Daily Current Affairs and GK | 28 September 2024

Topic: Awards and Prizes

1. Manipur’s Andro village received the Best Heritage Tourism Village of 2024 award.

• The Andro Village of Manipur received the Best Tourism Village in Heritage category award in the 2024 edition of the Best Tourism Villages Competition.
• This award has been given due to the unique cultural heritage and traditional practices of Andro village.
• The village has a temple which showcases the rich cultural and historical heritage of the region.
• The village's cultural heritage includes the centuries-old fire worship which attracts tourists from various parts of the world.
• The villagers of Andro have adopted several strategies to engage the local community in promoting and sustaining their heritage.

Topic: State News/ Telangana

2. Telangana government launched the ‘Telangana Darshini’ scheme for student tours.

• Telangana Darshini's aim is to provide students immersive learning experience outside the classroom.
• This scheme has been launched under the Youth Advancement, Tourism, and Culture (T&PMU) Department.
• It has been designed to take school and college students on educational tours across the State.
• This scheme will help students in knowing about the state heritage sites, historical monuments, dynamic urban landscapes and scientific institutions.
• The programme has been structured to fulfil the educational needs of different age groups, from class 2 up to graduation.
• Students of classes 5 to 8 could also participate in day trips within a 20-30 kilometre radius of their schools.
• Students of Class 9 to intermediate level tours will be more extensive and will cover distances of 50-70 kilometres and lasting for two days.

Topic: International News

3. India joined the Minerals Security Finance Network.

• India has become a part of the Minerals Security Finance Network.
• It is a US-led Network to strengthen cooperation among members to secure supply chains for critical minerals.
• It is a new initiative that originated from the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP). It is a pact of 14 countries and the European Union.
• Earlier, in June 2023, India had been inducted into the MSP.
• Its main aim is to catalyze public and private investment in critical mineral supply chains globally.
• The MSP grouping is focused on the supply chains of minerals such as cobalt, nickel, lithium and also the 17 “rare earth” minerals.
• Rare earth elements is classified as light RE elements (LREE) and heavy RE elements (HREE).

Topic: Art and Culture

4. Bharatiya Kala Mahotsav inaugurated by President Droupadi Murmu in Telangana.

• President Droupadi Murmu graced the 21st convocation of NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad.
• She also inaugurated the Bharatiya Kala Mahotsav at Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad.
• The art, culture, crafts, and culinary diversity of the North Eastern states will be showcased at the eight-day-long Kala Mahotsav.
• At the Bharatiya Kala Mahotsav, artisans and artists from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura will bring alive the vibrancy of the North-East region.
• The event will be attended by the union ministers and state governors of all eight participating states.

Topic: Personality in News

5. Keki N. Daruwalla passed away after prolonged illness.

• He was a celebrated English poet and former IPS officer.
• Daruwalla is one of India's best known writers in English. He is also known for his short stories.
• He became special assistant on international affairs to then Prime Minister Charan Singh.
• He later joined the Research and Analysis Wing.
• His first book of poetry was "Under Orion". He received the Uttar Pradesh State Award for his second book, "Apparition in April".
• He also won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1984 for his poetry collection, The Keeper of the Dead. He was awarded Padma Shri in 2014. 

Topic: Important Days

6. World Rabies Day: 28 September

• It is observed annually to increase awareness about rabies prevention and to highlight progress in defeating rabies.
• It is also observed on 28 September to commemorate the death anniversary of Louis Pasteur.
• Louis Pasteur was a French chemist and microbiologist. He developed the first rabies vaccine.
• This year, 18th World Rabies Day is being observed.
• The theme for this year’s World Rabies Day is “Breaking Rabies Boundaries”.
• World Rabies Day has been observed since 2007 to raise awareness about the world's deadliest infectious disease.
• Rabies was first noted in ancient Mesopotamia and India.
• Early texts such as the Susruta Samhita described its symptoms.
• Rabies is a preventable viral disease spread through the bite of a rabid animal.
• The Rabies virus infects the central nervous system of mammals, which causes disease in the brain and death.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

7. Paryatan Mitra and Paryatan Didi initiative has been launched by the Ministry of Tourism.

• These are national responsible tourism initiatives. These have been launched on the occasion of World Tourism Day on 27 September 2024.
• This initiative's main goal is to improve travellers' overall travel experiences.
• A major focus of this effort is training women and youth to enable them to create new experiences and products for the tourism industry.
• Heritage walks, culinary tours, craft tours, nature hikes, homestay experiences, and other cutting-edge tourist offerings based on the potential of the area are some examples of these experiences and products.
• General training in digital literacy and digital tools is being conducted after tourism-specific training to make sure that the experiences they produce are discoverable and visible to travellers both domestically and internationally.
• Approximately 3,000 individuals have received training in the six pilot destinations regarding the significance of delivering a great tourist experience since the program's launch on August 15th of this year.    

