• The International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness is observed yearly on March 5.
• The inaugural International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness was observed on March 5, 2023, following a UNGA resolution adopted on December 7, 2022.
• Definitions-
  • Disarmament is defined by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) as the elimination of all Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), coupled with the ‘balanced reduction’ of armed forces and conventional armaments, based on the principle of undiminished security of the parties to promote or enhance stability at a lower military level, taking into account the need of all states to protect their security.
  • Nonproliferation is the limiting of the production and spread of nuclear or chemical weapons into the hands of non-state actors and rogue states.

• In a first, Border Security Force (BSF) welcomed woman sniper, sub-inspector Suman Kumari.
• She has recently completed an eight-week sniper course at Indore’s Central School of Weapons and Tactics (CSWT) to become the first woman sniper of the BSF.
• Suman has achieved ‘instructor grade’ at the course.
• In the sniper course, Suman was the only female among 56 men.
• The course is considered to be among the toughest trainings of the force, after the commando training.

• In Mexico City, the water crisis is nearing ‘day zero’.
• Mexico City, home to nearly 22 million people, could be very close running out of water because of prolonged drought and higher than usual temperatures.
• “Day zero” refers to a scenario where the city’s water reserves are depleted to the extent that taps run dry for large portions of the population.

• Defence Minister recently inaugurated two big piers and seven towers with 320 homes for Navy officers and Defence civilians as part of Project Seabird in Naval Base Karwar in Karnataka.
• Phase IIA of Project Seabird will accommodate 32 ships/submarines, 23 yardcraft, a dual-use Naval Air Station, a complete Naval Dockyard, four covered dry berths and logistics for ships/aircraft.
• It will house around 10,000 uniformed and civilian personnel with families, significantly boosting the local economy and industrial growth.
• Phase IIA of Project Seabird will progress over the next seven to eight years.
• Phase I of Project Seabird was designed to accommodate 10 ships and was successfully finished in 2011.
  • Project Seabird is the largest naval infrastructure building project in the country.
  • Once fully operational, it will have an estimated 50,000 individuals residing in the Naval Facilities spread over the 25-kilometre expanse.

• The Chapchar Kut is a festival of Mizoram.
• It is celebrated during March after completion of their most arduous task of jhum operatione., jungle-clearing (clearing of the remnants of burning).
• It is a spring festival celebrated with great favour and gaiety.
• Chapchar Kut is a celebration held in anticipation of a golden harvest.
• All the people gather for a huge community fest to sing and dance to the tune of flute, cymbals, drums and gongs.
• One of the greatest highlights of Chapchar Kut is the popular bamboo dance called Cheraw, which features men tapping the bamboo sticks according to the rhythm of the dance and women adjust their dance moves with moving sticks.

• India’s 1st Green Hydrogen Plant in Stainless Steel Sector was virtually inaugurated recently.
• It is located at Jindal Stainless Limited, Hisar.
• It will be the world’s first off-grid Green Hydrogen plant for the stainless steel industry and the world’s first Green Hydrogen plant with rooftop & floating solar.
• This project is also a state-of-the-art green hydrogen facility with a target to reduce carbon emissions considerably by around 2,700 Metric Tonnes per annum and 54,000 tons of CO2 emissions over next two decades.

• Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways inaugurated the 60T bollard pull tug named ‘Ocean Grace’.
• The Ocean Grace is the first make in India ASTDS Tug developed by the Cochin Shipyard Limited under MoPSW.
• The first ASTDS tug is powered by NIGATA main engines and a Power Z-Peller ZP Propulsion engine.
• This tug is meticulously designed for optimal efficiency and reliability, guaranteeing seamless navigation and proficient vessel assistance, especially for large vessels like VLCCs and ULCCs.

 ABOUT GTTP

• The Green Tug Transition Programme will start with ‘Green Hybrid Tugs’ powered by Green Hybrid Propulsion systems and subsequently adopting non-fossil fuel solutions like Methanol, Ammonia, and Hydrogen.
• The goal of the Green Tug Transition Programme (GTTP) is to convert at least 50 per cent of all tugs into Green Tugs by 2030 and to have Green Tugs operating at all major port.

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) has notified a scheme for internally displaced persons of Manipur to vote at the relief camps.
  • More than 60,000 people were displaced within weeks of the ethnic violence that broke out on May 3, 2023.
  • Most of them are lodged in relief camps.
• After due consultations with the Central and State governments, it was decided that these electors would “continue to be borne on the electoral rolls of the Assembly and Parliamentary constituencies concerned” in Manipur.
• The internally displaced electors would be provided with the facility to vote at “special polling stations” to be set up in the relief camps.
• The election in the special polling stations will be conducted by using separate EVMs and all rules, directions, and instructions applicable to the conduct of the poll at the original polling stations will also apply at these special polling stations.
• The maximum number of voters at each special polling station would be 1,200.

• The 7th Summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) was held in Algeria.

ABOUT GECF

• The GECF is an intergovernmental organisation that seeks to build a mechanism for a meaningful dialogue between gas producers and consumers in order to improve the stability and security of supply and demand in gas markets around the world.
• Headquarters- Doha (Qatar)
• The full-fledged Members of the GECF are: Algeria, Bolivia, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iran, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Russia, Trinidad and Tobago, UAE and Venezuela.
• Angola, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Malaysia, Mauritania, Mozambique, Peru hold the status of Observers.
  • India is neither a member nor an Observer.
• Together, they represent 69% of the world’s gas reserves, 39% of the marketed production, and 40% of global gas exports.

• ‘e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi’ (Digital Gateway) of Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) was launched recently.
• The ‘e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi’ initiative with the help of technology will ease the farmers’ warehousing logistics and aid the farmers in receiving fair prices for their produce.
• It aims to facilitate farmers in obtaining post-harvest loans from banks against their stocks stored in the WDRA registered warehouses.
  • Warehouses under WDRA are well monitored, highly rated and are equipped with infrastructure that protect the farm produce and lead to farmers’ welfare.
• ‘e-Kisan Upaj Nidhi’ with its no collateral, extra security deposit policy can prevent distress sale by farmers.

About WDRA

• The Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) was constituted on 26.10.2010 under the Warehousing (Development and Regulation) Act, 2007.
  • The Act provides for the establishment of the WDRA to exercise the powers conferred on it and to perform the functions assigned to it under the Act, Rules and Regulations for the
    • development and regulation of warehouses,
    • negotiability of warehouse receipts and
    • promote orderly growth of the warehousing business in the country.
  • The WDRA is a Statutory Authority under the Department of Food and Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs Food and Public Distribution.
  • The Authority consists of a Chairperson and two Members appointed by the Central Government.