Daily Current Affairs and GK | 3 and 4 December 2023

Topic: National Appointments

1. Kanchan Devi has become the first woman Director General of the Indian Council of Forestry Research Education (ICFRE).

• She is an Indian Forest Service officer from the 1991 batch of the Madhya Pradesh cadre.
• She played an important role in setting up of the Centre of Excellence on Sustainable Land Management.
• She also played a key role in the implementation of the World Bank-funded Ecosystem Services Improvement Project at ICFRE.
• She served as deputy director general (education) at the ICFRE.
• Indian Council of Forestry Research Education is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
• It was established in 1986. It is located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

Topic: National News

2. The National Best Tourism Village Competition 2024 and the National Best Rural Homestay Competition 2024 launched by the Ministry of Tourism.

• The Competitions have been launched to strengthen the promotion and development of Rural Tourism in the country.
• On the occasion of World Tourism Day on September 7, 2023, the competitions were launched, and applications for the competitions have been invited from November 15 to December 31, 2023.
• The previous edition of the National Best Tourism Village Competition 2023 had recognized 35 villages from across India in the Gold, Silver, and Bronze categories.
• To promote rural tourism in India as well as to promote rural homestays through a National Strategy, the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India launched a comprehensive National Strategy and Roadmap for the Development of Rural Tourism in India.
• The Ministry of Tourism has initiated the implementation of the National Strategies in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management.
• One of the specific initiatives to promote rural tourism and rural homestays is to organize National Best Tourism Village and National Best Rural Homestay competitions.
• The objective of these competitions is to develop healthy competition among villages and rural homestays to identify and reward excellent contributions to rural tourism.
• The Central Nodal Agency Rural Tourism and Rural Homestay (CNA RT & RH) has been set up by the Ministry of Tourism for effective implementation of the initiatives taken to promote rural tourism.

Topic: India and its Neighbors

3. Maldives President claimed that India has agreed to withdraw troops from the island nation.

• India has agreed to the request of the new government of Maldives to withdraw around 75 Indian military personnel deployed on the islands to work on humanitarian operations.
• Maldives President Mohammed Muizzu said this on December 3, two days after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the COP28 climate summit in Dubai.
• India gifted two helicopters to Maldives in 2010 and 2013 and one small aircraft in 2020.
• These aircraft were to be used in relief and rescue operations and medical emergencies.
• In the year 2021, Maldivian security forces said that about 75 Indian soldiers are present in Maldives to operate these helicopters and aircraft.
• Indian soldiers have been deployed on Lamu and Addu islands in Maldives since 2013.
• Currently, around 75 Indian troops are deployed in Maldives along with Dornier 228 maritime patrol aircraft and two HAL helicopters.
• Muizzu had won the Maldives presidential elections in September.
• During the election campaign, Muizzu had opposed Maldives' 'India First' policy. The slogan of India Out was also much discussed in these elections.
• Muizzu had also formally requested India to withdraw its troops on November 18.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Rankings

4. Delhi has the highest cases of sexual violence making it most unsafe for women.

• According to the annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Delhi is the most unsafe metropolis in the country for women, with an average of three rape cases reported every day.
• This is the third consecutive year that Delhi has the highest number among 19 metropolitan cities, with about 186.9 crimes reported per 1,00,000 women.
• On 3 December, the Crime in India Report released revealed that the city recorded 14,158 incidents of crime against women in 2022.
• According to NCRB data, this includes 1,204 rape cases.
• 3,909 incidents of kidnapping or abduction of women were also recorded in the national capital. A total of 129 cases related to dowry deaths were registered in the city.
• 4,847 incidents of cruelty by husbands or their relatives were recorded in Delhi.
• The incidence of crimes against senior citizens (aged 60 years and above) increased from 1,166 cases in 2021 to 1,313 cases in 2022.
• Cybercrime cases in the city doubled in 2022. The number increased from 345 cases in 2021 to 685 cases in 2022.
• A total of 501 incidents of murder were recorded in the city. 106 cases of human trafficking were also registered in this.
• At least 492 minor boys were trafficked in Delhi in 2022, compared to 113 girls.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

