Daily Current Affairs and GK | 27 August 2022

Topic: National News

1. Asok Kumar explained the government’s Arth Ganga model at the Stockholm World Water Week 2022.

• In his speech at the Stockholm World Water Week 2022, Asok Kumar, the Director General of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, spoke about the Arth Ganga model.
• PM Modi introduced the concept of Arth Ganga during the first National Ganga Council meeting in Kanpur in 2019.
• The main aim of the Arth Ganga model is the development of the Ganga and its surrounding areas by focusing on economic activities related to the river.
• The government is focusing on six verticals under Arth Ganga, which are as follows:
  • Zero Budget Natural Farming
  • Monetization and Reuse of Sludge & Wastewater
  • Revenue generation for Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)
  • Increasing public participation by increasing synergies between the stakeholders involved with the river
  • Promoting cultural heritage and tourism of Ganga and its surroundings
  • Promoting institutional building by empowering local administration for improved water governance
• World Water Week is organized by the Stockholm International Water Institute every year since 1991.
• This year, the week is being observed from August 23 to 1 September.
• The theme of the 2022 World Water Week is: “Seeing the unseen: The value of water”.

Topic: State News/Uttar Pradesh

2. Uttar Pradesh government will develop Kannauj as a perfume tourism destination.

• The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to organize an international perfume fair in Kannauj in December.
• The perfume park is being set up in the district. Its first phase will be completed by November 15.
• Uttar Pradesh government aims to take the ₹250 crore perfume business to ₹25,000 crores.
• The perfume of Kannauj comes under the ‘One District, One Product’ initiative.
• Kannauj is known as India’s perfume capital. Kannauj Perfume is listed in the GI Act 1999 of the Government of India.
• Kannauj Perfume or Kannauj Ittar is protected under the Geographical indication (GI) of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).

Topic: Awards and Prizes

3. Former German chancellor Angela Merkel has been awarded the Felix Houphouet-Boigny-UNESCO Peace Prize 2022.

• The jury has awarded this prize to Angela Merkel in recognition of her efforts to welcome refugees.
• The jury members were touched by her decision in 2015 to welcome over 1.2 million refugees from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Eritrea.
• Julienne Lusenge received an honourable mention from the jury for her commitment to the women who were victims of sexual violence.
• Felix Houphouet-Boigny-UNESCO Peace Prize:
  • It is named after the former President of Ivory Coast. It has been awarded each year since 1989.
  • It has been awarded to individuals, organisations or institutions that have made a special effort to promote, research or secure peace.
  • Earlier, personalities like Nelson Mandela, Frederik W. De Klerk, and Jimmy Carter have received this award.

Topic: State News/Jammu & Kashmir

4. Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has become the first among States/UTs to set up an Atal Tinkering Lab in partnership with NITI Aayog.

• NITI Aayog is eager to replicate the Atal Tinkering Lab model used in J&K for the rest of the nation on a 50:50 cost-sharing basis.
• Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission said that an agreement has been signed to establish 500 ATL with a 50:50 cost-sharing basis within two years.
• A MoU has been signed between AIM and J&K UT. As per MoU, each AIM and J&K UT will provide rupees 10-10 lakh to establish ATLs in J&K.
• One ATL costs Rs 20 Lakh. For the first time in Jammu and Kashmir, money cost (Rs 20 Lakh) is being shared by this Union Territory and the central government.
• ATL was started with the aim to build 10,000 labs and the target has been achieved in July.
• Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog has established over 10000 ATLs across the country so far.
• Mission Director, AIM said that those states who wish not to be dependent on central budgets may opt for the J&K model.

Topic: International Appointments

5. Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga appointed as interim PM by the Mali military.

• He has been appointed after the country's civilian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga was hospitalized.
• Prior to this appointment, Colonel Maga was serving as Government Spokesperson and Minister for Territorial Administration and Decentralization.
• Veteran civilian politician Choguel Kokalla Maiga was named premier after the military came to power in August 2020 and a second coup in May 2021.
• Mali:
  • It is a landlocked country in West Africa.
  • It is the eighth-largest country in Africa.
  • Its capital is Bamako and the currency is the West African CFA Franc.

Topic: Sports

6. Neeraj Chopra created history by winning the Lausanne Diamond League Meet in the javelin throw.

• Neeraj Chopra won the javelin throw event with a best throw of 89.08m in the Lausanne Diamond League.
• Neeraj became the first Indian to win the prestigious Diamond League Meet with his best throw in the competition.
• Neeraj has now qualified for the Diamond League Finals, which will be held on September 7 and 8 in Zurich, Switzerland.
• He has now qualified for the 2023 World Championships as well.
• The top six after Lausanne's League qualified for the Zurich final.
• Meanwhile, Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Jacob Wadledge finished second with a best throw of 85.88m, followed by USA's Curtis Thompson.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Indian Polity

7. Supreme Court has referred the pleas against freebies to a three-judge bench.

• Supreme Court observed that freebies the political parties announce may lead the state towards bankruptcy. 
• The bench was headed by Chief Justice NV Ramana and comprised of Justices Hima Kohli and CT Ravikumar.
• The bench said freebies could lead to a situation where the state government will be unable to provide essential services because of a lack of funding.
• The court said freebies are provided using taxpayers’ money only for increasing the popularity of the party and electoral prospects.
• Supreme Court order came on petitions seeking directions to the Centre and the Election Commission to take steps to regulate poll manifestos of political parties.
• The petitioners also opposed the practice of political parties giving or promising freebies to induce voters during polls.
• Supreme Court said that petitioners’ issues require an extensive hearing before any concrete orders can be passed.
• The three-judge bench would review the apex court’s judgement that pre-poll promises made by political parties to entice voters do not fall within the ambit of Section 123 (corrupt practices) under the Representation of the People (RP) Act.
• Supreme Court had given this judgment in 2013 in S Subramaniam Balaji vs State case of Tamil Nadu.
• The freebies case will be listed before the new three-judge Bench in four weeks.

