Daily Current Affairs and GK | 31 August 2023
Main Headlines:
- 1. Government has extended deadline for mandatory Aadhaar-based wage payments for MGNREGA till December 31.
- 2. India will host the first-ever global AI summit in October.
- 3. The deals signed by the Army for 130 tethered drones and 19 tank-driving simulators.
- 4. Assam’s Chokuwa rice has received a GI tag.
- 5. World Sanskrit Day 2023: 31 August
- 6. Sri Lanka hosted its first Karnataka cultural festival on 25 August.
- 7. The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has signed a MoU with the NSKFDC.
- 6. The warship ‘Mahendragiri’ will be launched on 01 September 2023.
- 9. NITI Aayog and UNDP signed MoU to accelerate Sustainable Development Goals.
- 10. China included Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin in its new map.
- 11. Bhaderwah Rajma & Ramban Sulai Honey of Jammu and Kashmir have been granted GI tags.
- 12. Fifth Annual Defence Dialogue between India and Bangladesh held in Dhaka.
- 13. Karnataka government launched the 'Gruha Lakshmi' scheme.
- 14. Australia will hold a national referendum on 14 October.
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Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives
1. Government has extended deadline for mandatory Aadhaar-based wage payments for MGNREGA till December 31.
- Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme is still not prepared for Aadhaar-based wage payments.
- The government has decided to extend the mandatory Aadhaar-based wage payments for the MGNREGA scheme till the end of the year.
- This is the fifth time Aadhaar-based wage payment date for MGNREGA has been extended.
- Out of a total 14.33 crore active workers, Aadhaar has been seeded and authenticated for 13.34 crore.
- This means that 81.89% of active workers are eligible for the Aadhaar-based wage payments system (ABPS).
- About 88.51% of women received wage payments through the ABPS.
- Aadhaar-based wage payments use a 12-digit Aadhaar number as their financial address.
- Government is adopting ABPS to curb corruption and weeding out fake beneficiaries.
- However, no worker will be denied work based on the non-availability of Aadhaar number.
- Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA):
- It was passed on 23 August 2005.
- It provides at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to a rural household.
- It gives a guarantee of the 'right to work' in rural areas.
Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings
2. India will host the first-ever global AI summit in October.
- First-ever Global India AI 2023 Summit will be hosted by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on October 14 and 15.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) players, researchers, startups, and investors from across the world will participate in the event.
- India assumed the chairmanship of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) in 2022.
- Global IndiaAI 2023 Summit will promote local innovation and AI-deployed public infrastructure tools will be showcased.
- This conference will cover many topics including Next Generation Learning and Foundation AI models.
- At the summit, global experts will showcase AI’s applications in healthcare, governance, and next-generation electric vehicles, future AI research trends.
- Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, said that the main aim is to ensure a collaborative and participatory approach to use AI in governance and transforming lives.
- The Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) is an international initiative to guide the responsible development and use of artificial intelligence (AI).
Topic: Defence
3. The deals signed by the Army for 130 tethered drones and 19 tank-driving simulators.
- The contracts signed by the Army for the procurement of 130 tethered drones and 19 tank-driving simulators under Emergency Procurement (EP). It will be delivered in 12 months.
- Currently, the Armed Forces implemented the 4th tranche of EP sanctioned by the Ministry of Defence.
- With an approximate value of ₹250 crore, the long-endurance tether drone systems will be acquired from Bengaluru-based NewSpace Research & Technologies Pvt Ltd.
- Over the past few months, the Army has issued a number of tenders for various drones and technologies, including logistics, payload drones, anti-drone systems, and munitions, among others.
- Noida-based start-up Rafe mPhibr Pvt Ltd also received two separate orders from the Army, for 48 mR-20 logistics drones and 100 quadcopter drones for the armored corps.
- Earlier, the Army had contracted target attack drones with 5-10 kg of explosives from Bengaluru-based NewSpace Research and Technologies Pvt Ltd.
- Under the fourth tranche of the EP, the Army has so far signed 49 contracts worth ₹7,600 crore, and another 34 contracts of similar amount are in the queue.
