Celebrated on May 28^th every Year.

• Aim : to raising awareness about the urgent issue of global hunger.
• Theme : “Thriving Mothers, Thriving World.”
• underscores the critical role that women play in ensuring food security for their families and communities.
• In 2011, The Hunger Project, a global organisation established World Hunger Day as a yearly event dedicated to ending hunger and poverty.
• Objective : to advocate for sustainable solutions that address the root causes of hunger, promote food security, and empower communities.

Celebrated on May 30.

• This year marks 37^th Goa Statehood Day.
• The day marks the integration of Goa as the official state into the Indian Union after centuries of Portuguese colonial rule.

ABOUT

• Goa is the smallest state by area and a popular tourist destination, renowned for its breathtaking beaches.
• It was a Portuguese colony for over 450 years until it was liberated by India in 1961 and was given the status of union territory along with Daman and Diu in 1987.
• However, later on 30^th May 1987, Goa was granted statehood and became 25^th state of the Indian Union.

Current Context : This historic new treaty has been adopted by the member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

• This is the first WIPO Treaty to address the interface between Intellectual Property (IP), Genetic Resources (GR) and Traditional Knowledge (TK) and include provisions specifically for Indigenous Peoples as well as local communities.
• It is a significant win for countries of the global South and for India, which is a mega biodiversity hotspot with abundance of traditional knowledge, and wisdom.
• The treaty will not only safeguard and protect biodiversity but will increase transparency in the patent system and strengthen innovation.
• Members: Any member states of WIPO may become part to this treaty.
• Aim : to address biopiracy, where traditional knowledge is used by others for profit without permission from and with little or no compensation or recognition to indigenous people.

ABOUT WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ORGANIZATION (WIPO)

• Established : in 1967 through WIPO Convention.
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland.
• Membership: 193 member states including India.
• Objective: It is a specialized UN Agency acting as a global forum for IP services, policy, information and cooperation.

Current Context : India has recorded a trade deficit with nine of its top 10 trading partners, including China, Russia, Singapore, and Korea, in 2023-24. 

RELEVANT FACTS:

• The trade deficit with China rose to $ 85 billion in 2023-24 against $ 83.2 billion in 2022-23.
• With Russia rose to $ 57.2 billion comparatively $ 43 billion in 2022 – 23.
• Korea to $ 14.71 billion against $ 14.57 billion in 2022-23 and Hong Kong to $ 12.2 billion against $ 8.38 billion in 2022-23 respectively
• China has emerged as India’s largest trading partner with $ 118.4 billion of two-way commerce in 2023-24, edging past the
• India has a trade surplus of $ 36.74 billion with the US in 2023-24.
• America is one of the few countries with which India has a trade surplus.
• The surplus is also there with the UK, Belgium, Italy, France and Bangladesh.

ABOUT TRADE DEFICIT :

• A trade deficit means that the country is importing more goods and services than it is exporting.

TRADE SURPLUS :

A trade surplus occurs when a country has a positive balance of trade, means the country exports more goods and services than it imports.

Current Context : A Portion of Hampi’s Virupaksha temple  in Karnataka collapsed due to heavy rain.

• The damaged part is temple’s pavilion or the saalu mantap.
• The temple is believed to have its origins in the 7th century.
• It is a nationally protected monument and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

ABOUT TEMPLE:

• Virupaksha temple gained prominence and underwent extensive expansion in the 14th century during the Vijayanagara Empire (1336 to 1646).
• The temple flourished under the patronage of the Vijayanagara rulers, who were great builders and patrons of art.
• It is a prime example of Dravidian temple architecture, characterised by its grand gopurams (towering gateways), the shikhara towering over the sanctum sanctorum, its intricate carvings and pillared halls.
• Richly adorned with carvings and sculptures, the gopuram depicts various deities, mythological scenes and animals.

Current Context : Uttarakhand Government launched an app called the ‘e-Swasthya Dham’ to improve healthcare and monitoring systems for pilgrims visiting the sacred Char Dham Yatra.

