Daily Current Affairs for Competitive Examinations: January 05, 2023
For competitive examinations like the UPSC, SSC, Bank PO, Bank Clerk, IBPS, Railways, Government Jobs, UPPSC, MPSC, and other state exams, this section includes GK and Daily Current Affairs Quizzes with MCQs on National Affairs, International Affairs, Economy, Banking Affairs, Polity, Geography, Environment, Sports, etc. You may use this current events quiz to prepare for the General Awareness component of entrance examinations for government jobs like those for Banking, SSC, Insurance, Railways, and more. The current events quiz will also help you outshine the crowd with all the facts you get from this post.
Motivation++
“It is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light”
-Aristotle
Current Affairs: Days and Events
World Braille Day 2023
Marked on 4 January, the day recognises and honours the life and work of Louis Braille, the inventor of the Braille system of reading and writing for blind and visually impaired people.
The United Nations General Assembly established it in 2019, serving as the opening ceremony for Braille Literacy Month.
What is Braille?
According to the United Nations, Braille is a tactile representation of alphabetic and numerical symbols using six dots to represent each letter and number, and even musical, mathematical and scientific symbols. Braille is used by blind and partially sighted people to read.
Braille is considered important in terms of education,dom of expression and opinion, as well as social inclusion, as reflected in article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Significance:
World Braille Day aims to increase public awareness of the value of braille as a form of communication for the blind and partially sighted.
Question:
The United Nations General Assembly recognised the celebration of World Braille Day in which of the following years?
A. 2016
B. 2018
C. 2019
D. 2022
Answer: C
Current Affairs: Defence
Ministry of Defence signs up with other Ministries to award degrees to Agniveers
At an event, the Defence Ministry, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and the three Services (Indian Army, Navy and Air Force) signed and exchanged Memorandums of Understanding (MoU)/Agreements with various stakeholders to facilitate the continued education of Agniveers while serving in the Armed Forces, and the award of appropriate skill certificates in accordance with their expertise and experience.
What is Kaushal Pranam Patra?
Under the MoUs with the National Institute of Open Schooling and the Indira Gandhi National Open University, Agniveers will be awarded suitable Class 12 certificates and Bachelor’s degrees, respectively.
The job roles and skill sets of the Agniveers have been mapped to National Occupational Standards in coordination with the National Skill Development Corporation and Sector Skill Councils.
Based on these qualifications, Agniveers will receive market-ready and industry-accepted “Kaushal Praman Patra” certificates upon exiting the armed forces.
Upon completion of two years with the necessary credits, Agniveers can earn a Bachelor’s degree from IGNOU or an Agniveer diploma.
About First Batch of Agniveer:
The first batch of Agniveers recruited under the new Agnipath scheme has just begun training. Under the Agnipath scheme announced on 15 June 2022, soldiers, sailors and airmen would only be recruited through the scheme for a period of four years, from among which 25% would be taken for Permanent Commission after fresh selection. Candidates between the age group of 17.5 to 21 years are eligible to apply for the scheme.
Current Affairs: National
NTPC Begins India’s First Green Hydrogen Blending Operation in the PNG Network
State-owned power generator NTPC Ltd. has commissioned the country’s first green hydrogen blending project.
Green hydrogen blending has been started in piped natural gas (PNG) network of NTPC Kawas township, Surat.
The project is a joint effort of NTPC and Gujarat Gas Limited (GGL).
This feat has been achieved only by a few countries like the UK, Germany, and Australia.
This would bring India to the centre stage of the global hydrogen economy.
Significance:
Green hydrogen blending operation marks a significant milestone in India’s efforts to transition to a low-carbon economy.
It is also expected to boost the country’s domestic green hydrogen production capabilities, as well as create new job opportunities in the renewable energy sector.
About NTPC:
NTPC Limited (formerly National Thermal Power Corporation Limited) is a state-owned Indian electricity generation company headquartered in New Delhi, India.
It is the largest power generation company in India, with an installed capacity of 66,358 MW.
The company was incorporated in 1975.
Question:
Which of the following PSUs recently began India’s first green hydrogen blending operation in the PNG network?
