Daily Current Affairs and GK | 9 April 2024

Topic: Environment and Ecology

1. Nepal Army will launch a campaign to collect garbage from Mount Everest.

• Nepal Army will collect around 10 tonnes of garbage and five bodies lying at Mt. Everest as part of the Mountain Cleaning Campaign 2024.
• A 12-member team led by Maj. Aditya Karki will start their journey from the base camp on April 14.
• This team will bring the garbage from Mt. Everest, Mt. Lhotse and Mt. Nuptse.
• An 18-member Sherpa team will assist the army in its cleaning expedition. This campaign will be flagged off by Nepal Army Chief Gen. Prabhuram Sharma.
• The Biodegradable waste will be brought to Namche Bazaar below the base camp and handed to the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee (SPCC) for proper treatment.
• This campaign of the Nepal Army will be launched along with the Ministry of Forest and Environment, the Tourism Department and the Nepal Mountaineers Association for the Everest region's cleaning campaign.
• Plastic garbage has become a major threat in Himalayan regions. The age of degradation of plastic is more than 400 years.

Topic: State News/ Maharashtra

2. BMC will impose a double property tax for Mumbai shops without Marathi signboards.

• The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will impose a double property tax on shops without Marathi Devanagari script signboards in Mumbai from May 1, 2024.
• The BMC has also stated that it will revoke the licenses of shops that lack Marathi lettering signboard.
• This step has been taken by the Supreme Court’s directive and the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Rules.
• The Supreme Court had given a two-month deadline of November 25, 2023, for shops and establishments to put up name boards in Marathi Devanagari script in bold letters.
• The licenses of the glow sign boards without the Marathi script will be cancelled with immediate effect.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

3. Ship repair agreement signed by Cochin Shipyard with the US Navy.

• Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) became the third Indian shipyard to enter into a Master Shipyard Repair Agreement (MRSA) with the U.S., which will enable to repair US Navy ships.
• Effective from April 05, 2024, MSRA is a non-financial agreement.
• With this agreement, India and the United States want to expand cooperation in ship repair and maintenance to transform India into a regional hub.
• After Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), the state-run shipbuilding facility in Kochi is the latest.
• The L&T Shipyard at Kattupalli near Chennai was the first Indian shipyard to sign the agreement in July 2023, which has so far repaired three US Navy fleet support ships.
• Last month, a naval ship from the United Kingdom had reached Kattupalli for the first time for repairs.
• Both India and the US are keen to increase cooperation in ship maintenance and repair as it benefits both countries, providing business and expertise to Indian shipyards while providing alternative options to the US.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

4. The seventh round of trade treaty talks between India, and Peru started in New Delhi.

• The objective of the meeting is to strengthen bilateral cooperation to increase trade and investment between the two countries.
• This initiative is a testament to India's commitment to strengthen bilateral relations and accelerate economic development with Peru.
• The talks will continue till April 11 and the proposed agreement also aims to reduce or eliminate customs duties on goods and boost trade in services.
• About 17 negotiators are part of the Peruvian delegation and Ambassador Javier Paulinich is leading the talks.
• Talks between the two countries had started in 2017 and had to be stopped when the talks came to a halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Later, it was restarted with a virtual round in October 2023.
• Duty concessions on gold, which accounts for 80% of imports from Peru, remain one of the most challenging issues for India.
• In the sixth round, held in February, nine working groups held in-person meetings.
• The agenda of these meetings included rules of origin, trade in goods, trade in services, customs procedures, movement of natural persons, trade facilitation, and dispute settlement.

Topic: International News

5. A new gold-backed currency called ZiG has been introduced by Zimbabwe.

• The meaning of the name ZiG is "Zimbabwe Gold". The new ZiG banknotes will come in denominations between ₹1 and ₹200.
• Coins would also be introduced to address the shortage of American coins.
• It is the latest effort to stabilize an economy that has been moving from crisis to crisis for the past 25 years.
• ZiG replaced the Zimbabwe dollar, RTGS, which has lost three-quarters of its value so far this year.
• In March, annual inflation reached 55% – a seven-month high.
• Zimbabweans have 21 days to exchange old, inflation-hit notes for the new currency.
• However, the US dollar, which accounts for 85% of transactions, will remain legal tender and will continue to be preferred by most people.
• The new currency is being implemented with immediate effect and banks will be required to convert existing Zimbabwe dollar balances into ZiG.

