Daily Current Affairs for Competitive Examinations: February 01, 2023
Current affairs are included in significant government exams including the SSC, RRB NTPC, UPSC CDS, Railways, and more. The current events section of the test is given a higher weightage. This section’s preparatory phase is essential. How well-versed the candidate is in current affairs will determine whether or not they can pass this section. We have analysed the most current news from The Hindu, Indian Express, the Economic Times, and other sources to assist all the contenders in performing well in this part.
Motivation++
“When there is harmony between the mind, heart, and resolution, then nothing is impossible”
– Rig Veda
Current Affairs: International Relations and Geopolitics
India Issues Notice to Pakistan to Modify the Indus Waters Treaty
India has issued a notice to Pakistan for modification to the treaty as per Article XII (3) of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) due to Pakistan’s refusal to implement the treaty.
Under the notice, India has called on Pakistan to enter into intergovernmental negotiations within 90 days.
According to India, the treaty requires that disputes be resolved through bilateral negotiations and consultations between the two countries rather than through international arbitration.
What Is the Indus Water Treaty?
In 1960, India and Pakistan signed the Indus Waters Treaty with the World Bank as a signatory of the pact.
Under the treaty, India got control over the three eastern rivers, Beas, Ravi, and Sutlej, while Pakistan got control of the western rivers, Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab.
According to the treaty, India has the right to generate hydroelectricity through the run-of-the-river (RoR) projects on the western rivers, which are subject to specific criteria for design and operation.
Dispute Resolution Process:
According to Article IX of the treaty that deals with the “Settlement of Differences and Disputes”, there are three possible steps to decide on objections raised by either side.
Working within the “Permanent Indus Commission” (PIC) of the Indian and Pakistani delegation of water experts that meet regularly.
Consulting a World Bank-appointed neutral expert.
Setting up a court process to adjudicate the case through the World Bank and the Permanent Court of Arbitrage (PCA).
Question:
Consider the following statements about Indus Water Treaty
India has recently issued a notice to Pakistan for modification to the treaty as per Article XII (3) of the Indus Water Treaty
The World Bank is also a signatory party to the Indus Water Treaty pact
Under the treaty, India got control over the western rivers, Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
A. Only 1
B. Both 1 and 2
C. Only 3
D. All are correct
Answer: B
Current Affairs: National
Ministry of Education Releases All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-2021
The Ministry of Education, Government of India, has released the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-2021.
Details:
The Ministry has been conducting the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) since 2011, covering all higher educational institutions (HEIs) located in Indian Territory and imparting higher education in the country.
The survey collects detailed information on different parameters such as student enrollment, teacher data, infrastructural information, financial information, etc.
For the first time, in AISHE 2020-21, HEIs have filled data using an entirely online data collection platform through the Web Data Capture Format (DCF) developed by the Department of Higher Education through the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
Key Findings of AISHE 2020-2021:
The total number of Universities / University-like institutions registered is 1,113, Colleges 43,796 and Standalone Institutions 11,296.
The number of Universities has increased by 70, and the number of Colleges increased by 1,453 in 2020-21 over 2019-20.
Enrollment in higher education increased to 4.14 crore, crossing the four crore mark for the first time, an increase of 7.5% from 2019-20 and 21% from 2014-15.
Female enrollment reaches the two crore mark, an increase of 13 lakhs from 2019-20.
Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) has improved from the previous year for all social groups.
Enrollment in Distance Education has increased by 7% in 2020-21 from 2019-20.
Gender Parity Index (GPI) has increased from 1 in 2017-18 to 1.05 in 2020-21 The total number of faculty/teachers increases by 47,914 from 2019-20
Question:
What is the status of the Gender Parity Index (GPI) according to the recently released All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-2021 by the Ministry of Education?
A. Increased from 1 in 2017-18 to 1.05 in 2020-21
B. Increased from 2 in 2017-18 to 2.05 in 2020-21
C. Increased from 1.5 in 2017-18 to 2 in 2020-21
D. Increased from 2 in 2017-18 to 3 in 2020-21
Answer: A
Check out the Highlights of the Economic Survey 2022-23 by clicking on the link given below: Economic Survey 2022-23
Current Affairs: National
India’s First Glass Igloo Restaurant in Jammu and Kashmir’s Gulmarg
A glass igloo restaurant in the middle of the snow-covered mountains in Gulmarg has become the centre of attraction for tourists in the hill station in Kashmir.
Tourists can be seen enjoying their meals and taking photographs in this glass-wall restaurant.
Details:
This unique glass igloo restaurant is developed by Kolahoi Green Heights, a hotel in Gulmarg. The hotel claims it is the first glass igloo restaurant in the valley.
It is worth noting that earlier they had built the valley’s first snow-covered restaurant.
Question:
India’s first glass igloo restaurant has recently been opened in which of the following states/UT?
A. Himachal Pradesh
B. Uttarakhand
C. Sikkim
D. Jammu and Kashmir
Answer: D
Current Affairs: International
15th BRICS Summit to be Held in August in South Africa’s Durban
The 15th BRICS summit will take place this year in late August in South Africa’s Durban.
The announcement was apparently made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a joint news conference with Foreign Minister of the State of Eritrea Osman Saleh in Massawa, Eritrea.