Topic: State News/ Assam
4. Assam’s Chokuwa rice has received a GI tag.
- The Chokuwa rice, fondly called the "magic rice" of Assam, has recently bagged the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
- This recognition highlights the exceptional qualities and historical legacy of rice, making it a culinary gem of the region.
- In 2016, a group called Seuj Satirth of Dimow from Sivsagar submitted an application in order to get the GI tag for Chokuwa rice.
- Magic rice has been the staple food of the soldiers of the powerful Ahom dynasty.
- This unique and healthy rice is cultivated around the Brahmaputra region.
- It is cultivated in many parts of Assam like Tinsukia, Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Lakhimpur, Sivasagar, Jorhat, Golaghat, Nagaon, Morigaon.
- Chokuwa rice is basically semi-glutinous winter rice, which is known as Sali rice.
- The sticky variety of rice is classified as bora and chokuwa based on their amylose concentration.
- This can be consumed after soaking rice in cold or lukewarm water.
- This variety of rice is widely used because of its nutritional value and is easy to cook.
Topic: Important Days
5. World Sanskrit Day 2023: 31 August
- Every year, World Sanskrit Day is celebrated on Sawan Purnima, according to the Hindu calendar.
- In the year 2023, the day has been celebrated on 31 August.
- It is celebrated to raise awareness and revive the ancient Sanskrit language.
- In 1969, this day was first celebrated.
- Sanskrit is an ancient Indian language and belongs to the group of Indo-European languages. It is also called Dev Vani i.e. God language.
- Sanskrit is the mother of all Indian languages and it was one of the first languages spoken in India.
- It is believed that the Sanskrit language originated in India 3500 years ago.
- Sanskrit language is divided into two parts which are Vedic and Classical.
- 'Sudharma' is the only Sanskrit newspaper in the world. The Sanskrit language is the second official language of Uttarakhand.
Topic: Art and Culture
6. Sri Lanka hosted its first Karnataka cultural festival on 25 August.
- The International Cultural Council of India organized the festival in collaboration with the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre and the M.E Global Peace Foundation.
- The event featured a mesmerizing lineup of performances including dance, folk songs, multilingual poems, ballet, and captivating puppet shows by over 30 artists from Karnataka.
- The program showcased the Karnataka's heritage, highlighting talented artists like Madhuri Bondre and her troupe.
- The event celebrated cultural diversity and marked an important moment in the shared cultural heritage of India and Sri Lanka.
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Topic: MoUs/Agreements
7. The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has signed a MoU with the NSKFDC.
- The purpose of the MoU is to enhance the socio-economic upliftment of Safai Karamcharis.
- The MoU has been signed for the fiscal years 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- The partnership also aims to enhance the socio-economic upliftment of Manual Scavengers, Waste Pickers and their dependents.
- NSKFDC will collaborate with the Ministry to ensure the transparent and effective utilization of allocated funds.
- National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC):
- It is a wholly owned Government of India Undertaking under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.
- It was set up on 24th January 1997 as a "Not for Profit" Company. It has been in operation since October, 1997.
Topic: Defence
6. The warship ‘Mahendragiri’ will be launched on 01 September 2023.
- It is being built at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited in Mumbai.
- It is the 7th stealth frigate under Project 17A of the Indian Navy.
- The warship will be launched by the wife of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar, Dr Sudesh Dhankar.
- Vice President will be the Chief Guest at the ceremony.
- He will also visit Dharohar- the Heritage Museum of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited.
- Mahendragiri is a technologically advanced warship.
- On 17 August, President Droupadi Murmu launched Vindhyagiri, the sixth warship of Project 17A.
Topic: MoUs/Agreements
9. NITI Aayog and UNDP signed MoU to accelerate Sustainable Development Goals.
- NITI Aayog and UNDP India signed a MoU for fast-tracking progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
- The MoU has been signed to formalise a framework of cooperation in different areas including SDG localisation, data-driven monitoring, Aspirational Districts and Blocks.
- The MoU has been signed in the presence of B. V. R. Subrahmanyam CEO, NITI Aayog.
- The MoU has been signed for five years.
- NITI Aayog is the nodal agency for coordinating the adoption and monitoring of SDGs at the national and sub-national levels.