Topic: Space and IT

6. Successful deployment of the sub-meter resolution optical satellite "TSAT-1A" has been announced by TASL.

• Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) announced the successful deployment of its sub-meter resolution optical satellite, TSAT-1A, into space by SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket.
• The satellite was placed in space as part of the Bandwagon-1 mission and was launched on April 7 from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, US.
• This achievement follows the collaboration signed between TASL and Satellogic in November 2023.
• It collaborates with Satellogic’s expertise to develop and integrate an advanced earth observation satellite in India and TASL’s capability to undertake complex system integration.
• TSAT-1A will provide high-resolution optical satellite images with increased collection capacity, dynamic range, and low-latency delivery through its multispectral and hyperspectral capabilities.
• Besides TSAT-1A, the Bandwagon-1 mission also carried 11 other spacecraft.
• According to SpaceX, these include Korea’s 425Sat, HawkEye 360’s Clusters 8 & 9, Tyvak International’s CENTAURI-6, iQPS’s QPS-SAR-7 TSUKUYOMI-II and Capella Space’s Capella-14.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

7. Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has launched awareness campaign on food safety aspects at major markets of Delhi.

• The campaign has been launched in collaboration with the Food Safety Department, Delhi.
• It has been launched from the Khan Market and INA Market of Delhi on 8th April, 2024.
• It will mainly focus on the detection and mitigation of pesticide residue and food product contaminants.
• During the programme, the owners of food businesses were sensitized on issues such as the value of organic farming and the need to test raw materials.
• The owners of food businesses were also sensitized on the dangers of pesticide residues, artificial ripening, and the use of banned chemicals for wax coating.
• The Food Safety on Wheel mobile lab project by FSSAI was introduced to the traders and market associations.
• The Food Safety on Wheel mobile lab has a number of quick testing assays that can find up to 50 pesticide residues in a variety of food matrices.

Topic: Sports

8. Sumit Nagal became first ever Indian to win main draw match at Monte Carlo Masters on 9 April 2024.

• Sumit Nagal defeated 35th ranked Matteo Arnaldi of Italy in the opening round.
• He defeated Arnaldi in the three-set 5-7, 6-2, and 6-4 at the ATP Masters event.   
• He is only the 3rd Indian who featured in the main draw in Monte Carlo after Vijay Amritraj (1977) and Ramesh Krishanan (1982).
• He became first-ever male Indian singles player who won a Masters 1000 match on clay.
• Sumit Nagal is an Indian tennis player. He is currently the No. 1 ranked Indian player.
• Monte Carlo Masters:
  • It is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players. It is held in France.
  • It is part of the nine ATP Tour Masters 1000 events on the ATP Tour.

Topic: Defence

9. Fresh batch of Igla-S air defence system has been received by the Indian Army.

• The fresh batch of 24 Russia-made Igla-S Man Portable Air Defence Systems (MANPADS), along with 100 missiles, has been sent from Russia.
• It will enhance the Indian Army’s Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) capabilities.
• The Igla-S system consists of a single launcher and a missile. In an earlier batch, a very small number (24 launchers and 216 missiles) of Igla-S were procured in 2021.
• In 2023, India signed a contract with Russia for the procurement of 120 launchers and 400 missiles.
• The Igla-S systems are procured for the new authorised air defence formations for high mountainous terrain along the northern border.
• The Indian Army will replace the older Igla systems with advanced laser-beam riding and infrared VSHORADS.

