Current Affairs Questions

Explanation :

• NavIC, previously known as Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) is an indigenous regional navigation satellite system being developed by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
• It consists of a constellation of seven satellites, three of which are in a geostationary orbit and four in a geosynchronous orbit.
• It is designed to provide accurate position information service to users in India as well as the region extending up to 1500 km from its boundary, which is its primary service area. An Extended Service Area lies between primary service area and area enclosed by the rectangle from Latitude 30 degree South to 50 degree North, Longitude 30 degree East to 130 degree East.
• It will provide two types of services, namely, Standard Positioning Service (SPS) which is provided to all the users and Restricted Service (RS), which is an encrypted service provided only to the authorised users.
• In April 2016, with the last launch of the constellation's satellite, IRNSS was renamed Navigation Indian Constellation (NAVIC) by Indian government.

Applications

• Terrestrial, Aerial and Marine Navigation
• Disaster Management
• Vehicle tracking and fleet management
• Integration with mobile phones
• Precise Timing
• Mapping and Geodetic data capture
• Terrestrial navigation aid for hikers and travellers
• Visual and voice navigation for drivers

Explanation :

• The National Ganga Council, also known as the National Council for Rejuvenation, Protection, and Management of River Ganga was set up in 2016, replacing the National River Ganga Basin Authority (NRGBA).
• The Council, formed under the Environment (Protection) Act (EPA),1986, is chaired by Prime Minister.
• The jurisdiction of the National Ganga Council shall extend to the States comprising River Ganga Basin, namely, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Rajasthan,Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Haryana, and the National Capital Territory of Delhi and such other States, having major tributaries of the River Ganga.
• The Council is overall responsible for the superintendence, direction, development and control of River Ganga and the entire River Basin (including financial and administrative matters) for the protection, prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution in River Ganga and its rejuvenation to its natural and pristine condition and to ensure continuous adequate flow of water in the River Ganga and for matters connected therewith.

Explanation :

• Samagra Shiksha is an overarching programme for the school education sector extending from pre-school to class 12, prepared with the broader goal of improving school effectiveness measured in terms of equal opportunities for schooling and equitable learning outcomes.
• The vision of the Scheme is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education from pre-school to senior secondary stage in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) for Education.
• It subsumes the three schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE).
• The major objectives of the Scheme are provision of quality education and enhancing learning outcomes of students; Bridging Social and Gender Gaps in School Education; Ensuring equity and inclusion at all levels of school education; Ensuring minimum standards in schooling provisions; Promoting Vocationalisation of education; Support States in implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 and Strengthening and up-gradation of SCERTs/State Institutes of Education and DIET as a nodal agencies for teacher training.

Significance

• The Scheme will help improve the transition rates across the various levels of school education and aid in promoting universal access to children to complete school education.

Explanation :

• The National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) is a body constituted under the provisions of Section 132 of the Companies Act, 2013. The constitution of this authority is effective from 1st October 2018.
• The Companies Act requires the NFRA to have a chairperson who will be appointed by the Central Government and a maximum of 15 members.
• It can probe listed companies and those unlisted public companies having paid-up capital of no less than Rs. 500 crore or annual turnover of no less than Rs 1,000 crore.

Functions and Duties

• To recommend accounting and auditing policies and standards to be adopted by companies for approval by the Central Government
• To monitor and enforce compliance with accounting standards and auditing standards
• To oversee the quality of service of the professions associated with ensuring compliance with such standards and suggest measures for improvement in the quality of service
• To perform such other functions and duties as may be necessary or incidental to the aforesaid functions and duties.

Explanation :

• Extra Neutral alcohol (ENA) is a colourless food-grade alcohol without any impurities.It has neutral smell and taste, and typically contains 96% alcohol by volume (ABV).
• It is derived from different sources — sugarcane molasses and grains and is used in the production of alcoholic beverages such as whisky, vodka, gin, cane, liqueurs, and alcoholic fruit beverages.
• In India, almost 90% of ENA is used for potable alcohol, which accounts for an annual production capacity of nearly 2.7 Billion Litres.

Applications

• Essential ingredient in the manufacturing of several cosmetics and personal care products such as perfume, toiletries
• In the production of paints and ink for the printing industry
• In pharmaceutical products in products such as antiseptics, drug, syrups, medicated sprays, etc.

Explanation :

• In order to encourage inter-tribal interaction and to promote cultural heritage of Nagaland, the Government of Nagaland organizes the Hornbill Festival every year in the first week of December.
• The Festival is named after the Indian Hornbill, the large and colourful forest bird which is displayed in folklore in most of the state’s tribes.
• The Festival is held at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama which is about 12 km from Kohima.
• The aim of the festival is to revive and protect the rich culture of Nagaland and display its extravaganza and traditions.

