Daily Current Affairs and GK | 26 July 2022

Topic: Environment and Ecology

1. A new study by ZSI throws light on the link between Snow Leopard and its prey species.

• A recent study by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) on snow leopards under the National Mission on Himalayan Studies has revealed the linkage between Snow leopard and their prey species.
• In the Spiti valley of Himachal Pradesh, Scientists have used camera traps and sign surveys to evaluate the patterns of snow leopards and their prey species (Siberian ibex and blue sheep).
• The study was recently published in the journal Plos One. Lalit Kumar Sharma is the lead author of the publication.
• It reveals that snow leopard detection probability is high if the site has been used by its prey species.
• The study shows that Spiti Valley can support a large population of snow leopards and its prey species. 
• Predators like snow leopards regulate the populations of herbivores such as the blue sheep and Siberian ibex in the higher mountains.
• The main aim of the study is to examine how the predator used habitat in the presence or absence of its prey species.
• Snow leopards:
  • These are classified as ‘Vulnerable’ by the IUCN Red List. It is protected in Schedule-I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
  • Snow Leopard is mainly found in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim. In 2009, Government launched Project Snow Leopard for the conservation of leopards.

Topic: International Appointments

2. Indermit Gill has been appointed as Chief Economist of World Bank.

• Mr. Gill is an Indian national. World Bank has appointed him as its Chief Economist and Senior Vice President for Development Economics.
• He will replace American economist Carmen Reinhart. His appointment will be effective September 1, 2022.
• He is currently Vice President for Equitable Growth, Finance, and Institutions.
• He will be the second Indian to serve as chief economist at the World Bank.
• Kaushik Basu was the Chief Economist of the World Bank from 2012 to 2016.
• World Bank:
  • The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to governments in poor countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects.
  • It is headquartered in Washington DC, United States. It was founded in 1944. David Malpass is its President.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

3. Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Parshottam Rupala has launched NDDB’s subsidiary for manure management.

• NDDB MRIDA Limited has been launched to take forward manure management initiatives across the country.
• It was launched at a function in New Delhi in the presence of Minister of States for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Dr Sanjeev Kumar Balyan and Dr L Murugan.
• NDDB MRIDA Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).
• NDDB has established NDDB MRIDA Limited, an Unlisted Public Limited Company under the Companies Act, 2013 on 1^st July 2022.
• Dr Murugan said the manure management initiatives have the potential to generate biogas equivalent to 50% of India’s present LPG consumption.
• He also said the manure management initiatives have the potential to produce bio-slurry equivalent to 44% of India’s NPK requirement.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/Gujarat

4. Ahmedabad Railway Station at Kalupur in Ahmedabad City will be developed on the theme of Modhera Sun Temple in the coming 5 years.

• Union Home Minister Amit Shah made this announcement recently on 24 July 2022.
• He was addressing a public function to lay the foundation stone for various developmental projects worth Rs 211 crore in the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency.
• He also announced that 14 lakes in areas of Ahmedabad city and the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority will be inter-connected.
• Modhera Sun Temple:
  • It is located in Mehsana, Gujarat. It is situated on the bank of the river Pushpavati.
  • It was built in the 11^th century during the Chalukya dynasty in honour of the Sun God.
  • It is one of the major tourist destinations in North Gujarat.

Topic: Important Days

5. Kargil Vijay Diwas: 26 July

• Every year on July 26, Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated in India.
• On Kargil Vijay Diwas, the nation honors the martyrs and remembers its wartime heroes.
• On this day, Indian armed forces under Operation Vijay in 1999, drove out insurgents supported by the Pakistani army from high outposts in the Kargil sector.
• The Kargil War was fought for over 60 days and ended with India gaining control of all the territories.
• The victory at Tiger Hill was one of the significant achievements in the 60-day-long conflict.
• The Kargil War took place between May 3 and July 26, 1999, in the Kargil district of Kashmir and along the Line of Control (LOC). India lost more than 500 military soldiers in the Kargil war.

Topic: Sports

6. Max Verstappen won French Grand Prix 2022.

• This is the seventh win for Verstappen in 12 races of this season. His total win reached 27, all with Red Bull.
• Lewis Hamilton, a Seven-time champion, finished second in his 300th Grand Prix.
• In the last laps, George Russell passed Sergio Perez's Red Bull to take third place and Perez finished fourth.
• Max Verstappen was also the winner of the French Grand Prix 2021.
• French Grand Prix:
  • It is one of the oldest motor races in the world.
  • It is part of the Formula One World Championship.
  • It was first organized in 1906.

Topic: Books and Authors

7. Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur released three books on 24 July 2022.

• These books are published by Directorate of Publications Division.
• Minister presented the first copy of the books to President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind in presence of Vice President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, President-elect Smt. Droupadi Murmu and PM Shri Narendra Modi. 
• The names of these three books are given below.
  • Moods, Moments and Memories - Former Presidents of India (1950-2017) A Visual History
  • First Citizen - Pictorial Record of President Ram Nath Kovind's Term
  • Interpreting Geometries - Flooring of Rashtrapati Bhavan
• The first book contains an illustrated history covering all the Presidents of India from Dr. Rajendra Prasad to Mr. Pranab Mukherjee.
• The second book is dedicated to President Shri Ram Nath Kovind's tenure.
• It contains rare photographs from Shri Kovind's village and his school days. It traces his journey from his village to Rashtrapati Bhavan.
• The third book is a pictorial volume put together by the Chandigarh College of Architecture.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Defence

8. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh announced establishment of ‘Joint Theatre Commands’ of the tri-services to bolster coordination among the defence forces.