Topic: National News

10. Manoj Panda named as a new finance commission member.

• The government appointed Manoj Panda as a new full-time member of the Sixteenth Finance Commission.
• He is a former director of the Institute of Economic Growth.
• This new appointment has completed the finance panel, which was functioning with only three full-time members and Chairperson Arvind Panagariya.
• Panda is a renowned economist and has also served as the RBI Chair Professor at the Institute of Economic Growth.
• 16th Finance Commission was constituted on December 31, 2023. Ajay Narayan Jha, Annie George Mathew, Niranjan Rajadhyaksha and Soumya Kanti Ghosh are the full-time members.
• The 16th Finance Commission will submit its report by October 31, 2025, for five years commencing from April 1, 2026.
• The first meeting of the 16th Finance Commission was held on  February 14 2024.

Topic: Defence

11. 55^th Anniversary of Naval Transmitting Station was celebrated in Visakhapatnam on 7th April 2024.

• Naval Transmitting Station, Visakhapatnam, celebrated its 55th anniversary with various activities.
• Inter-departmental sports competitions, tug of war and best garden competitions, and clean-up drives were organized on the occasion.
• A captivating cultural show, featuring in-house performances by unit personnel and their family members was also organized.
• Commanding Officer INS Circars, Happy Mohan was the Chief Guest on this occasion.
• The Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, is one of the most important dockyards in India.

Topic: National Appointments

12. Srini Pallia appointed as the next chief executive officer (CEO) of Wipro.

• After the resignation of Thierry Delaporte, Wipro has appointed Srinivas Pallia as its new CEO.
• He will take over as the CEO and managing director from April 7.
• In July 2020, Thierry Delaporte was appointed as Wipro’s CEO and managing director.
• In 2019, Wipro also lost the tag of India’s third-largest IT services company.
• Delaporte revamped operating mode and structure of Wipro and replaced the various Strategic Business Units (SBU), geographies and service lines with four Strategic Market Units and two Global Business Lines.
• Wipro’s revenues had dropped to Rs 22,205.1 crore from Rs 23,229 crore in the third quarter ended December 31, 2023.
• During this quarter, Operating margins were stable at 16 per cent. The Net profit of Wipro has declined to Rs 2,694.2 crore against Rs 3,052.9 crore in the year-ago period.

Topic: Indian Polity

13. Supreme Court stated that the Right against climate change is a distinct fundamental and human right.

• Supreme Court recognised the right against the adverse effects of climate change as a distinct fundamental right in the Constitution.
• Supreme Court has given this judgement in a case connected with the survival of the endangered Great Indian Bustard species.
• Chief Justice Chandrachud said the rights to life and equality could not be fully realised without a clean, stable environment.
• Right to health under Article 21 is impacted due to factors such as air pollution, shifts in vector-borne diseases, rising temperatures, droughts, and shortages in food supplies due to crop failure.
• Supreme Court has also highlighted the interconnection between climate change and various human rights, including the right to health, indigenous rights, gender equality, and the right to development.
• The violation of the right to a healthy environment can impact the right to life, personal integrity, health, water, and housing, as well as procedural rights.
• The court has also highlighted that India has vast solar energy potential and receives about 5,000 trillion kWh per year of solar energy.

Topic: Miscellaneous

14. In remembrance of the Rwanda Genocide of 1994, Qutub Minar has been lit up.

• The Qutub Minar has been illuminated in the colours of the Rwandan national flag on April 7.
• It has been illuminated in solidarity with the Rwanda Genocide of 1994 which claimed the lives of 8,00,000 people.
• On this occasion, Dammu Ravi of the Ministry of External Affairs represented India at the 30th commemoration of the genocide in Kigali.
• Rwanda observed 30 years of the genocide by armed Hutu extremists. 1994 Rwanda Genocide (Kwibuka 30) is one of the bloodiest massacres of the 20th century.
• In July 1994, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) rebel group captured Kigali.
• Out of 8 lakh people died, most of them were Tutsis and moderate Hutus.
• Dammu Ravi, the Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs (Economic Relations), is on a visit to Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya from April 7-12.