ANSWER: B

• According to the Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Mansukh Mandaviya, India will stop importing urea by the end of 2025 due to an increase in local production capacity with the commissioning of new fertilizer plants.
• India is a big importer of Urea and meets around 30% of its 35 million tonnes of annual urea requirement from imports.
• The urea production in the country increased from 08 lakh tonnes in 2014-15 to 284.95 lakh tonnes in 2022-23.
• In 2022-23, the total import of Urea was 75.8 lakh tonnes, which is around 30% of the domestic demand. The main sources of urea imports are Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
• The government of India introduced the New Urea Policy 2015 with the aim of boosting indigenous urea production.
• Under the New Urea Policy, the government plans to revive closed fertilizer plants at Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, Ramagundam in Telangana, Talcher in Odisha, Barauni in Bihar, and Sindri in Jharkhand. Four plants have already been revived, and the fifth will soon be revived.

ANSWER: C

• For the second time, the launch of AgniKul ‘Agnibaan SOrTeD’ has been postponed.
• The IIT Madras-based Agnikul Cosmos was to test-fire an Agnibaan rocket with 3D-printed engine, aiming for suborbital flight trajectory control.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• The Agnibaan SOrTeD is a customisable launch vehicle that could be launched in one or two stages. It is powered by AgniKul’s patented Agnilet engine.
• The rocket, weighing 580 kilograms, aimed to reach an altitude of 20 kilometers above the Earth before descending into the Bay of Bengal, carrying up to 7 kg of payloads.
• Agnikul Cosmos has been at the forefront of India’s burgeoning private space sector, with ambitions to provide customisable and transportable launch vehicles for small satellites to Low Earth Orbits (LEO).
• The Agnibaan rocket, capable of carrying up to 100kg to orbits around 700 km high, represents a significant step towards achieving this goal.
• Its unique propulsion system, powered by a semi-cryogenic engine using Aircraft Turbine Fuel and liquid oxygen, sets a new standard in the industry.

AGNILET ENGINE:

• Agnilet engine, a 3D-printed, single-piece, 6 kN semi-cryogenic marvel, drives Agnibaan’s The engine employs a novel blend of liquid kerosene and supercold liquid oxygen as propellants.

ANSWER: A

• The World Health Day is celebrated annually on April 7 to raise awareness towards global wellbeing.
• The theme for 2024 is ‘My Health, My Right’, which emphasizes on a fundamental human right to access quality health care, education and information.
• World Health Day is commemorated every year on the founding day of the World Health Organisation (WHO).
• The year 2024 marks the 76th anniversary of WHO.

 ANSWER: C

• The National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd. (NCDFI) elected Meenesh Shah as the Chairman.
• The election process was conducted by Praveen Chaudhary, IAS, the District Collector of Anand, who served as the Returning Officer.
• About National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd:
• NCDFI is a national-level apex dairy cooperative registered on December 7, 1970 and is governed under the provisions of the Multi State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023.
• It has 20 Regular Members, 14 Associate Members and the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) as its Institutional Member.

ANSWER: B

• Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar, the UAE’s clean energy powerhouse, is set to host the World Future Energy Summit (WFES).
• The World Future Energy Summit (WFES) will be organized from April 16 to 18 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). This summit serves as a pivotal global event focusing on future energy, clean technology, and sustainability, featuring various discussions, forums, and activations.
• Masdar’s CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi emphasizes their commitment to advancing clean energy and accelerating the energy transition in alignment with The UAE Consensus agreed at COP28.
• Masdar will also host the annual Green Hydrogen Summit on April 16, which aims to accelerate the development of the global green hydrogen economy to support the energy transition.
• Masdar is aiming for a renewable energy portfolio capacity of 100GW by 2030, supporting the target set in The UAE Consensus to triple global renewables capacity by the end of this decade, and aims to be a leading producer of green hydrogen by the same year.

ANSWER: B

• South Korea’s second domestically made spy satellite was successfully put into orbit.
• It was launched from an American space centre on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
• In December 2023, the South Korea successfully launched its first military spy satellite by one of Elon Musk’s SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets.
• South Korea planned to launch a total of five military spy satellites by 2025.
• Also, North Korea successfully placed its Malligyong-1 spy satellite into orbit in November 2023.

ANSWER: D

• The United States and the United Kingdom have signed an agreement to work together on testing advanced artificial intelligence (AI)
• The agreement follows commitments made at the Bletchley Park AI Security Summit last year.

ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI):

• AI began in the 1950s. Artificial intelligence means intellectual ability developed artificially.
• Computer system or robotic systems are created through AI. An attempt is made to run it on the basis of the same logic on the basis of which the human brain works.
• According to John McCarthy, the father of AI, it is the science and engineering of creating intelligent machines, especially intelligent computer programs. That is, it is the intelligence displayed by machines.

ANSWER: A

• Indian Coast Guard Director General Rakesh Pal inaugurated the Indian Coast Guard Aquatic Centre at ICGS Mandapam near Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu.
• The ICG Chief is on a four-day visit to the maritime force’s bases in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Puducherry and made a maiden visit to Chennai for a review of operational preparedness and commensurate infrastructure development in the region.
• The Indian Coast Guard, Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force are the four forces under the Defence Ministry and are governed by their different acts.

ANSWER: D

• Max Verstappen of Red Bull dominated the Japanese Grand Prix, leading a one-two finish for his team alongside teammate Sergio Perez.
• Carlos Sainz of Ferrari took third place, ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc, who started from eighth on the grid.

ANSWER: A

• Sameer Rastogi, a 1988-batch Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) in the Himachal Pradesh Forest Department, has taken charge as Chief Project Director (CPD) at Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Forestry Project.

ABOUT PROJECT:

• Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) assisted “Project for Improvement of Himachal Pradesh Forest Ecosystems Management and Livelihoods” is being implemented in seven districts i.e. Kinnaur, Shimla, Bilaspur, Mandi, Kullu , Kangra and Lahaul & Spiti. The project period is 10 years from 2018-19 to 2027-28.