Daily Current Affairs for Competitive Examinations: February 13, 2023
Are you preparing for competitive exams like UPSC, SSC, IAS, Railway-RRB, UPPSC, UGC NET, SBI, MPPSC, etc? If yes, you must be aware that the question papers include the Current Affairs section and scoring well in this section is not easy. Do not worry, we at Embibe have made it easy for aspirants like you.
The most recent events from around the globe have been selected by our experts at Embibe and are included in this post. Go through and start your preparation right away!
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“He who can listen to the music in the midst of noise can achieve great things”
– Vikram Sarabhai
Current Affairs: National
PM Modi Launches Special E20 Petrol for Clean Energy Push
Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently opened the inaugural India Energy Week (IEW) in Bengaluru under the theme of Growth, Collaboration and Transition and launched the special 20% ethanol gasoline named E20 variant of petrol as part of the government’s push for clean energy adoption.
E20 or flex-fuel vehicles are an excellent way to reduce pollution without breaking the bank.
What is E20 Fuel?
The number “20” in “E20” refers to the percentage of ethanol in the gasoline blend.
Simply put, the higher the number, the higher the percentage of Ethanol in the gasoline.
India’s current ethanol-to-petroleum mix is 10%, the highest it has ever been.
Because it is made from biomass, ethanol does not require crude oil.
Ethanol is primarily produced from crops such as corn and sugarcane.
India already produces significant quantities of grain and sugarcane. It may allow automobiles to use a higher proportion of Ethanol.
What is ethanol blending, and how is it useful?
Ethanol is a biofuel, naturally produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts or by petrochemical processes like ethylene hydration.
In ethanol blending, a blended motor fuel containing ethyl alcohol derived from agricultural products is blended with petrol specifically.
Ethanol is high in oxygen content, allowing an engine to combust fuel more thoroughly.
Current status related to the utilisation of E20 Fuels in India:
India’s Creta, Venue, and Alcazar SUVs from Hyundai Motor are said to be capable of running on E20 gasoline as of the 2023 MY model year.
Tata Motors debuted two new turbocharged petrol engines at the Auto Expo 2023. (1.2-litre and 1.5-litre).
Tata has stated that its vehicles longer than 4 metres will soon be equipped with E20 fuel-compatible engines.
By April 2023, similar developments are planned for vehicles manufactured by Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Kia, and others.
Question:
Recently PM Modi launched a special E20 variant of which of the following fuel for clean energy push?
A. Petrol
B. Diesel
C. LPG
D. CNG
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: Economy
Digital Payments Utsav
Electronics and Information Technology and Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launched the ‘Digital Payments Utsav’ in New Delhi recently.
Details:
This Utsav is also going to be held in cities like Lucknow, Pune, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru on different days
The above cities were chosen because the Digital Economy Working Group Events are to be held in these cities
The Utsav will focus mainly on G20 and its working
During the Utsav, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will launch a QR code and a Coffee Table Book
The ministry will also launch the “Digital Payment Sandesh Yatra” during the Utsav with the objective of creating awareness of digital payments in the country
Also, the ministry will present the “Digi Dhan Awards” for the top-performing banks in the country
Rationale:
The ministry intends to increase access to digital payment methods as India is celebrating Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and the G20 presidency.
The Utsav will highlight how digital payments empower street vendors and small merchants.
Current Affairs: Geopolitics
Myanmar, Russia Sign Pact on Developing Nuclear Power
Myanmar’s military-led government, working with Russia’s state atomic energy company, has inaugurated a nuclear power information centre as a step toward developing atomic power to fill energy shortages in the strife-torn Southeast Asian nation.
Myanmar state media reported recently that the head of the military government, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, met with Alexey Evgenievich Likhachev, director general of the Russian State Atomic Energy Corp., or Rosatom.
Issue:
Disbalance of power in Asia.
The development is likely to ignite concerns that Myanmar’s military would like to develop a nuclear weapons capability.
There were suspicions a decade ago that North Korea was supplying nuclear arms technology to Myanmar, but there was no definitive evidence.
Present status of Myanmar Government:
The United States and other nations have imposed political and economic sanctions against the ruling generals, while Russia supplies the military with arms, including fighter aircraft that are sometimes used against civilians.
