Current Context:

• The English professional snooker player Mark Selby has won the World Championship for the fourth time. This time he won the title defeating Shaun Murphy.

Mark Selby

• Mark Selby has won the World Championship in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2021.
• He was ranked world number one between 2015 and 2019.

World Snooker Championship

• It is being held annually since 1927. It is played at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield, England. The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association organises the championship

• Context-The Indian Army recently launched the first Green Solar Energy harnessing plant in Sikkim.

About the plant

• The plant uses Vanadium based battery technology.
• It was built at an altitude of 16,000 feet.
• The capacity of the plant is 56 KVA.
• It was completed in collaboration with IIT Mumbai.

Vanadium-

• Vanadium is a silver colored, transitional metal which is a good conductor of heat and electricity.
• Vanadium is used in making steel alloys, space vehicles, nuclear reactors, etc. It is also used in making girders, piston rods. Vanadium redox batteries are used in superconducting magnets. They are also used to create reliable renewable sources of energy.

• Context: The COVID-19 pandemic has provided an Assam-based trust the opportunity to focus on a near-forgotten form of string puppetry called PutolaNach.

About PutolaNach:

• The string puppetry of Assam is called PutalaNach and is performed in three areas with distinct characteristics.
• These areas are Barpeta-Nalbari in western Assam, Kalaigaon in northern Assam and Majuli “island” in eastern Assam.
• The Ramayana, either in its entirety or by episodes, is performed, as well as scenes from the Mahabharata. The puppeteers are happy to add dialogues or chants taken from bhaona, the local traditional theatre.

What is the News?

• Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has joined the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS) as a Member.

About Network for Greening the Financial System(NGFS):

• NGFS was launched at the Paris One Planet Summit in December 2017.
• Purpose: It is a group of Central banks and financial supervisors. The NGFS aims to accelerate the scaling up of green finance and develop recommendations for central banks’ role in climate change.
• Headquarters: It is located at the Bank of France headquartered in Paris.
• Members: As of April 2021, the NGFS consists of 90 members and 13 observers.
• Significance for RBI: As Green Finance has assumed significance in the context of climate change. So the RBI expects to benefit from the membership of NGFS by learning and contributing to global efforts on Green Finance.

What is the News?

• International Energy Agency(IEA)has released a report titled “Global Electric Vehicle Outlook Report,2021”.
• The Global EV Outlook(GEVO)is an annual report published by IEA. The report looks at the latest EV trends. Apart from that, it also looks at the drivers for road transport sector electrification around the world.

Key Findings of Global Electric Vehicles Outlook 2021 related to India:

• More than 30% of the new vehicle sales in India will be electric by 2030.
• Electric Vehicles(EV) deployment in India will mainly be achieved through the electrification of two/three-wheelers. The report mentions that electric two/three-wheeler sales will reach a sales share of almost 50% by 2030.
• However, the lack of government spending under the FAME II Scheme has delayed EV deployment in India.
• Further, EV deployment was also delayed due to pressure on domestic automakers to focus on BS-VI innovation instead of EVs.

International findings of Global Electric Vehicles Outlook 2021:

• Three million new electric cars were registered in 2020. This was 41% higher than those registered in 2019.
• The rise in electric car sales in 2020 came even as the worldwide automobile market contracted by 16% due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Apart from that, the number of electric cars, buses, vans and heavy trucks on roads is expected to hit 145 million by 2030.
• Moreover, if the governments improve their efforts to meet international climate goals, then the number of global electric vehicles will increase to 230 million by 2030.

About International Energy Agency(IEA):

• It was established in 1974 as an autonomous intergovernmental organization under the OECD framework.
• Objective: To ensure reliable, affordable, and clean energy for its member countries and beyond.
• Members: It has 30 member countries and eight association countries. India became an associate member in 2017.
• Secretariat: Paris, France.

• CSIR-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Chennai has inaugurated the Integrated Solar Dryer and Pyrolysis pilot project. These projects focus on urban waste management. The project is also the part of Indo-German project ‘Pyrasol’.

About Project Pyrasol:

• Project Pyrasol is a part of the Indo-German Science & Technology Centre (IGSTC) flagship programme 2+2 Project.
• Aim: To transform urban organic waste into biochar(charcoal produced by pyrolysis) and energy in smart cities.
• Awarded to: The project was awarded to CSIR-CLRI by the Indo-German Science & Technology Centre.
• Significance:The project will lead to technology development for the joint processing of Fibrous Organic Waste(FOW) and Sewage Sludge (SS) of Indian smart cities. These FOW and SS will get converted into hygienic and highly valuable biochar. Apart from that, the joint processing will also perform associated energy recovery, carbon sequestration and environmental improvement.

