Daily Current Affairs and GK | 30 June 2023

Topic: Space and IT

1. Scientists have discovered the ripple effect of Gravitational Waves across the Universe.

• A global team of astronomers consisting of seven scientists from Indian institutes have, for the first time, heard the low-pitch “hum” of gravitational waves.
• As per Scientists, black holes have formed Gravitational Waves across the universe before merging.
• One of the world's six most sensitive radio telescopes, India's upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) in Pune, played a major role in discovering the persistent hum.
• Detected ripples will help scientists to understand more about how gravitational waves are created and why they propagate through the universe.
• Scientists will know more about supermassive black hole mergers, which can last for millions of years.
• Scientists think these mergers happen in most galaxies and influence their evolution.
• The gravitational waves were detected by LIGO for the first time in 2015.
• NASA is contributing to the ESA (European Space Agency)-led Laser Interferometer Space Antenna mission.
• It is a space-based observatory that will detect gravitational waves that are in a wavelength range between those detected by NANOGrav and LIGO
• NANOGrav is a National Science Foundation-funded Physics Frontiers Center of more than 190 scientists. It collect high-precision data from ground-based radio telescopes for gravitational waves.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Personality in News

2. World Bank President Ajay Banga got a place in the “Great Immigrants” list.

• Ajay Banga has been named by a prestigious philanthropic organisation to its annual “Great Immigrants” list.
• This honour recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the United States and its democracy.
• He is the only Indian to find a place in this year’s list of ‘Great Immigrants’ by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
• He is the first Indian-American to lead the World Bank.
• Before the appointment to World Bank, he was the vice-chairman at General Atlantic.
• He is also co-founder of the Cyber Readiness Institute and served as vice-chair of the Economic Club of New York.
• Carnegie Corporation has honoured 35 individuals from 33 countries this year.
• This year’s honorees include Ke Huy Quan, Pedro Pascal, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Ted Lieu, etc.
•  The Great Immigrants initiative is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie. He was a Scottish immigrant in America.

Topic: International News

3. Philippines approved renewed Air Services Agreement with India at the 5th Joint Bilateral Cooperation Commission Meeting.

• On 29 June, the fifth meeting of the India-Philippines Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperation is held in New Delhi.
• External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and Foreign Secretary of the Philippines Enrique A. Manalo co-chaired meeting.
• During the meeting, the two leaders discussed a wide range of issues including defense, maritime security, counter-terrorism, and transnational crimes.
• The growing economic ties including trade and investment, development cooperation, health and pharma, tourism, agriculture, and space cooperation were also discussed.
• The meeting was successful, and the talks discussed ways to enhance connectivity and broaden cooperation as the two countries move toward the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations.
• The movement of Indian diaspora in the Philippines has increased in the last five years due to commercial flights. The Philippines has approved a new air service agreement with India.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Art and Culture

4. "Divya Kala Mela" is being held in Jaipur from June 29 to July 5.

• The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities is organizing sixth Divya Kala Mela at Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jawahar Lal Nehru Marg, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
• It is being organized to showcase the production and craftsmanship of Divyang/entrepreneur's artisans from all over the country.
• Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Virendra Kumar has inaugurated it.
• This is a unique initiative of DE PWD towards the economic empowerment of PWD/Divyangjan.
• Divya Kala Mela provides a great platform for marketing and showcasing of products and skills of Divyangjan.
• This Divya Kala Mela to be held in Jaipur, Rajasthan is the sixth in the series of Divya Kala Mela started 2022 in- i) Delhi, December 2022, ii) Mumbai, February 2023, iii) Bhopal, March 2023, iv) Guwahati, May 2023, v) Indore, June 2023.
• Around 100 Divyang artisans/artists and entrepreneurs from around 20 States/UTs will showcase their products and skills.
• The broad range will have the following products: home decor & lifestyle, clothing, stationery & eco-friendly products, packaged foods, organic products, toys & gifts, and personal use items - jewelry, and clutch bags.
• This program will be organized in 12 cities in India during 2023-24.