Russia-Myanmar relations:
Russia maintains friendly relations with Myanmar, which is treated as a pariah state by many Western nations after its army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021 and violently suppressed opposition, killing thousands of civilians and leading to what some U.N. experts describe as a civil war.
Question:
Which of the following neighbouring countries of India recently signed a pact with Russia to develop nuclear power?
A. Sri Lanka
B. Bangladesh
C. Bhutan
D. Myanmar
Answer: D
Current Affairs: Technology
Skye Air Launches India’s First Traffic Management System for Drone
Skye Air, a Gurugram-based drone solutions provider, recently launched a traffic management system for drones in India.
Launched in the presence of Minister of Road Transport and Highways of India Nitin Gadkari, the software will allow drone operators to plan routes, make flight plans and assess risks before running drone-based operations in the country.
The solution, called Skye UTM, is a first-of-its-kind for India.
Details:
Skye UTM has been built towards providing situational awareness, autonomous navigation, risk assessment, and traffic management to all drone/other aerial mobility operators across the airspace.
Emphasising new technologies in the construction, infra, and highway sector, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari informed that it is the right time for Indian drone startups to lead the industry.
These drones are going to be used across sectors, including construction, agriculture, healthcare, defence, infrastructure, surveying, real estate, and transport.
Drone companies will even monitor highways and road construction. There is a lot of research happening that will certainly help scale its usage.
The Ministry will soon invite participation from drone startups to be deployed for real-time monitoring, speeding up highway constructions, and checking fatal road accidents.
Question:
Which among the following companies recently launched India’s first traffic management system for drones?
A. Skye Air
B. Aerosight Technologies
C. Dhaksha Unmanned Systems
D. Thanos Technologies
Answer: A
Current Affairs: International
Operation Dost and India’s relief assistance to Turkey
India continues to send aid to the quake-ravaged Turkey as the 3rd batch of the NDRF team was dispatched on 8 February.
The assistance was sent on the Indian Airforce’s C17 aircraft from the Hindon airport in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad. NRDF teams, including sniffer dogs and vehicles for rescue operations, are being sent to Turkey.
Details:
The 6th flight carries more rescue teams, dog squads, and essential medicines.
As part of Operation Dost, the Indian Army set up a field hospital in Turkey’s Hatay province.
India has also sent a transport aircraft with medical supplies to Syria.
Operation Dost symbolises that India is a friend of Turkey, and the two must deepen their relations.
The NDRF was earlier sent to two similar international operations—the 2011 Japan triple disaster (earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown) and the 2015 Nepal earthquake.
What happened in Turkey?
The earthquake of magnitude 7.7 on the Richter scale ripped through Turkey and Syria on 6 February, followed by a series of aftershocks that caused huge devastation, loss of lives and damage to infrastructure in the two countries.
Question:
India recently started an exercise called “Operation Dost”, a search and rescue operation for which of the following countries?
A. Syria
B. Myanmar
C. Turkey
D. Afghanistan
Answer: C
Check out the Highlights of Union Budget 2023 by clicking on the link given below: Union Budget 2023-24
Current Affairs: Books and Authors
Victory City
Salman Rushdie’s latest book, “Victory City”, is a fictionalised telling of the story of Vijayanagara, one of the richest and most powerful kingdoms in medieval India.
About Vijayanagara:
Founded by Harihara I of the Sangama dynasty, Vijayanagara expanded from a strategic position on the banks of the Tungabhadra river with Hampi as its capital.
The kingdom reached its peak under Krishna Deva Raya (reign 1509-1529), a period in which it enjoyed military superiority over rival kingdoms such as the Bahmani Sultanate, the Golconda Sultanate, and the Gajapatis of Odisha.
Vijayanagara is a district in the Indian state of Karnataka, located in the Kalyana Karnataka region.
This district was carved out of Bellary district in 2020 to become the 31st district of the state, with Hosapete as district headquarters.
The economy of the kingdom was largely dependent on agriculture, and trade thrived in its many ports on either coast.
The empire’s principal exports were pepper, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, myrobalan, tamarind timber, ana fistula, precious and semi-precious stones, pearls, musk, ambergris, rhubarb, aloe, cotton cloth and porcelain.
Fact:
Vijayanagara’s capital Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site today, known for its sophisticated fortifications as well as innumerable temples and other architectural marvels.