5. India and China choose to stay away from a pledge taken by 118 nations on the sidelines of COP28.

• On the sidelines of COP28, 118 nations took a pledge to work towards trebling the global renewable energy generation capacity to at least 11000GW.
• This means doubling the average annual amount rate of energy efficiency by 2030.
• Other nations that stayed away from the pledge are major oil producers Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran.
• India declared that it could not support any agreement that undermined its goal of accelerating development to help millions of people overcome poverty.
• Global initiative has been launched to boost climate action in the oil and gas sector.
• The official launch of the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter (OGDC) has been announced by COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
• The OGDC aims to induce a substantial impact in addressing climate challenges.
• Presently, 50 companies have committed to OGDC, a dedicated initiative for the oil and gas sector.
• These 50 companies are collectively responsible for over 40% of global oil production.
• The OGDC is integral to the Global Decarbonization Accelerator (GDA).
• GDA was introduced at the World Climate Action Summit on 2nd December.
• The GDA focuses on three primary pillars:
  • Scaling the energy system of the future
  • Decarbonizing the present energy system
  • Addressing methane and other non-CO2 greenhouse gases

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

6. UAE has committed 30 billion dollars to the World Climate Action Summit at COP28.

• On 01 December 2023, UAE declared a 30 billion dollar commitment to ALTÉRRA, a climate-focused investment vehicle.
• The aim of this initiative is to revolutionize International climate finance.
• ALTÉRRA is now the world's largest private investment vehicle dedicated to climate action.
• ALTÉRRA aims to mobilize 250 billion US dollars globally by 2030.
• COP28 President Dr. Sultan Al Jaber will chair ALTÉRRA's Investment Board.
• Majid Al Suwaidi will serve as ALTÉRRA’s Chief Executive Officer.
• The primary focus is to direct private markets towards climate investments.
• ALTÉRRA is established by Lunate, an independent global investment manager. It is domiciled in the Abu Dhabi Global Market.

Topic: Books and Authors

7. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has released the book, ‘RESILIENT INDIA: How Modi Transformed India’s Disaster Management Paradigm’.

• The book highlights PM Modi’s efforts in bringing a “paradigm shift” in India’s disaster management.
• The book was released at the 6th World Congress on Disaster Management (WCDM).
• The book is edited and compiled by Bluekraft Digital Foundation and Modi Story.
• The book said that during the Morbi dam breach in 1979, Modi led the disaster management activities of the RSS as the organisation’s pracharak.
• The 6th WCDM was organized jointly by the Government of Uttarakhand, DMICS, Hyderabad, Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) and Uttarakhand State Council for Science & Technology (UCOST), Dehradun.
• It was organised from 28th November to 1st December 2023 at Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

Topic: Indian Polity

8. BJP won assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

• Congress has won assembly elections in Telangana.
• In Rajasthan, the BJP has secured an absolute majority. It has won 115 seats out of the total 199 seats in Rajasthan.
• Congress won 69 seats and Bharat Adivasi Party got three seats.
• Bahujan Samaj Party won two seats and one seat each was won by Rashtriya Lok Dal and Rashtriya Loktantrik Party.
• After the declaration of the election results, Ashok Gehlot submitted his resignation to Governor Kalraj Mishra.
• In Madhya Pradesh, the ruling BJP secured a majority by winning 163 seats out of 230 assembly seats.
• Congress has won 66 seats. One seat has been won by others.
• This is the biggest victory of the BJP in Madhya Pradesh in the last two decades.
• Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has won the election from Budni Assembly seat.
• He won the election by a record of over one lakh 5 thousand votes.
• In Chhattisgarh, the BJP has won 54 seats out of 90 seats. The ruling Congress won 35 seats.
• Incumbent Chief Minister and Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel won the election from the Patan seat.
• Deputy Chief Minister T S Singhdeo lost his seat from Ambikapur.
• In Telangana, Congress has won 64 of the 119 seats. The ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) got 39 seats. The BJP won eight seats.
• The date of assembly elections of Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana was announced in October 2023.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Space and IT

9. ISRO will launch India’s first X-ray polarimeter satellite by 28 December.

• India's first X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) will be launched by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
• It aims to investigate the polarisation of intense X-Ray sources.
• However, Space-based X-ray astronomy has been established in India.
• It primarily focuses on imaging, time-domain studies and spectroscopy, with the upcoming XPoSat mission marking a major value addition in this.
• This research, complementing traditional time and frequency domain studies, introduces a new dimension to X-ray astronomy, generating anticipation and excitement within the scientific community.
• XPoSat spacecraft carrying two scientific payloads are designated for observation from Low Earth Orbit. 
• The names of these two payloads are POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-rays) and XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing).
• With these two payloads, the XPoSat mission is able to simultaneously study the temporal, spectral, and polarization features of bright X-ray sources.
• Mission objectives include measurement of X-ray polarization in the energy band of 8–30 keV emanating from X-ray sources, and long-term spectral and temporal study of cosmic X-ray sources in the energy band of 0.8–15 keV.
• The life of the mission is expected to be approximately five years.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

10. The National Awards for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities for the year 2023 conferred by the President of India.