• App was launched in collaboration with WISH (Wadhwani Initiative for Sustainable Healthcare).
• This app is a specialized online tool meticulously created to track pilgrims’ health status during their yatra.
• It is connected with the current Char Dham registration portal.
• Every devotee is required to register on this app and upload their medical records.

Current Context : Cyclone ‘Remal’ lashed the coasts of Bangladesh and adjoining of West Bengal with devastating winds of up to 120 kph and storm surges, inundating hundreds of villages.

• The IMD predicts thunderstorms, lightning, and strong winds across several parts of the state from 26th May to 31st May 2024.
• These weather conditions are expected to affect various districts, including Jamshedpur, Ranchi, Bokaro, Gumla, Hazaribagh, Simdega, and more.

About :

• The name ‘Remal’ in the list of tropical cyclones is given by
• It will be the first cyclone to hit the region this 2024 pre-monsoon season.
• ‘Remal,’ meaning ‘sand’ in Arabic.

Current Context : The first hydrogen green plant by GAIL (Gas Authority of India Ltd) was inaugurated in Madhya Pradesh.

• The plant marks a major step towards new and alternate energy and has been installed in line with the National Green Hydrogen Mission.
• This Green Hydrogen plant can produce 4.3 TPD of hydrogen through 10MW PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) Electrolyzer units, by electrolysis of water using renewable power.
• Initially, the hydrogen produced from this unit will be used as a fuel along with natural gas for captive purposes in the various processes and equipment running in the existing plant at Vijaipur.

ABOUT NATIONAL GREEN HYDROGEN MISSION :

• The National Green Hydrogen Mission is a flagship initiative of the Government of India.
• Aim : to foster the development and adoption of green hydrogen technologies in India.
• Target of establishing 5 million tonnes of annual green hydrogen production capacity by 2030

Current Context : Arunachal’s Kabak Yano becomes first Nyishi community woman to scale Mount Everest.

• Yano embarked on her journey to Mount Everest on March 27 departing for Nepal’s Kathmandu and successfully reached the summit on May 21.
• She became the 5th woman climber from Arunachal Pradesh and 1st woman from Nyishi Community to achieve such feat.

ABOUT COMMUNITY

• Nyishi community is the largest ethnic group in Arunachal Pradesh in north-eastern India.
• Nyi refers to “a man” and the word shi denotes “a being”, which combined together refers to a civilized human being.
• The Nyishi language belongs to the Sino-Tibetan family.
• They are concentrated in eight districts of Arunachal Pradesh.
• They also live in Sonitpur and the North Lakhimpur district of Assam.
• According to the 2011 Census, Nyishi follows Christian (31%), Hinduism (29%), and many still follow the indigenous Donyi Polo.
• Community celebrates three major festivals are, Boori-Boot (February), Nyokum (February), and Longte (April).

Current Context : Dipa Karmakar became the first Indian gymnast to win gold in Asian Senior Championships held in in Tashkent.

• She scored an average of 13.566 in the vault final.
• North Koreans Kim Son Hyang (13.466) and Jo Kyong Byol (12.966) won the silver and bronze medals in this championship.

HER ACHIEVEMENTS :

• She won a gold medal in vault at the 2018 FIG World Cup in Mersin, Turkey.
• She claimed her first international medal, a bronze, at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
• She was the first Indian woman gymnast to qualify for the Summer Olympics, participating in the 2016 Rio Olympics, where she finished fourth in the vault event.
• Dipa Karmakar was bestowed with India’s highest sports honour the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award (now Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award), in 2016.
• She was conferred with India’s fourth-highest civilian award, the Padma Shri, in 2017.

INDIAN MEDALLISTS AT ASIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Surat in 2006 – Ashish Kumar won bronze medal in the individual floor exercise final.
• Hiroshima in 2015 – Dipa Karmakar won bronze in vault individual final.
• Ulaanbaatar in 2019 – Pranati Nayak won bronze in the vault individual final.
• Doha in 2022 – Pranati Nayak won bronze in the vault individual final.
• Tashkent in 2024 – Dipa Karmakar won gold in vault individual final.