Daily Current Affairs for Competitive Examinations: April 25, 2023
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Current Affairs: Days and Events
National Panchayati Raj Day
National Panchayati Raj Day is observed in India on April 24 every year to mark the constitutional amendment that created the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in India.
The PRIs are the third tier of governance in India, after the central and state governments, and are responsible for local level governance in rural areas.
The day marks the establishment of the first Panchayati Raj system in India on 24 April 1993.
Theme
The theme for the National Panchayati Raj Day 2023 is ‘Sustainable Panchayat: Building Healthy, Water Sufficient, Clean and Green Villages.’
History
The Panchayati Raj system has a long history in India, dating back to ancient times. The word panchayat comes from the Sanskrit words ‘panch’ (meaning five) and ‘ayat’ (meaning assembly).
The system of panchayats was prevalent in India during the Mauryan period, around 300 BCE. During this period, the administration was decentralised, and local self-government was the norm.
In modern India, the Panchayati Raj system was first introduced in 1959 by the Jawaharlal Nehru-led government.
However, it was not until 1993 that the system was given constitutional status through the 73rd Amendment to the Indian Constitution.
The amendment mandated the establishment of a three-tier system of PRIs at the village, block, and district levels.
Significance
National Panchayati Raj Day is significant as it highlights the importance of grassroots-level democracy and local self-government in India.
The PRIs play a crucial role in rural development and are responsible for implementing government schemes and programmes at the local level.
They are also instrumental in ensuring the participation of women and marginalised sections of society in the decision-making process.
Question: 1
What is the theme for the National Panchayati Raj Day 2023?
A. MSMEs and Cottage Industry in Rural India
B. Inviting Ideas for Panchayat Vision
C. ‘Sustainable Panchayat: Building Healthy, Water Sufficient, Clean and Green Villages.’
D. Local self-governance and democratic decentralization
Answer: C
Check out the Highlights of the Economic Survey 2022-23 by clicking on the link given below: Economic Survey 2022-23
Current Affairs: International
India, Iran and Armenia form trilateral grouping
In a move to strengthen regional cooperation, the Foreign Affairs Ministry of India, Armenia and Iran held their first trilateral consultations in Yerevan recently.
During the meeting, the three countries had a wide range of discussions, particularly on economic issues and regional communication. The three sides also discussed Trilateral cooperation in various fields.
Key highlights of the first-ever meeting:
The first-ever meeting focused on connectivity, especially the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
INSTC was initially signed by Iran, Russia, and India in 2002 and has since then expanded, and a freight corridor which is expected to connect three countries — India, Iran, and Russia.
The main aim of this corridor is to reduce time and costs in the movement of goods from Mumbai to Moscow.
The focus of the three sides during the meeting was on economic issues and regional communication channels.
They also talked about trilateral cooperation in various fields as well as a further deepening of people-to-people and cultural contacts.
Geography and History:
Iran and Armenia
Iran and Armenia, which share a border, also have robust ties.
Last year, Iran opened a consulate in Armenia’s Kapan.
The two countries have also been working together to enhance trade and economic cooperation.
India and Iran
India and Iran also have historic ties, with the two countries sharing a common cultural heritage.
The Chabahar port in Iran has been key to connectivity between the two sides. India has provided equipment worth $25 million to aid in the development of the port, including six mobile harbour cranes.
The port has the potential to serve as a gateway for India to access Central Asia and Afghanistan, while also providing Iran with an alternative trade route to the Persian Gulf.
Iran and Armenia
Iran and Armenia, which share a border, also have robust ties. Last year, Iran opened a consulate in Armenia’s Kapan.
The two countries have also been working together to enhance trade and economic cooperation with Armenia serving as a transit route for Iran to access the Eurasian Economic Union.
The trilateral grouping between India, Iran, and Armenia is expected to pave the way for greater cooperation in a range of areas, including trade, investment, energy, and transportation.
Current Affairs: Index and Ranking
Logistic Performance Index (LPI) 2023
India improved its rank to 38 (from 44 in 2018) in World Bank’s LPI 2023.
Significant investments in both soft and hard infrastructure as well as technology has led to an improvement in India’s port performance.
Singapore topped the index.
LPI is a benchmarking tool created to help countries identify challenges and opportunities they face in their performance on trade logistics.
LPI 2023 ranks countries on six dimensions of trade – including customs performance, infrastructure quality, and timeliness of shipments.
What is Logistic Performance Index 2023?
The LPI is an interactive benchmarking tool created to help countries identify the challenges and opportunities they face in their performance on trade logistics and what they can do to improve their performance.
The LPI 2023 allows for comparisons across 139 countries.
The 2023 LPI for the first time measures the speed of trade with indicators derived from big datasets tracking shipments.
Question: 2
What is the ranking of India in the recently published Logistic Performance Index (LPI) 2023?
A. 38
B. 41
C. 44
D. 56
Answer: A
Current Affairs: National Interest
Karnataka bags National Award for Fasal Bima Yojana
Karnataka has bagged the national award for the best implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in the country.
According to the authorities, between the kharif season 2021 and 2022, the state recorded a 47.74% increase in the enrolment of farmers under the scheme, while the area covered under the scheme increased by 41.80%.
In the Kharif season 2021, 16.15 lakh farmers enrolled under the scheme. It increased to 23.86 lakh in 2022. The extent of areas covered under the scheme increased from 13.35 lakh hectares to 18.94 lakh hectares.