• On December 3, the awards were presented by Smt Draupadi Murmu on the occasion of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
• President awarded a total of 30 awards to individuals, institutions, organizations, states, and districts for their outstanding achievements and work toward the empowerment of persons with disabilities.
• She awarded nine organizations under the institutional category for excellence in empowering persons with disabilities.
• President said that about 15% of the total world population are persons with disabilities and their empowerment is a high priority.
• National Awards are a commendable medium for the empowerment of persons with disabilities as recognition of individual and institutional work encourages all.
• The first National Awards were given in 1969. These awards have been administered by the Indian government's Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Topic: Banking System

11. RBI and Bank of England inked a pact to exchange information related to CCIL.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Bank of England signed an MoU for cooperation and exchange of information related to Clearing Corporation of India Ltd (CCIL).
• The MoU proposed to create a framework for the Bank of England (BoE) to place reliance on the RBI's regulatory and supervisory activities while safeguarding the UK's financial stability.
• The MoU also emphasizes the importance of cross-border cooperation for international clearing activities.
• RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar and BoE Deputy Governor for Financial Stability Sarah Breeden signed the MoU in London.
• In January 2023, CCIL sent an application to the Bank of England for recognition as third-country CCPs (TC-CCPs).
• This MoU will also help the Bank of England in assessing the application of CCIL for recognition as a third-country Central Counterparty (CCP).
• Clearing Corporation of India Ltd. (CCIL):
  • It was set up in April 2001. It is a Central Counterparty (CCP).
  • It was set up to provide clearing and settlement for transactions in Government securities, foreign exchange and money markets in the country.

Topic: Important Days

12. Indian Navy Day 2023: 4 December

• Navy Day in India is celebrated on 4 December to recognize the achievements and role of the Indian Navy.
• The iconic Sindhudurg Fort will host this year’s Navy Day.
• For the first time, the Indian Navy will organize a mega event away from any major naval station on the occasion of Navy Day.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be the Chief Guest for the event. He will also unveil the grand statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj at Rajkot-Malvan.
• The Indian Navy will showcase its operational skills and capabilities through 'Operational Demonstration' covering a spectrum of naval operations by ships and aircraft at the Sindhudurg Fort on the western seaboard of India on 04 December 2023.
• 20 warships and 40 aircraft, comprising MiG 29K, LCA Navy and MARCOS will participate in the event.
• Indian Navy celebrates Navy Day to commemorate "Operation Trident", which was an attack by the Indian Navy on Karachi harbour during the 1971 War.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

13. Olympian Murali Sreeshankar will receive the Jimmy George Award.

• Sreeshankar has won the 35th Jimmy George Foundation award for the best sportsperson of Kerala.
• Sreeshankar is the long jump silver medallist in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.
• Sreeshankar was No. 4 in the World long jump list of this year.
• He won silver medals in the Asian Games in China and the Asian Championships in Thailand this year.
• He also won a bronze medal in the Paris Diamond League this year.
• He won the 2022 Commonwealth Games silver in Britain.
• He was seventh in the World Championships in the USA last year.
• The award consists of a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh and a plaque.
• The award will be presented to Sreeshankar on December 22.

Topic: Indian Economy

14. A 12.1% growth has been recorded in the output of core industries in October 2023.

• In October 2023, positive growth has been recorded in all the eight industries.
• In the same month of last fiscal (October 2022), 0.7% growth was recorded.
• Eight core industries output growth for September 2023 has been revised by the government upwards to 9.2%.
• Eight core industries output growth for August 2023 has now been revised up to 12.5%. The data for July 2023 has been revised up to 8.5%.
• The output of core industries for April-October 2023 grew 8.6% (provisional).
• Core industries output grew 7.6% in fiscal 2022-23. This is lower than the 10.4% growth in the previous fiscal.
• Coal sector output has shown a growth of 18.1% in October 2023.
• For October 2023, the cement sector output grew 17.1% and the electricity sector grew 20.3%. For October 2023, natural gas output grew 9.9%.
• For the same month, refinery products, fertilisers, and Steel grew at 4.2%, 5.3% and 11%, respectively. Crude oil output grew at 1.3%.