Topic: International News

5. USD 700 million in budgetary, welfare support for crisis-hit Sri Lanka has been approved by World Bank on 29 June.

• World Bank fund approval is the biggest funding tranche for the crisis-hit island nation since an International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal in March.
• About US$500 million will be allocated for budgetary support, while the remaining US$200 million will be earmarked for welfare support for those most affected by the crisis.
• World Bank Group's strategy focuses on early economic stabilization, structural reform, and protection for the poor and vulnerable.
• In March, the IMF approved a bailout of about US$3 billion, with Sri Lanka expected will receive additional funding of up to US$4 billion from the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and other multilateral agencies.
• Sri Lanka is struggling with the worst financial crisis since its independence from Britain in 1948 after the country's foreign exchange hit record lows and triggered its first foreign debt default in 2022.
• Sri Lanka’s poverty rate has doubled from 13.1 to 25% between 2021 and 2022 and is projected to increase by another 2.4% points in 2023.

Topic: Important Days

6. World Asteroid Day 2023: 30 June

• Every year on 30 June, World Asteroid Day is celebrated across the world.
• The purpose of celebrating World Asteroid Day is to raise public awareness of the threat of asteroid impact and to inform the public about the crisis communication actions to be taken on a global scale.
• It is held to commemorate the anniversary of the Siberian Tunguska event that occurred on June 30, 1908, the most damaging known asteroid-related event on Earth in recent history.
• In its resolution in December 2016, the United Nations declared 30 June as Asteroid Day.
• Ceres was the first asteroid to be discovered by Giuseppe Piazzi in 1801.
• Asteroids – These are small rock-like structures that revolve around the Sun. These are found orbiting around the Sun between Mars and Jupiter.

Topic: Reports and Indices

7. Union Minister of Mines, Pralhad Joshi released India’s first-ever report on Critical Minerals for India.

• The report has been prepared by an expert committee formed by the Ministry of Mines.
• India has for the first time prepared a comprehensive list of critical minerals.
• In the report, 30 critical minerals essential for sectors including defense, agriculture, energy, pharmaceuticals and telecom have been identified.
• India has become the newest partner in the Mineral Security Partnership (MSP) to support critical mineral supply chains.
• The list will be a guiding framework for strategic planning, policy formulation and investment decisions in the mining sector.
• The Ministry will be revisiting the critical mineral list periodically. 
• Mineral Security Partnership (MSP):
  • US announced MSP in June 2022 to strengthen critical mineral supply chains.
  • It is also known as the critical minerals alliance. It had 11 members as of 27 October 2022.
  • These members were Australia, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Korea, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.
  • It focuses mainly on the supply chains of critical minerals like cobalt, nickel, lithium and the 17 "rare earth" minerals.

Topic: Banking System

8. Canara Bank has become India’s first Public Sector Bank to allow UPI payments to merchants through RuPay Credit Card.

• Canara Bank has introduced this facility in association with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• The facility is available in the ‘Canara ai1’ Banking Super App of the Bank.
• Customers of Canara Bank can now make UPI payments to merchants from their RuPay Credit Cards in addition to their bank accounts.
• The transaction limits applicable for UPI transactions will apply to UPI payments using RuPay Credit Card.
• Only merchant payments are presently permitted through this facility of UPI payments using a RuPay Credit Card.
• Person-to-Person, Card-to-Card, or Cash-Out Transactions will not be allowed for UPI payments from RuPay Credit Cards.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

9. Union Minister Parshottam Rupala launched the “Report Fish Disease” App.

• The government launched an android-based mobile app “Report Fish Disease” on 28 June 2023 under the National Surveillance Programme for Aquatic Animal Diseases.
• This app will act as a central platform for connecting fish farmers, field-level officers and fish health experts seamlessly.
• The ‘Report Fish Disease’ app has been developed by the ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR), Lucknow.
• Through this app, farmers will be able to connect directly to district fisheries officers and scientists. Farmers can report about the diseases of finfish, shrimps and molluscs on this app.
• Scientific technical assistance will be provided by scientists/ Experts to farmers for diseases through the app.
• Early warning systems and scientific advice will be provided to farmers for reducing their losses from diseases.
• This app will also help in further strengthening the disease reporting by fish farmers in the country.
• ₹33.78 crores has been allocated by the Department of Fisheries for three years for implementing the second phase of NSPAAD under the PMMSY scheme.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

10. Uttar Pradesh government to launch ‘one-tap-one-tree’ campaign from 1 July.

• The main aim of the campaign is to expand the State’s green cover along with the provision of potable tap water in rural areas.
• It will be launched by the Namami Gange Programme and Rural Water Supply Department under the State government.
• Under this campaign, the Uttar Pradesh government has set a target of planting five lakh saplings between July 1- July 7.
• These saplings will be planted by officers and staff of Namami Gange and Rural Water Supply Department outside the houses of families getting tap connections, and near overhead tanks, pump houses and water treatment plants.
• The members of the organizations will run environment-based programs and spread awareness among the villagers about the environment and saving water.
• Jal Samitis will educate people about diseases caused by contaminated water and methods of prevention, as well as raise awareness about rainwater harvesting techniques.