Significance

• The Hornbill Festival has contributed significantly to enhancing the state's tourism brand. Tourism promoters believe that the Hornbill Festival in Nagaland allows tourists to have an insight into the different tribes of Nagaland.
• It fosters understanding of the rich cultural heritage of the state, its resourceful architecture and its ethnic cuisine.

Great Hornbill

• The great hornbill (Bucerosbicornis) also known as the great Indian hornbill or great pied hornbill, is one of the larger members of the hornbill family.
• It is found in India, southwestern China, Bangladesh, western Thailand, mainland Southeast Asia, including Laos, the Malaysia Peninsula and Sumatra.
• Conservation Status
  • -IUCN Status: Vulnerable
  • -It is also listed in Appendix I of CITES

Ecological Significance

• Due to its large gape, Horbill is able to transport and disperse the seeds of various important trees like trees knema and Myristica, which tend to be too large for other organisms.

Explanation :

• Tanbo Art is a rice paddy art developed by the farmers of Inakadate village in Japan to beautify their paddy fields.
• It is done on rice paddies (tanbo) as the canvases on which to create giant paintings with different-colored rice plants. Seedlings that will grow to have leaves and florets of various colors (such as green, purple, and yellow) are planted in accordance with a plan to have a vivid picture appear as the plants grow. The colors of the art pieces change with the seasons.
• There are no dyes to create the different colors and hues.
• Often, hundreds of villagers work together to plant the rice by hand and create these massive works of art. While planting, different areas of the rice paddy are roped off, so people know which type of rice to put where- kind of like painting by numbers.
• Rice is planted in the spring, and then harvested in the fall. When it gets close to harvest, the color changes to a beautiful hue called koganeiro, which is often translated as golden or honey-colored.

Explanation :

• The Accelerator Labs are UNDP’s new way of working in development. Together with our core partners, the State of Qatar and the Federal Republic of Germany, to find radically new approaches that fit the complexity of current development challenges.
• The labs aims to introduce new services, backed by evidence and practice, and by accelerating the testing and dissemination of solutions within and across countries.
• The lab will identify grassroots solutions together with local actors and validate their potential to accelerate development.
• The labs will also harness the potential of real time data and people’s energy to respond to rapidly evolving challenges that impact development.
• India's Accelerator Lab will be part of a network of 60 global labs covering 78 nations, that will test and scale new solutions to global challenges like climate change and inequality.
• The India Accelerator Lab will work with partners on innovative solutions to some of India’s most pressing challenges, such as air pollution, sustainable water management and climate-resilient livelihoods.

Explanation :

• The Defence Acquisition Council is Defence Ministry’s highest decision making body for capital acquisition proposals forwarded by the Indian armed forces.
• It was set up in 2001 as part of the post-Kargil reforms in defence sector.
• It has the power to approve any deviations in an acquisition, and recommends all big capital defence purchases for approval of the Cabinet committee on security (CCS) headed by Prime Minister.
• It also clears all acquisitions, which includes both imported and those produced indigenously or under a foreign license.

Objective

• To ensure expeditious procurement of the approved requirements of the Armed Forces, in terms of capabilities sought, and time frame prescribed, by optimally utilizing the allocated budgetary resources.

Functions

• in-principle approval of 15 Year Long-Term Integrated Perspective Plan for Defence Forces
• accord of Acceptance of Necessity to acquisition proposals
• categorization of the acquisition proposals relating to ‘Buy’, ‘Buy & Make’ and ‘Make’
• issues relating to Single vendor clearance
• decision regarding ‘offset’ provisions in respect of acquisition proposals above Rs. 300 crores
• decisions regarding Transfer of Technology under ‘Buy & Make’ category of acquisition proposals
• Field Trial evaluation.

Explanation :

• Shadow Banking refers to the practice of banking like activities performed by non-banking finance companies, which are not subject to strict regulation. However, these institutions function as intermediaries between the investors and the borrowers, providing credit and generating liquidity in the system.
• It includes money market funds, private equity funds, hedge funds, securitisation, securities lenders, and structured investment vehicles.
• The term “shadow bank” was coined by economist Paul McCulley in a 2007 speech at the annual financial symposium hosted by the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
• Unlike traditional banks, shadow banks do not take deposits. Instead, they rely on short-termfunding provided either by asset-backed commercial paper or by the repo market, in which borrowers offer collateral as security against a cash loan and then sell the security to a lender and agree to repurchase it at an agreed time in the future for an agreed price.