 projects, 76% of projects worth Rs 1.11 lakh crore have been completed.
• President Droupadi Murmu would felicitate the winners on September 27 in Indore.

Topic: State News/ Tamil Nadu

11. The breakfast Scheme started by the Tamil Nadu Government in 31 thousand schools on 25 August.

• State Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurated the scheme at a panchayat school at Thirukkuvalai in Nagapattinam district.
• This will benefit more than 17 lakh students studying in classes I to V.
• State Ministers, Members of Parliament, and Members of Legislative Assembly inaugurated the scheme in all the districts.
• The scheme was initially launched to provide breakfast to over one lakh students in 1545 government primary schools but has now been extended to all state government schools.
• The mid-day meal scheme has been in force in Tamil Nadu since 1956.
• The aim of the scheme is to increase enrollment of children in government schools.
• Attendance improved by 40% after the first phase of the breakfast scheme was introduced in 2022.
• Breakfast will be provided each day in all schools and the menu will include 13 food items.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: International News

12. PM Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Greece in 40 years.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Greece from Johannesburg in South Africa after attending the BRICS summit.
• Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has invited PM Modi.
• This will be the first visit to Greece by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years.
• In September 1983, the last high-level visit to Greece was made by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
• Several agreements will be signed by both countries for focusing on issues such as trade and investment, shipping, migration, and defence cooperation.
• Greece may seek India's help in privatizing its airports and ports, aiming to become a gateway to Europe for India.
• India and Greece have civilizational ties, which have been strengthened in recent years through cooperation in areas such as maritime transport, defence, trade and investment, and people-to-people ties.

Topic: International News

13. Japan released water from the Fukushima nuclear plant.

• Japan started releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean.
• More than a million tonnes of water stored at the nuclear plant will be discharged over the next 30 years.
• In July, the UN nuclear watchdog, IAEA, gave approval to Japan to release the water from the Fukushima nuclear plant. 
• The Japanese government has said that the water is safe and will have a negligible impact on people and the environment.
• Three reactors at the Fukushima-Daiichi facility were affected after a massive earthquake and tsunami.
• After this incident, workers flooded the reactors with seawater to cool the melted fuel.
• At present, 350 million gallons of water are stored in more than 1,000 tanks.
• The all tanks are now almost full and the nuclear site is unable to store more tanks.
• China has warned the release of water will contaminate the ocean. It has banned all Japanese seafood imports. China is the biggest buyer of seafood from Japan.

Topic: Banking System

14. RBI has increased the upper limit of an offline payment transaction from ₹200 to ₹500.  

• RBI has issued the directive to increase the upper limit under Section 10 (2) read with Section 18 of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.  
• The directive to increase the upper limit has come into effect immediately.  
• Though the upper limit has been increased, the total limit for offline transactions on payment instruments remains to be ₹2,000.  
• The used limit can be replenished only in online mode with AFA (additional factor authentication). 
• The announcement of increasing the upper limit of an offline payment transaction was made in the Statement on Development and Regulatory Policies dated August 10, 2023.