Topic: Defence

11. India is planning to host mega air drills "Tarang Shakti."

• In 2023, Indian Air Force is preparing to host a mega exercise in which 12 air forces are expected to come together.
• The focus of this exercise is to improve interoperability by imbibing best practises from one another and boosting military cooperation among the participating countries.
• This exercise will be the largest multinational air exercise to be conducted in the country.
• The exercise will involve fighter jets, military transport aircraft, mid-air refuellers and Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft.
• Tarang Shakti is in the planning stage and is likely to be held in October-November.
• Six air forces will participate in the exercise, while the rest will participate in the air exercise as observers.
• Air forces from the US, UK, France and Australia are likely to participate in the exercise.
• In 2023, the IAF has so far participated in joint exercises in France, Greece, Japan and the UK.
• IAF participated in the exercise Orion, which was held at the Mont-de-Marsan airbase in France from April 17 to May 5.
• IAF participated in the INIOCHOS exercise, which was organized by the Hellenic Air Force at Andravida Airport in Greece in April-May.
• The Indian and US air forces participated in Exercise Cope India 2023 in April at three bases in the country - Kalaikunda, Panagarh and Agra.

Topic: Sports

12. Kolkata Team won Historic Dubai Women's Kabaddi Final.

• In a significant achievement for women's kabaddi, Dubai hosted the world's first international women's kabaddi final.
• The final was featuring the Punjab Panthers vs. Uma Kolkata.
• The Uma Kolkata team won the intense match and emerged as champions, securing a prize of ₹10,000,000.
• Displaying commendable skill, the team from Punjab earned the second position and received a prize money of ₹5,000,000.
• Women's Kabaddi league successfully organized the event and played a vital role in making the tournament a success.
• The tournament lasted for 12 days and featured eight teams from India representing different states.
• The eight teams included the Delhi Dynamites, Gujarat Angels, Great Marathas, Haryana Hustlers, Punjab Panthers, Rajasthan Riders, Uma Kolkata, and Bengaluru Hawks.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

13. UN removed India’s name from its annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children.

• UN has decided to remove India’s name from the list of countries with children in armed conflict.
• Since 2010, India was being included in the annual report on the impact of armed conflict on children.
• The UN chief said that due to the measures taken by the government of India for protecting children, it has been removed from the annual report.
• He also said that India has to implement remaining measures such as training of armed and security forces on child protection and prohibition of the use of lethal and non-lethal force on children.
• He also stressed on the full implementation of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
• India was included on the list due to allegations of recruitment of young boys by the armed groups in Jammu and Kashmir and detainment of young boys by security groups.
• A workshop was organized by the Government of India in Jammu and Kashmir in November 2022 with the participation of the United Nations.
• According to the report, children continue to be disproportionately affected by armed conflict.
• 27,180 grave violations have been identified by United Nations in 2022. These violations have affected total18,890 children.
• As per the report, Killing, maiming, recruitment, abduction, and detention of children are the most prevalent violations.
• The highest numbers of violations were the killing (2,985) and maiming (5,655) of 8,631 children.

Topic: National Appointments

14. TS Singh Deo became the Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh.

• TS Singh Deo has been appointed as deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge.
• TS Singh Deo is the first Deputy Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh. He is also the current titular Maharaja of Surguja.
• The appointment has been announced in a review meeting held to discuss the upcoming Chhattisgarh Assembly elections.
• At present, 11 states have Deputy CMs. The Andhra Pradesh government has the highest number (Five) of Deputy CMs.
• Uttar Pradesh has also two Deputy CMs — Keshab Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak.
• The longest-serving Deputy Chief Minister of India is Sushil Kumar Modi.
• Deputy Chief Minister is not mentioned in the constitution. Deputy Chief Minister is appointed by ruling party to maintain balance in the political situation.