Hazara Rama temple, the Krishna temple, and the Ugra Narasimha idol are all located at Vijayanagara.
Question:
The latest book, “Victory City”, which features Vijayanagara, one of the richest and most powerful kingdoms in medieval India, is recently written by which of the following authors?
A. Vikas Swaroop
B. Salman Rushdie
C. Arundhati Roy
D. Sashi Tharoor
Answer: B
Factbook: 10-02-2023
Israeli Scientists Develop Sniffing Robot with Locust Antennae
A new sniffing robot equipped with a biological sensor that uses the antennae of locusts could help advance disease diagnosis and improve security checks.
Locusts have an acute sense of smell, which the researchers have managed to harness into their bio-hybrid robot, making it far more sensitive than existing electronic sniffers.
On the four-wheeled robot, the researchers placed the insect’s antenna between two electrodes that send electrical signals in response to a nearby odour. Each scent has a unique signature which, with machine learning, the robot’s electronic system can identify.
India and the EU have Announced Plans to Form a Trade and Technology Council
India and the European Union (EU) announced the formation of three working groups under the ‘Trade and Technology Council” which was set up to deepen strategic ties with the trade bloc.
India and the EU had in April last year agreed to establish a ‘Trade and Technology Council’ to tackle the challenges at the nexus of trade, trusted technology and security.
Such a council is the first for India with any of its partners and second for the EU, following the first one it has set up with the United States (US).
Indian-American Student Named “World’s Brightest” by Johns Hopkins for Second Consecutive year
Indian-American schoolgirl Natasha Perianayagam was named in the “world’s brightest” students list for the second consecutive year by the US-based Johns Hopkins Center For Talented Youth, based on the results of above-grade-level tests of over 15,000 students across 76 countries.
Her results in the verbal and quantitative sections of the test came up to the 90th percentile of an advanced standard-level performance, which put her up on the honours list.
She lives in New Jersey, and her parents are from Chennai, India.
NASA Has Selected Veteran Astronaut Joe Acaba as Chief of the Astronaut
NASA has selected veteran astronaut Joe Acaba as Chief of the Astronaut Office at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
As a result, Acaba will replace NASA astronaut Drew Feustel.
In his new role, Acaba will manage astronaut resources and operations.
Acaba spent 306 days in space, serving as a mission specialist on the space shuttle Discovery’s STS-119 mission and as a flight engineer aboard the ISS.
NASA’s Chief acts as the Chief of the NASA Astronaut Corps as well.
The NASA Astronaut Corps selects and trains the astronauts.
As of December 2022, there were 41 active astronauts.
Of these, 16 are women, and 25 are men.
In the history of NASA, the year 2000 had the highest number of astronauts.
There were 149 NASA astronauts in 2000.
Nearly 600 Sea Lions Die Due to Bird Flu Outbreak in Peru
Peru recently said that its 585 sea lions and 55,000 wild birds have died of the H5N1 bird flu virus in recent weeks, the latest report on the disease’s impacts.
According to the SENASA agricultural health agency, the disease is transmitted by migratory birds from North America.
According to the Sarnap Natural Area Conservation Agency, after discovering 55,000 dead birds in eight protected coastal areas, rangers found that all of them died due to bird flu.
In addition to this, 585 sea lions have also died in 7 protected marine areas.
Dead birds include pelicans, different types of gulls and penguins.
Bird flu, also known as avian influenza (AI), is a highly contagious viral disease that affects species of food-producing birds (chickens, turkeys, quail, guinea fowl, etc.), as well as domesticated birds and wild animals.
Avian influenza virus subtypes are A(H5N1), A(H7N9), A(H9N2) and A(H10N3).
Cow Hug Day is to be Celebrated on 14 Feb
The Animal Welfare Board of India recently appealed to all cow lovers to celebrate 14 February as “Cow Hug Day”, stating that this “will bring emotional richness” and “increase individual and collective happiness”.
We all know that the cow is the backbone of Indian culture and rural economy, sustains our life and represents cattle wealth and biodiversity.
It is known as ‘Kamdhenu’ and ‘Gaumata’ because of its nourishing nature like a mother, the giver of all providing riches to humanity”.
Animal Welfare Board of India is headquartered at Ballabgarh in Haryana.
It is a statutory advisory body advising the Government of India’s Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
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