About Indo-German Science & Technology Centre (IGSTC):

• The Government of India (DST) and Government of Germany(BMBF) jointly established the Indo-German Science & Technology Centre.
• Aim To facilitate bilateral science and technology networking. Further, the IGSTC also play a proactive role in catalysing institute – industry cross-border partnerships through joint R&D efforts.

What is the 2+2 Project?

• The 2+2 project is the flagship programme of the Indo-German Science & Technology Centre(IGSTC).
• Aim: To catalyse innovation-centric R&D projects. This is achieved by synergizing the strength of research/academic institutions and public/private industry from India and Germany.
• Under the scheme,R&D projects will be supported through “2+2 Mode of Partnership” i.e. involvement of at least one research/academic institute and one public/private industry from both India and Germany.

About Pyrolysis:

• Pyrolysis is a process of chemically decomposing organic materials at elevated temperatures in the absence of oxygen.
• The process typically occurs at temperatures above 430 °C (800 °F) and under pressure.
• It simultaneously involves the change of physical phase and chemical composition of organic material. Pyrolysis is an irreversible process.

• The Olive Ridley Turtles in 2021 are staying away from the Rushikulya river. Millions of Olive Ridley turtle nest near the mouth of Rushikulya river. The nesting time of Olive Ridley turtles is between January and May. This year, they are yet to begin their nesting. In 2020, they began nesting in March.
• The turtle is known for its unique mass nesting sites called the Arribadas. During Arribadas, thousands of females come together to lay eggs on the same beach.
• They have been categorised as “Vulnerable” under the IUCN Red List. The CITES has included them under Appendix I. The Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 has included them under Schedule I.
• Rushikulya River– It is one of the major rivers of Odisha. It originates from Eastern Ghats and drains into Bay of Bengal.

• The Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards was recently presented. These awards were introduced by Government of India in 1969.

2021 Awards

• Best Actor (Female): Deepika Padukone
• Best Actor (Male): Akshay Kumar
• Best International Feature Film: Parasite
• Best Director: Anurag Basu
• Best Film: Tanhaji

The late actor Sushant Singh Rajput won the “Critics Best Actor”. Actor Rajni Kanth is also being conferred with the award this year. He had already received Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan. He has spent more than forty five years in the film industry.

Dadasaheb Phalke

• Dadasaheb Phalke is the Father of Indian Cinema.
• The first film made by Phalke was Raja Harishchandra and this movie was the first full-length feature film of India.
• He has made twenty-seven short films and 95 feature length films during his career.
• In 2021, his 151st birth anniversary is being celebrated.
• The Government of India confers the “Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards” every year in his honour.

Dadasaheb Awards

• It was presented for the first time in 1969. The first recipient of the award was actress Devika Rani. It carries a prize money of ten lakh rupees and a Golden Lotus.
• The award is often confused with other awards presented in his name such as Dadasaheb Phalke Film Foundation awards, Dadasaheb Phalke Excellence Awards. However, the Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards are the only awards presented by the Indian Government to the achievers in the film industry. These awards are presented by the Directorate of Film Festivals that operates under Information and Broadcasting Ministry. The Directorate should make sufficient rules to avoid the use of the legend’s name to prevent replications.

• Lag B’Omer is an annual Jewish festival. It is celebrated in the Hebrew month of Iyar (Iyar is a month of 29 days. Iyar usually falls in April–May on the Gregorian calendar). The Lag B’Omer celebrations are associated with bonfires.
• Recently, more than forty-four people died here due to a stampede (in Meron of Israel). They were gathered at the reputed tomb of Shimon Bar Yochai for Lag B’Omer.
• Lag B’Omer commemorates two historic events of the Jewish history. They are the death of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai (Hewas one of the greatest teachers of Jewish Law and ethics) and also the death anniversary of 24,000 students of Akiva Ben Yosef (Jewish Sage). The students died of plague.

• • The Indian Navy recently launched Operation Samudra Setu II. The operation will aid in fulfilling oxygen requirements of the country.

  About the operation

  • Under the operation, warships have been deployed to carry liquid oxygen filled cryogenic containers.
  • Important ships currently deployed in Operation Samudra Setu II : INS Talwar, INS Kolkata, INS Airavat, INS Jalashwa etc.
  • This operation will augment the Oxygen Express mission that is already operating under Indian Railways.