Topic: State News/ Karnataka

8. Bengaluru will have India’s first post office built out of 3D printing technology.

• The post office will be ready in just a month. It will be established in Halasuru’s Cambridge Layout.
• The 1,000-square-feet building will cost 25 lakh rupees to set up.
• Technology approval to Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) for 3D concrete printing of structures has been given by Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council along with IIT-Madras.
• Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs is responsible to undertake research, development, and large-scale application of new building material technologies.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

9. Government conducted door-to-door screening for TB under the ‘Aashwasan’ campaign.

• Under the Aashwasan campaign, the government conducted door-to-door screening of more than one crore persons in over 68,000 villages for TB.
• The Aashwasan campaign was started in January in Nandurbar District. The main aim of the campaign is to find active cases of tuberculosis in 174 tribal districts of India.
• Recently, a national conclave was held at the National Tribal Research Institute (NTRI) in New Delhi to share the lessons learned from the 100-day Aashwasan Campaign under the "Tribal TB Initiative."
• About two lakh community influencers, including tribal leaders, tribal healers, Self Help Groups, and youth, participated in the campaign.
• According to the data, tribal communities are more vulnerable to TB.
• As part of India’s 75-year celebration, the government has selected 75 high-burden tribal districts for focused interventions.
• India has set a target to eradicate tuberculosis by 2025.
• Tuberculosis:
  • Tuberculosis spread through the air and usually attacks the lungs. It can also affect other parts of the body.
  • It is caused by a type of bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It is treatable and preventable.

Topic: Defence

10. Indian Army is planning to procure the light tank ‘Zorawar’ for LAC.

• The Indian Army has hastened the procurement process of the indigenous Indian light tank named ‘Zorawar’.
• It will be deployed in the mountains and is equipped with technologies like anti-drone capabilities, and next-generation Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities.
• The Defence Acquisition Council could grant the Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the project next month.
• The firepower of the existing fleet of T-72, T-90, and indigenous Arjun tanks is also being upgraded.
• India and China deployed tanks on the mountain peaks after the confrontation on the south bank of Pangong Tso in August 2020.
• ‘Zorawar’ has been designed to operate from high-altitude areas and marginal terrain. It can be easily transported as per the operational requirements.
• Its distinguishing characteristics include Artificial Intelligence (AI), drone integration, active protection systems, and a high degree of situational awareness.
• The Indian Army has also procured swarm drones from two Indian start-ups.
• The Swarm drone system consists of a number of small drones that are AI-enabled and capable of communicating with the control station and among themselves.

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

11. Bhupendra Singh has been appointed as the new BJP chief of Uttar Pradesh.

• Rajib Bhattacharjee has been appointed as the BJP President of Tripura.
• Saudan Singh has been appointed as the Chief election in charge of BJP for the Himachal Pradesh election.
• Devender Singh Rana has been given the responsibility of being co-in charge of the Himachal Pradesh election.
• Bharatiya Janata Party:
  • It is the largest political party in India.
  • The Bharatiya Jan Sangh (BJS) was the predecessor party of the BJP.
  • The Bharatiya Janata Party was formed on April 6 1980 with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the first party president.
  • The Bharatiya Janata Party has 303 members in the Lok Sabha.
  • J. P. Nadda is the current President of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

12. First set of nine forms on the MCA21 V3 portal to be launched on 31 August.

• The government has taken the next step in the rollout of Version 3.0 of MCA21.
• Company e-filings on the version 2.0 portal have been disabled from Aug 15 for these nine forms.
• Based on feedback and corrections, MCA is implementing version 3.0 in phases.
• MCA21 Version 3.0 has additional modules for e-scrutiny, e-adjudication, e-consultation, and compliance management.
• L&T Infotech has signed a contract for the operation and maintenance of MCA21 V3.0.
• MCA21:
  • It is India’s first mission-mode e-governance project.
  • It is the online portal of the Corporate Affairs Ministry (MCA).
  • It provides company-related information to stakeholders and the general public.
  • It was initially launched in 2006.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

13. World’s first-ever hydrogen-powered passenger train fleet launched in Germany.

• The world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger train fleet has a total of 14 trains.
• The hydrogen-powered passenger trains will replace 15 old diesel trains, operated on non-electrified lines.
• The speed of these trains will be 140 kmph and they will have a range of 1000 km.
• French company Alstom has manufactured the trains, and they will be operated by regional rail company LNVG.
• The trains will use hydrogen produced with renewable energy, as fuel. It will save more than 1.6 million litres of diesel annually.
• The trains are emissions-free with low noise and produce only steam and condensed water as effluent.
• Hydrogen is being seen as an alternative to fossil fuels in the transportation industry.

Topic: Defence

14. Indian Navy shortlisted Super Hornet and Rafale M aircraft for INS Vikrant.

• US aerospace company Boeing pitched that its F/A-18 Super Hornet will be the best aircraft to meet the requirement of the Indian Navy for INS Vikrant.
• The Indian Navy has shortlisted F/A-18 Super Hornet and Rafale M aircraft for procurement of deck-based jets for aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.
• Four years before, the Indian Navy started the process of acquiring 57 aircraft for its aircraft carrier.
• ‘Super Hornet’ aircraft has the most advanced capability. It will help the Indian Navy in tackling emerging and future threats.
• At present, the Indian Navy uses MiG-29K fighters from its aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
• INS Vikrant will be commissioned in Cochin on 2 September in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.