Topic: International News

8. Liberal Democratic Party leader, Shigeru Ishiba, will become Japan’s next prime minister.

• Mr. Ishiba has won in the run-off against hardline nationalist Sanae Takaichi.
• Mr. Ishiba secured 215 votes compared to Mr. Takaichi’s 194.
• Mr. Ishiba will take office as the next Prime Minister (PM) once parliament convenes in October.
• Former Defence Minister Ishiba has become the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party.
• Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has ruled the country for the past seven decades.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

9. Government declared Eco-Sensitive Zone around Gir protected areas.

• The central government has declared 1.84 lakh hectares near the Gir Protected Area as an Eco Sensitive Zone (ESZ).
• The area under 10 km of the outer boundary of the Gir Protected Area is considered ESZ.
• As per the notification, the Eco-Sensitive Zone distance from the sanctuary will range from 2.78 kilometres to 9.50 kilometres.
• This ESZ has 196 villages in three districts and 17 rivers.
• The new ESZ will include more than 24 thousand hectares of forest area and 1.59 lakh hectares of non-forest area.
• Gir Protected Area is home to Asiatic lions.
• Gujarat has set aside 1,468.16 square kilometres for lions and wildlife, which includes the Gir National Park, Gir, Paniya, and Mitiyala Wildlife Sanctuaries.

Topic: Defence

10. Indian Army celebrated 198th Gunners Day.

• Indian Army celebrated 198th Gunners Day on 28th September.
• It is celebrated to commemorate the raising of the first Indian Artillery Unit, namely, 5 (Bombay) Mountain Battery, in 1827.
• The Regiment of Artillery, one of the largest arms of the Indian Army, played an important role in the wars of 1947-48, 1962, 1965, 1971, and 1999.
• The standardisation of the 155mm artillery gun and the integration of advanced systems such as Ultra-Light Howitzers, K9 Vajra, and Sharang guns are important steps towards the modernization of the artillery regiment.
• In the 14th century, Artillery was first used in India by the Bahmani Kings during the Deccan War against Vijaynagar Kingdom.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Indian Economy

11. Central government will collect ₹20,000 crore by issuing ‘Sovereign Green Bonds’ in the second half (October-March) of the financial year 2024-25.

• The green bonds will be issued in four tranches. Each tranche will be valued at ₹5,000 crore.
• The first tranche will consist of a 10-year Sovereign Green Bond.
• It is scheduled for issuance between November 25 and November 29.
• A 30-year bond worth ₹5,000 crore will be issued from December 9 to December 13.
• The third tranche is set for January 27 to January 31. It is again a 10-year bond.
• The final tranche will consist of a 30-year green bond. It will be issued between February 17 and February 21.
• Sovereign Green Bonds are a form of government debt.
• Their purpose is to provide funding for initiatives that aid India's shift to a low-carbon economy.
• The money raised will specifically go towards supporting environmentally friendly projects in the public sector and other environmentally sustainable initiatives.

Topic: Indian Economy

12. Government will borrow ₹6.61 lakh crore during October-March.

• Bonds worth ₹6.61 lakh crore will be sold by the government during October-March period of current fiscal.
• Overall borrowing for fiscal is likely to be less than ₹ 14.01 lakh crore (total budget estimates).
• ₹7.4 lakh crore were borrowed by the government during April-September period.
• ₹6.61 lakh crore, or 47.2%, of the gross market borrowing of ₹14.01 lakh crore scheduled for FY 2024–2025 is expected to be borrowed in the second half.
• In the second half, there will be 21 weekly auctions for borrowing.
• The combined amount of the three-, five-, and seven-year bonds will be 23.5% of the entire amount borrowed.
• The bonds with maturities of 10 and 15 years would account for 24.8% and 13.2% of the total, respectively.
• Bonds with terms of 30 years, 40 years, and 50 years would have respective shares of 12.1%, 15.9%, and 10.6%.
• With the maximum duration of 364 days, the government will grossly borrow ₹2.47 lakh crore using treasury bills.
• Every week, the government plans to sell treasury bills worth ₹19,000 crore.
• These bills are interest-free. These are redeemed at face value after being issued at a discount.
• The Ways and Mean Advances for the October–March period have been set by the RBI at ₹50,000 crore.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

13. World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly 2024 will be hosted by India.

• India will host the World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA) 2024 from October 15 to 24 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.
• This will be preceded by the Global Standards Symposium (GSS) on October 14.
• It is organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), on every four years.
• Its main aim is to define the work program, working methods, and structure of study groups for ITU’s Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T).
• 1,800 to 2,000 delegates from 193 member countries, global standardization bodies, and the telecom/ICT industry will attend this summit.
• ITU is an agency of the United Nations for Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs). It was established in 1865.
• India has been a member of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) since 1869 and a member of the ITU Governing Council since 1952.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

14. India and Uzbekistan signed an Investment Treaty.

• To boost investor confidence, India and Uzbekistan signed a Bilateral Investment Treaty.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Khodjayev Jamshid Abdukhakimovich signed this treaty.
• The Bilateral Investment Treaty will ensure appropriate protection for Uzbekistan investors in India and Indian investors in Uzbekistan.
• It will boost the confidence of investors by providing a minimum standard of treatment and non-discrimination.
• It will also ensure transparency, transfers and compensation for losses.
• This will pave the way to increase bilateral investments.

(Source: News on AIR)