In another step towards digitalisation, Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud recently announced the launch of the electronic Supreme Court Reports (e-SCR) project to provide access to its about 34,000 judgements to lawyers, law students and the common public.
These verdicts will be available on the apex court website, its mobile app and on the judgement portal of the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG).
About the e-SCR project:
The e-SCR project will showcase replica soft copies of SCRs, which would be available in PDF format.
The entire gamut of judgments of the Supreme Court, from its inception in 1950, would now be available in the digital repository.
The Court has also worked with the National Informatics Center (NIC) to generate metadata on the large repository of files to enable functions like text search, search within a search, case type, etc.
Question:
Recently launched e-SCR project is associated with which of the following domains?
A. Judiciary
B. Legislative
C. Executive
D. Local Self Government
Answer: A
Current Affairs: Environment and Ecology
South Asian Black Carbon Aerosols
Black carbon aerosols have indirectly affected the mass gain of the Tibetan Plateau glaciers by changing long-range water vapour transport from the South Asian monsoon region, a study has found.
The South Asia region adjacent to the Tibetan Plateau has the world’s highest levels of black carbon emission.
What Is Black Carbon:
Black carbon is a short-lived climate pollutant with a lifetime of only days to weeks after release in the atmosphere.
Black carbon is formed by the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, wood, and other fuels.
Major Impacts:
Rapid melting of Glaciers
Formation of Asian Brown Cloud: it is a man-made cloud of carbon emissions, dust, and other pollutants that causes less sunlight, less rain, and an inverse warming effect
The increasing number of Glacial lakes
Changes in Snow Albedo effects
Major impact on Livelihood
Respiratory and cardiovascular health impacts on humans
Question:
Consider the following Statements about Black carbon aerosols:
The South Asia region adjacent to the Tibetan Plateau has the highest levels of black carbon emission in the world
Black carbon is a short-lived climate pollutant with a lifetime of only days to weeks
It will make a major impact on Snow Albedo effects
Which of the above statements is/are correct:
A. Only 1 and 2
B. Only 2 and 3
C. Only 1 and 3
D. All are correct
Answer: D
Current Affairs: National
World’s Longest Luxury River Cruise – ‘Ganga Vilas’ to be Launched on 13th January
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the world’s longest luxury river cruise – ‘Ganga Vilas’ – from Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi to Dibrugarh in Assam on 13 January.
The cruise will cover 3,200 kilometres in 50 days.
Passing through the rivers of India and Bangladesh, the cruise will cover 27 different river systems and will stop at over 50 tourist sites, including world heritage.
In Bangladesh, it will cover an 1100 kilometres route before entering India again.
About the cruise:
Ganga Vilas is built with a unique design and a futuristic vision.
It blends cultural and modern amenities with minimalistic designs.
These have been furnished with numerous amenities such as a bathroom with shower, convertible beds, French balcony, LED TV, safe, smoke detectors, life vest, and sprinklers.
The river cruise will be operated by private players Antara Luxury River Cruises and JM Baxi River Cruises, along with the governmental partnership from the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI).
Ganga Vilas, the luxury river cruise vessel, has 18 cabins/suites and all other associated facilities.
Question:
What is the name of the world’s longest luxury river cruise that will start a journey from Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi to Dibrugarh in Assam on 13th January 2023?
A. Antara Cruise
B. Ganga Vilas
C. Dev Yaan
D. Pushpak Cruise
Answer: B
Current Affairs: International
India takes over leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union
India will take over the leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU), having its Headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, from this month.
Following the successful elections held during the 13th APPU Congress held in Bangkok during August–September 2022, Dr Vinaya Prakash Singh, erstwhile Member (Personnel), Postal Services Board, will take over the charge of Secretary General of the Union for the tenure of 4 years.
This is the first time an Indian is leading an international organisation in the postal sector.
What Is the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU)?
Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) is an intergovernmental organisation of 32 member countries of the Asian-Pacific region.
APPU is the only Restricted Union of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in the region, which is a specialised agency of the United Nations.
The goal of APPU is to extend, facilitate and improve postal relations between member countries and to promote cooperation in the field of postal services.
The Asia Pacific region generates around half of the global mail volume and has around one-third of the global postal human resource.
Question:
India will take over the leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU). This organisation is headquartered in which of the following countries?