- UNDP plays an important role in coordinating efforts to fast-track progress on the SDGs within the UN system.
- UNDP will also provide support for NITI Aayog’s work on women's livelihoods, innovation, and Mission LiFE.
Topic: India and its neighbours
10. China included Arunachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin in its new map.
- China has released the 2023 edition of its “standard map”.
- China has included Arunachal Pradesh and the Aksai Chin region in its official “standard map”.
- In this map, Taiwan and the disputed South China Sea have also been included in the Chinese territory.
- China’s Ministry of Natural Resources released the map during the celebration of Surveying and Mapping Publicity Day and the National Mapping Awareness Publicity Week.
- The map also included Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory.
- This map is based on the drawing method of the national boundaries of China and various countries in the world.
- Earlier this year in April, China released the name of Arunachal Pradesh in Chinese, Tibetan and Pinyin characters.
Topic: State News/ Jammu and Kashmir
11. Bhaderwah Rajma & Ramban Sulai Honey of Jammu and Kashmir have been granted GI tags.
- Bhaderwah Rajma & Ramban Sulai Honey, two world-famous local speciality products of Jammu and Kashmir, get the Geographical Indication (GI) Tag.
- The process for getting GI Tagging of these products was started by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Jammu.
- Bhaderwah Rajma is mainly cultivated in Jammu and Kashmir. It is also known as Kashmiri Rajma.
- Ramban Sulai Honey is the honey of Sulai produced in Ramban district.
- After the GI tag, only authorized users will have the exclusive rights to use the Geographical Indication of these products.
- It will prevent the unauthorized use of these registered Geographical Indication goods.
- It will also help in the export of the products and promotion of their brands at the international level.
- GI tagging will also promote the economic development of the local people of the Jammu Kashmir region.
Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings
12. Fifth Annual Defence Dialogue between India and Bangladesh held in Dhaka.
- India and Bangladesh organized the fifth Annual Defence Dialogue on 28th August in Dhaka.
- The Annual Defence Dialogue is the highest institutionalised interactive mechanism between India and Bangladesh.
- Both countries have reviewed the ongoing defence cooperation activities. They also expressed satisfaction at the increasing defence cooperation engagements.
- The talks between both countries covered the existing bilateral exercises and they also agreed to increase the complexity of these exercises.
- The Armed Forces of both sides agreed to enhance bilateral cooperation in multiple fields and increase engagements for the future of the relations of both countries.
(Source: PIB)
Topic: State News/ Karnataka
13. Karnataka government launched the 'Gruha Lakshmi' scheme.
- Under this scheme, a monthly assistance of Rs 2,000 will be provided to about 1.1 crore women who are heads of their households.
- The Gruha Lakshmi scheme will ensure gender equality and empower women of Karnataka state.
- The "Gruha Lakshmi" scheme is one of the five pre-poll 'guarantees' of the Congress government.
- This scheme will initially cover beneficiaries in Mysuru, Mandya, Chamarajanagar, and Kodagu districts. It will also be introduced in other districts.
- The state of Karnataka has allocated a substantial Rs 32,000 crore annually.
- The government has already implemented three of the five 'guarantees' (pre-poll promises).
- Under the Yuva Nidhi (Youth Fund), Rs 3,000 and Rs 1,500 a month will be provided to the unemployed graduates and diploma holders, respectively. It will be launched in December.
Topic: International News
14. Australia will hold a national referendum on 14 October.
- Australia is all set to hold a landmark national referendum in October.
- The main aim of the referendum is to recognize Australia's Indigenous people in its constitution.
- Around 17 million voters will vote to decide whether to amend the Constitution.
- This historic referendum has been named as "Voice to Parliament".
- If the referendum gets passed it would recognize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the country's constitution.
- It will also establish a permanent body for them to advise on laws that relate to them.
- This referendum will need support from a majority of Australians. For passing the referendum, at least four of six states majority will be required.
- Australia is the only Commonwealth country that has never signed a treaty with its Indigenous people.
- About 3.2% of Australia's population are Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
- Any constitutional amendment in Australia requires a national referendum. This will be the first referendum since 1999 in Australia.
(Source: News on AIR)
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