For Kharif 2022 season, 5.60 lakh farmers whose fields were affected by natural calamities have already been compensated within the same year itself (which was not being done in the previous years) with crop insurance claims being settled to the tune of Rs 298.57 crore under add-on coverages such as prevented sowing, localized calamities, mid-season adversity and post-harvest loss claims.
Question: 3
Which of the following states/UT recently won the National Award for Fasal Bima Yojana?
A. Jammu and Kashmir
B. Uttar Pradesh
C. Karnataka
D. Bihar
Answer: C
Current Affairs: National Interest
Kerala Government launches ‘One Panchayat, One Playground’ to revive sports culture
The Kerala government on 19 April 2023 launched a project for reviving the sports culture in the state by opening quality playgrounds in every panchayat of the southern state.
The ‘One Panchayat, One Playground’ project was inaugurated by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at Kallikkad.
The playgrounds would serve as a hub for local gatherings and social interactions.
The project will address the lack of quality playgrounds in around 450 local bodies in Kerala.
The playgrounds will be built in 3 years, and a list of 113 panchayats has been prepared for the project’s initial phase.
Question: 4
Which of the following states/UT recently launched ‘One Panchayat, One Playground’ to revive sports culture?
A. Kerala
B. Haryana
C. Rajasthan
D. Assam
Answer: A
Check out the Highlights of Union Budget 2023 by clicking on the link given below: Union Budget 2023-24
Fact Book- 24-04-2023
6- One crore Olive Ridley Turtles hatch on Odisha’s coast
At least 1 crore baby Olive Ridley turtles hatched on the Odisha’s coast in the last few days. It is expected that around 2 crores more baby turtles will hatch on Odisha’s coast before the culmination of this year’s breeding season.
They are the smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world.
Major nesting sites in India: Rushikulya rookery coast (Odisha), Gahirmatha beach (Bhitarkanika National Park), and mouth of the Debi River.
Scientific name: Lepidochelys olivacea, also known as the Pacific ridley sea turtle.
Presence: Found in warm waters of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans.
Conservation Status:
IUCN Red List: Vulnerable
Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
Associated Press photographer Evgeniy Maloletka won the World Press Photo of the year for his harrowing image of emergency workers carrying a pregnant woman through the shattered grounds of a maternity hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, in the chaotic aftermath of a Russian attack.
The Ukrainian photographer’s 9 March 2022 image of the fatally wounded woman, her left hand on her bloodied lower left abdomen, drove home the horror of Russia’s brutal onslaught in the eastern port city early in the war.
The 32-year-old woman, Iryna Kalinina, died of her injuries a half-hour after giving birth to the lifeless body of her baby, named Miron.
An AP investigation found that as many as 600 people may have been killed when a Mariupol theater being used as a bomb shelter was hit on March 16 last year.
The four global winners were selected from more than 60,000 entries submitted by 3,752 entrants from 127 countries.
8- Kenya’s Kiptum wins London Marathon in 2nd fastest time
Kelvin Kiptum, a 23-year-old Kenyan athlete, collapsed to the ground after achieving victory in the London Marathon and posting the second-best time in history for the distance. Kiptum broke the course record with an impressive time of 2 hours, 1 minute, and 25 seconds, falling short of Eliud Kipchoge’s world record by only 16 seconds.
In the women’s race, Sifan Hassan completed a stunning comeback to win on her marathon debut after appearing to be injured part way through.
In what was long distance great Mo Farah’s final marathon, defending champion Amos Kipruto and world champion Tamirat Tola were also among the elite men’s field that Kiptum left behind.
Question: 5
Kelvin Kiptum, a 23-year-old athlete, recently won the London Marathon and posted the second-best time in history for the distance. He is associated with which country?
A. Ethiopia
B. UK
C. Kenya
D. Nigeria
Answer: C
9- Air Marshal Sandeep Singh appointed Military Advisor to National Security Council
Former Vice Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Sandeep Singh (Retd) has been appointed as the new Military Advisor to the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS). He will assume charge on April 24.
He will replace General Anil Chauhan, who was appointed Chief of Defense Staff in October last year.
Sandeep Singh retired as the Vice Chief of the Air Force on 31 January 2023, after a military career of four decades.
Sandeep Singh, an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, who was appointed as the new military advisor in the National Security Council Secretariat, was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in December 1983 as a fighter pilot.
10- DRDO and Indian Navy conduct successful trial of BMD Interceptor
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy successfully conducted a maiden flight trial of sea-based endo-atmospheric interceptor missile off the coast of Odisha in the Bay of Bengal on April 21.
The objective of the test was to target and destroy the effect of an enemy ballistic missile threat.
The test could place the Indian Navy in an elite club of nations with BMD capabilities.
Earlier, DRDO had successfully demonstrated the capability of the surface-based BMD system and thus achieved the capability to neutralize incoming ballistic missile threats from the enemy.
11- L Murugan becomes first Union Minister to visit India’s first village along the India-Myanmar border
Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Fisheries and Animal Husbandry L Murugan on 22nd April became the first central minister to visit India’s first village Avangkhu, a village along the India-Myanmar border in Nagaland’s Phek district.
The Union Minister visited the International Trade Center at Awangkhu, Phek.
He recalled the Centre’s commitment towards developing the north-east, including the border areas of the region.
He hoped that the International Trade Center at Awangkhu would witness an increase in business activities due to an increase in trade volume and better connectivity.
On the development of piggery in the state, Dr. Murugan said that the National Livestock Mission (NLM) is supporting the entrepreneurs of the state and strengthening the agriculture infrastructure and technology.
He also announced that a grant of Rs 14.99 lakh has been allocated to Phek district for screening children’s films in the district.
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