About BRICS:
BRICS is an acronym for the grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
The BRICS Leaders’ Summit is convened annually.
It does not exist in the form of an organisation, but it is an annual summit between the supreme leaders of five nations.
The grouping was formalised during the first meeting of BRIC Foreign Ministers on the margins of the UNGA in New York in September 2006.
The first BRIC Summit took place in 2009 in the Russian Federation and focused on issues such as reform of the global financial architecture.
South Africa was invited to join BRIC in December 2010, after which the group adopted the acronym BRICS.
South Africa subsequently attended the Third BRICS Summit in Sanya, China, in March 2011.
The Chairmanship of the forum is rotated annually among the members in accordance with the acronym B-R-I-C-S.
Question:
According to the recent announcement, the 15th BRICS summit will take place this year in late August in which of the following countries?
A. Brazil
B. Russia
C. China
D. South Africa
Answer: D
Current Affairs: Science and Technology
Country’s First Solar Mission Likely to be Launched by June-July
The Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bengaluru, recently handed over the primary payload of the country’s first mission to the Sun to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for integration with the other payloads on board the satellite.
Aditya-L1 is the first Indian space mission to observe the Sun and solar corona.
It’ll be inserted in a halo orbit around Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system, which is about 1.5 million km from Earth.
It will be propelled by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) XL.
Rationale:
The significance of Aditya L1 provides information to understand the problem of coronal heating, coronal mass ejection, etc.
Observe in-situ particle and plasma environments providing data for studying particle dynamics from the Sun.
Aid in studies on drivers of space weather, and measure the magnetic field of corona
Other solar missions:
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe
European Space Agency’s Solar and Heliospheric Observatory
China’s Kuafu-1 solar probe
Question:
Which of the following vehicles will propel the first Indian space mission, Aditya-L1, to be launched in July 2023 to observe the Sun and solar corona?
A. Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)
B. Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV)
C. Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV)
D. Small-Lift Launch Vehicle (SLLV)
Answer: A
Check out the Highlights of Union Budget 2023 by clicking on the link given below: Union Budget 2023-24
Current Affairs: Environment and Ecology
New Genus of Wasp Named after Soliga Community in Karnataka
The scientific community has named a new genus of wasp after Soliga—who are the indigenous community of Biligiri Rangana Hills (BR Hills) in the Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka—in recognition of their conservation of forests and biodiversity.
The species is named ‘ecarinata’, denoting the absence of ridges in certain body regions, and this new insect is strikingly colourful and distinct from all its relatives.
About the Wasp:
Wasp is a social-winged insect which has a narrow waist and a sting and is typically yellow with black stripes
It constructs a paper nest from wood pulp and raises the larvae on a diet of insects
In recognition of the conservation of forests and biodiversity of the indigenous people
Genus named: Soliga ecarinata is an acknowledgement of the Soliga lifestyle, which has been rooted in the philosophy of sustainability since ancient days
This is the second genus of this subfamily reported from India and the first from South India
About the Soliga Community:
The Soliga people are a tribal community found in the Biligiri Rangana (BR) Hills in the district of Chamarajanagar, in the southern state of Karnataka, India.
They belong to the Australoid ethnic group: dark complexion, curly hair, short stature, a dolichocephalic head, a sunken nasal root and a depressed nasal bridge.
They speak the Soliganudia dialect that has 65% lexical similarity with Kannada, a Dravidian language spoken in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
Soliga people follow naturism, animism, and Hindu practices; their main deities are Mahadeshwara.
Factbook: 31-01-2023
NSE World’s Largest Derivatives Exchange for the Fourth Straight Year in 2022
The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has again emerged as the world’s largest derivatives exchange in 2022, in terms of the number of contracts traded, according to the Futures Industry Association (FIA)
This is the fourth consecutive year when the exchange earned the top spot
NSE was established in the year 1992
The NIFTY 50 index was launched by the NSE in the year 1996
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Managing Director and CEO – Ashish Kumar Chauhan
Exercise Topchi-2023
The Indian army carried out the annual exercise named ‘Exercise Topchi’.
Army demonstrated its artillery firepower, aviation, and surveillance capacity in the exercise.
Aviation assets showcased were an indigenous advanced light helicopter, a light combat helicopter, and cheetah and chetak helicopters.
The focus of the exercise was to showcase indigenous capabilities and strides made in achieving self-reliance in the defence sector.
Dinosaurs fossils found in Narmada valley
Researchers have discovered 92 nesting sites containing around 256 fossil eggs of titanosaurs in Narmada Valley.
Dinosaurs buried their eggs in shallow pits like modern-day crocodiles. The presence of a rare case of “egg-in-egg,” indicates that they had a reproductive physiology that parallels that of modern birds.
Narmada valley is an important area from a geological, geotechnical and palaeontological aspect.
It is a graben and has been formed as a rift valley due to geological disturbances, and it is 300 metres above mean sea level.
Red-headed vulture
A red-headed vulture was spotted in India after a gap of two decades
The red-headed vulture is also known as the Asian King Vulture or Pondicherry Vulture
It was extensively found in the Indian Subcontinent, but its population was drastically reduced by diclofenac poisoning
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