• The book “The Law and Spirituality: Reconnecting the Bond” by Prof. Raman Mittal and Dr. Seema Singh is released at the Vice President’s Enclave.

• India and the US have decided to reactivate the Indian Ocean Observing System (IndOOS), a network of 36 moored buoys in the high seas to collect high-resolution ocean and atmospheric data for weather forecasts.
• The IndOOS array of buoys fell into neglect and disrepair during the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to gaps in observational data considered crucial by weather forecasters, particularly since the links between the Indian Ocean Dipole phenomenon and monsoon were established.
• The reactivation of IndOOS was discussed last month during a meeting of Earth Sciences Secretary M Ravichandran with Rick Spinrad, Administrator of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the US.
• The moored buoys are part of the Research Moored Array for African-Asian-Australian Monsoon Analysis and Prediction (RAMA) programme that was born out of a collaboration between the Ministry of Earth Sciences and NOAA in 2008.

• Russia has successfully launched its Angara A5 space rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome.
• According to mission control that launched the rocket, it reached an altitude of more than 25,000 kilometers (15,500 mi) per hour within minutes as it blasted off into space. Roscosmos, Russia’s space agency, confirmed that the rocket operated as expected.
• The Angara rocket is a 54.5 meter (178.81 ft) three-stage rocket. Its weight is about 773 tons, about 24.5 tons of which can be carried into space.

ABOUT RUSSIA’S ANGARA PROJECT:

• Russia launched the Angara project in 1991, shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, with the goal of creating a domestically produced launch vehicle.
• The first Angara-A5 test flight took place in 2014 and the second in 2020 from Plesetsk in northern Russia. In 2021, a partial test of the Angara project was carried out, but unfortunately, it was unsuccessful.
• President Vladimir Putin has touted Angara’s role in national security, although the project has been plagued by significant delays and technical setbacks.
• Angara A5 is designed to replace Russia’s Proton launcher.
• Russia began work on the Angara rocket project to maintain access to space after the deal to lease Baikonur from Kazakhstan expires in 2050.

• Ms Jagjit Pavadia of India has been re-elected to the International Narcotics Board (INCB) for a third term. She secured the highest number of votes amongst the contestants.
• Jagjit Pavadia was re-elected for a third five-year term starting from March 2025- 2030. She was first elected to the International Narcotics Control Board in 2015. Pavadia was again re-elected for a five-year term from 2020 to 2025.

INDIA ELECTED TO VARIOUS UN BODIES:

• Commission on the Status of Women (2025-2029);
• The United Nations Population Fund and
• The United Nations Office for Project Services (2025-2027)
• Executive Board of the United Nations Children’s Fund (2025-2027);
• Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme,
• Executive Board of the World Food Programme (2025-2027),
• Executive Board of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality,
• Empowerment of Women (2025-2027).

INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD

• The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) was set up in 1968 by the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961.
• INCB has 13 members elected by the Economic and Social Council for a period of five years. Ten members are elected from a list of government nominees. The other three members are experts in medical, pharmacological, or pharmaceutical experience from a list nominated by the World Health Organization (WHO).
• Headquarters: Vienna, Austria

• The fifth edition of the ‘Dustlik’ Joint Military Exercise between India and Uzbekistan is scheduled to begin in Termez District, Uzbekistan, from April 15.
• The Exercise is scheduled from 15 to 28 April 2024.
• The participating contingents from the Indian Armed Forces and Armed Forces of the Republic of Uzbekistan will train together to cement the foundation for collaborations & future military interactions.
• During the 14-day exercise, soldiers from the Indian Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of Uzbekistan will undergo comprehensive joint training sessions.

• The 2024 QS World University Rankings by Subject, compiled by global higher education experts QS Quacquarelli Symonds, offer a detailed analysis of over 16,400 university programs from 1500+ universities in 95 countries.
• The rankings cover 56 academic disciplines and five faculty areas, showcasing India’s remarkable progress in academia. This year, 69 Indian universities secured a position in the rankings with 424 entries, marking a significant 19.4% increase from the previous year.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• IIM-Ahmedabad, IIM-Bangalore, and IIM-Calcutta secured places within the top 50 institutions worldwide for business and management studies.
• Jawaharlal Nehru University stands out, ranking 20th globally for development studies, marking it as India’s highest-ranking university in this field.
• Globally, India holds the fourth position in terms of research volume, following China, the US, and the UK. However, its ranking drops to ninth place when considering research impact.
• The Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences in Chennai achieved the 24th position globally for dentistry studies, highlighting India’s excellence in this domain on the international stage.

• The Researchers from the Department of Sociology have compiled the first ever ‘World Cybercrime Index’, which identifies the globe’s major cybercrime hotspots by ranking the most significant sources of cybercrime at a national level.

ABOUT THE WORLD CYBERCRIME INDEX:

• The World Cybercrime Index has been developed as a joint partnership between the University of Oxford and University of New South Wales, Sydney.
• It has been funded by CRIMGOV, a European Union-supported project.
• The index was developed to identify major cybercrime hotspots globally by ranking countries based on the significant sources of cybercrime at a national level.
• The study ‘Mapping the global geography of cybercrime with the World Cybercrime Index’ has been published in the journal PLOS ONE.

KEY FINDINGS OF THE REPORT

• India occupies the 10th position in the cybercrime rankings, with scams involving advance fee payments being the most prevalent type.
• Russia leads the index, followed by Ukraine, China, the US, Nigeria, and Romania, with North Korea, the UK, and Brazil rounding out the top positions.
• Russia and Ukraine emerged as highly technical cybercrime hubs, while Nigerian cybercriminals primarily engaged in less technical forms of cybercrime.

THE FIVE CATEGORIES OF STUDY WERE:

1. Technical products/services (such as malware)
2. Attacks and extortion
3. Data/identity theft (such as hacking or phishing)
4. Scams (such as business email compromise or online auction fraud)
5. Cashing out/money laundering (such as credit card fraud)

• The first alumni meeting of the Prerana Program was addressed by Shri Sanjay Kumar, Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), Ministry of Education.
• The alumni meet was organized to assess and exchange insights among the participants.

ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

• Prerana is a week-long residential program for selected students of class IX to XII.
• Prerana program will run from a Vernacular School, established in 1888, in one of the oldest living cities of India, Vadnagar, district Mehsana, Gujarat.
• PRERANA started the journey in the pilot phase from 15th January 2024 to 17th February 2024 in the Vernacular school at Vadnagar, Mehsana, Gujarat.
• In this phase, the Prerana program has been held for five batches of 20 participants each from five states and one Union Territory: Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and UT of Daman and Diu.
• One hundred students have participated in this experiential learning program that focuses on 9 value-based themes.
• The curriculum of Prerana School prepared by IIT Gandhi Nagar is rooted in nine value based themes: Swabhiman and Vinay, Shaurya and Sahas, Parishram and Samarpan, Karuna and Sewa, Vividhta and Ekta, Satyanishtha and Shuchita, Navachar and Jigyasa, Shraddha aur Vishwas, and Swatantrata and Kartavya.
• The program aims to foster a sense of pride in Bharat’s diverse unity and embrace the spirit of ‘Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam’.

• 3 day Suhi fair , which commemorates the sacrifice of Queen Sunayana, is set to kick off in Chamba town.
• The fair witnesses the participation of only women & kids.
• Fair commence with singing of traditional “Ghureri” songs.

• Nurpur Block has Topped among 15 blocks in Kangra district by spending maximum funds earmarked under the 15th Finance Commission.