• He announced setting up of ‘Joint Theatre Commands’ of the tri-services while addressing ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’ event in Jammu.
• The idea behind ‘Theatre Command System’ is to bring coordination between the three branches of the armed forces.
• It also aims at bringing separate commands for the army, navy, and air force under a unified command headed by a single commander.
• The USA was the first country to enforce a theatre command system. Russia and China also follow the theatre command system.
• The Indian Army and Indian Air Force have seven commands each. The Indian Navy has three commands.
• Defence Minister said that today, India is not the world’s largest importer of defence products.
• He mentioned India has fixed a target to increase defence exports to Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000 crore by 2025-26.
• Joint services commands in India:
  • Presently, two joint services commands exist in India. They are Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) and Strategic Forces Command (SFC).
  • ANC amalgamates the army, navy and air force. SFC takes care of the nuclear assets of India.
  • ANC was set up in 2001. It is based in Port Blair. SFC was formed in 2003.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

9. Government revamped the Swadesh Darshan scheme to develop sustainable and responsible destinations.

• The Ministry of Tourism has revamped its Swadesh Darshan scheme as Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0) for creating sustainable infrastructure at destinations.
• Under Swadesh Darshan and PRASAD schemes, government provide financial aid to states and Union Territories for the development of tourism infrastructure.
• The projects under this scheme are approved subject to the availability of funds, adherence to scheme guidelines and the submission of detailed project reports.
• Till March 2022, 76 projects have been approved at a cost of Rs 5,445 crore.
• The Swadesh Darshan Scheme was launched in 2014-15 for the integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

10. Indian-American professor Kaushik Rajashekara won Global Energy Prize 2022.

• Kaushik Rajashekara has won the award for contributions to transportation electrification and energy efficiency technologies while reducing power generation emissions.
• This year, only three people from 119 nominations have been selected for this honour. The other two winners are – Mercouri Kanatzidis from USA and Viktor Orlove from Russia.
• The awarding ceremony will be held during Russian Energy Week in Moscow on October 12-14.
• He is a renowned professor and has published more than 250 articles in international journals and co-authored one book with IEEE Press.
• In 2012, he was elected a member of the US National Academy of Engineering.
• Global Energy Prize is given by the Global Energy Association for outstanding scientific research and technological development in energy.
• It was started in 2002 at the initiative of Nobel Prize in Physics laureate Zhores Alferov.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

11. Centre directs major Ports to exempt Ro-Pax and Passenger Ferries from vessel-related charges.

• The government has given direction to major ports to exempt Ro-Pax and Passenger Ferries from all berth hiring and vessel-related charges for the next six months.
• The government has taken this decision due to the high price of fuel. This step will give some respite to the port sector in India.
• In recent times, the cost of marine fuel 'Low Sulphur High Flash High-Speed Diesel' (LSHFHSD) has increased from 76 thousand rupees per Kiloliter to one lakh 21 thousand rupees per Kiloleter.
• It will help in lowering the logistics costs, reducing travel time and promoting coastal shipping on several feasible routes.
• The government is promoting the Ro-Ro/Ro-Pax/Ferry waterway as an alternative for transporting cargo.

Topic: Geography

12. Japan’s Sakurajima volcano erupted for three straight days.

• The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has announced the highest 'Level-5' alert.
• According to JMA officials, larger volcanic rocks could fall in parts of Kagoshima City within 3 kilometres of two craters.
• Sakurajima is one of the most active volcanoes in Japan and has erupted several times in recent decades.
• This volcano is located in the Kagoshima Prefecture on the southern tip of Japan.
• Mt. Shirane, Mt. Hakone, Mt. Taisetsu, and Mt. Aso are some other active volcanoes in Japan.
• Note:
  • Volcano refers to the erupting of the mantle in the form of lava through cracks on the earth's surface.
  • A volcano can be active, dormant, or extinct.
  • There are around 1,350 active volcanoes in the world.

Topic: National News

13. Ministry of Home Affairs amended the Flag Code to allow the hoisting of the flag day and night.

• The government has amended the Flag Code of India 2002 to allow the tricolour to be displayed in the open and on individual houses or buildings day and night.
• Earlier, the Flag Code was amended on December 30, 2021, to allow flags made of polyester or machine.
• It will encourage more people to display the ‘Tiranga’ with dignity and pride.
• Earlier, the tricolour was allowed to be flown from sunrise to sunset, irrespective of weather conditions.
• As part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign will be celebrated from 13 to 15 August.

Topic: Personality in News

14. Wasifa Nazreen became the first Bangladeshi to reach the highest peak of K2.

• Wasifa Nazreen climbed Mount Everest in 2012 and she is the second Bangladesh woman to do so.
• Samina Baig becomes the first Pakistani woman to climb K2 while Afsaneh Hesamifard became the first Iranian woman to do so.
• 47-year-old Nepali Sherpa sets a record by climbing all the world’s 14 peaks that are higher than 8,000 metres (26,247 ft) for a second time.
• Last year, Shehroze Kashif became the world's youngest mountaineer to climb K2.
• K2:
  • It is located in the Karakoram Range.
  • It is also called Mount Godwin Austen.
  • It is the second-highest mountain in the world at 8,611 meters (28,251 ft).

(Source: News on AIR)