A. Singapore
B. China
C. Thailand
D. Malaysia
Answer: C
Current Affairs: International
China becomes the first country in Asia and second in the world to launch Hydrogen powered trains
China’s CRRC Corporation Ltd. recently unveiled its first hydrogen urban train, which happens to be Asia’s first hydrogen train.
The hydrogen train gets a top speed of 160 km/h, and the operational range without refuelling is 600 km (the record of 1175 km was set this September by the Coradia iLint serial train of Alstom in Germany).
On the other hand, India is also moving fast to make its first-ever indigenous Hydrogen trains.
As per various statements given by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, India will most likely get its first hydrogen train by 2023.
About Chinese Hydrogen Train:
The Hydrogen train was developed on the basis of the Fuxing high-speed platform and included four cars with it. CRRC also introduced such a shunting locomotive in 2021, and hydrogen trams were produced earlier in the mid-2010s.
The train will also get Digital solutions from the CRRC, including GoA2 automation, component monitoring sensors and 5G data transmission equipment.
It is expected that the operation of the train will reduce CO2 emissions compared to diesel traction by 10 tons per year.
What Are Hydrails?
All rail vehicles running on hydrogen fuel are called hydrails. This train has been tested in Germany since 2018. Henri Popart-Lafarge, CEO of Alstom, says that only 1 kg of hydrogen is equivalent to about 4.5 kg of diesel.
Hydrogen as a Fuel:
Hydrogen has been looked at as a potent replacement for fossil fuels in the transportation industry.
Fuel cells of smaller sizes are also being developed for their utilisation in cars. Although, the technology is still in its nascent stage for a mass-market product.
The challenge of transporting hydrogen and its retail is a challenge which still needs to be ironed out.
Question:
Which of the following is the first Asian country to launch a Hydrogen powered train?
A. Japan
B. Singapore
C. China
D. South Korea
Answer: C
Fact Book – 4th January 2023
Noted Rabindra Sangeet exponent Sumitra Sen dies in Kolkata
Eminent Rabindra Sangeet exponent Sumitra Sen died recently in Kolkata. She was 89 and was suffering from bronchopneumonia.
Her memorable songs that entertained Rabindra Sangeet lovers for over four decades include
‘Megh Bolechhe Jabo Jabo’,
‘Tomari Jharnatalar Nirjone’,
‘Sakhi Bhabona Kahare Bole’ and
‘Achhe Dukho Achhe Mrityu’.
BSE has appointed Sundararaman Ramamurthy as MD, CEO Today
BSE Ltd. recently had said that Sundararaman Ramamurthy would be the Managing Director and chief executive officer (CEO) of the exchange effective 4th January.
He has been appointed for a tenure of five years.
The top position at the bourse has been vacant since July after Ashishkumar Chauhan resigned to join the National Stock Exchange (NSE).
Captain Shiva Chauhan becomes the first women officer to be operationally deployed in Siachen
Captain Shiva Chouhan of the Indian Army’s Fire and Fury Corps became the first woman officer to get operationally deployed at the world’s highest battlefield, Siachen, after a month’s arduous training at Siachen Battle School along with other personnel.
Recently, the Fire and Fury Corps announced that officer Chauhan had been deployed to the Kumar Post after completing “arduous training”.
Uttarakhand govt abolishes the system of revenue police
The Uttarakhand government recently abolished the system of revenue police in the state.
The revenue villages will be brought under the regular policing system now, which means law and order in 1,800 revenue villages will be handled by the state police.
The decision came months after allegations were levelled against local revenue police in the Ankita Bhandari murder case.
This system was introduced by the British in the hilly state 150 years back.
Under the system, the civil officials/patwari of the Revenue department had the power to investigate and arrest the offenders just like the police.
EC Appoints Maithili Thakur As Bihar’s State Icon
Folk singer Maithili Thakur was recently appointed the state icon for Bihar by the Election Commission.
Thakur, trained in Indian classical and folk music, was recently selected for the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar of the Sangeet Natak Akademi for her contribution to the folk music of Bihar for 2021.
A senior official of the state election commission said that the singer would create awareness among the voters for their participation in the electoral process.
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