Daily Current Affairs Quiz: April 29, 2023

ANSWER: B

ANSWER: C

ANSWER: D

ANSWER: A

• A recent RTI reply highlighted that only half of PMJDY insurance claims settled in last two year.

About PMJDY

• PMJDY is a National Mission on Financial Inclusion to ensure access to financial services, namely, Banking/ Savings & Deposit Accounts, Remittance, Credit, Insurance, Pension in an affordable manner.
• PMJDY has been the foundation stone for people-centric economic initiatives like Direct Benefit Transer (DBT), Covid-19 financial assistance, PM-KISAN, increased wages under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), life and health insurance cover
  • The first step of all these initiatives is to provide every adult with a bank account, which PMJDY has nearly completed.
• Objectives:
  • Ensure access to financial products & services at an affordable cost.
  • Use of technology to lower cost & widen reach.
• Basic tenets of the scheme:
  • Banking the unbanked
  • Securing the unsecured
  • Funding the unfunded
• Six Pillars
  • Universal access to banking services: Branch and Banking Correspondants.
  • Overdraft Facility: Basic savings bank accounts with overdraft facility of Rs. 10,000/- to every eligible adult.
    • Upper age limit for OD has been increased from 60 to 65 years.
    • Overdraft up to Rs 2000 is allowed without any conditions.
  • Financial Literacy Programme-Promoting savings, use of ATMs, getting ready for credit, availing insurance and pensions, using basic mobile phones for banking.
  • Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund– To provide banks some guarantee against defaults.
  • Insurance– Free accident insurance cover up to Rs. 2,00,000 (initially it was Rs. 1lakh)
  • Pension scheme for Unorganized sector.

ANSWER: B

• World Intellectual Property Day is observed annually on April 26^th.
• The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) officially established World IP Day on August 9, 1999, coinciding with WIPO’s 30th founding anniversary.
• April 26^th was designated as the date for the annual observance of World Intellectual Property Day.
• The inaugural celebration of World IP Day took place in the year 2000, with 59 member countries participating in the event.
• The primary objective of observing World Intellectual Property Day is to create consciousness about the significance of protecting intellectual property.
• It serves as a platform to emphasize the importance of intellectual property protection and to generate awareness about copyrights, patents, trademarks, and other related subjects.
• The theme for the World Intellectual Property Day 2023 is “Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity.”

ANSWER: A

• A tiger was recently spotted in a camera trap at Kalesar National Park in Haryana’s Yamunanagar district.
  • The last sighting of a tiger in the Kalesar area was in 1913.
• The recent sight of the tiger in the Kalesar area is after a gap of 110 years.

About Kalesar National Park:

• It covers an area of 11,570 acres and is situated in the foothills of the Shiwalik ranges of the Himalayas.
• It was declared a National Park in 2003.
• It is surrounded by:
  • River Yamuna lies to its east.
  • Rajaji National Park, which is located in Uttrakhand, lies to the northeast of the park.
  • Simbalbara National Park nestled in Shivalik Hills lies to the north, sharing a border with Himachal Pradesh.
  • Morni Hills lies to the west.
• The park was named after a temple (known as Kalesar Mahadev temple) located inside the premise of the park.
• The park is also famous for its Dak bungalows – the administrative architectural bungalows built in colonial times.
• Flora: trees like Sal,Semul, Bahera, Amaltas, Shisham, Khair, Sain, Chhal and Jhingan etc.
• Fauna: It houses many threatened animals like leopards, Ghoral, Barking deer, Sambar, Chital, Python, King Cobra, Monitor lizard
• After the recent tiger sighting, wildlife enthusiasts have emphasised on establishing a multistate tiger reserve comprising Rajaji Uttarakhand, Kalesar in Haryana and Simbalbara in Himachal Pradesh.

ANSWER: D

• World Veterinary Day is an annual event celebrated on the last Saturday of April to increase awareness about the important work of veterinarians in promoting animal health, welfare, and public health.
  • This year, the event falls on April 29th.
• Theme for World Veterinary Day 2023 is “Promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness in the Veterinary Profession”. 
• The World Veterinary Day (WVD) was established on April 29, 2000, by the World Veterinary Association (WVA)
• World Veterinary Association was founded in 1863 with HQ at Brussels, Belgium.

ANSWER: B

• Azerbaijan had established a checkpoint at Lachin corridor, the only land route linking Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh.
• Nagorno-Karabakh, known as Artsakh by Armenians, is a landlocked mountainous area in South Caucasus.
• It was claimed by both Azerbaijan and Armenia after the fall of Russian Empire in 1917 and has remained a point of tension ever since.
• The territory is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, but its inhabitants are predominantly ethnic Armenians.

ANSWER: C

• India and United Kingdom will create India-UK NET Zero Innovation Virtual Centre.
  • It was announced during the India-UK Science & Innovation Council meeting.
• It will provide a platform to bring stakeholders from both countries together to work in some of the focus areas including Decarbonization of manufacturing process & transport systems and Green Hydrogen as renewable source.

ANSWER: D

• State Wide Attention on Grievances by Application of Technology-SWAGAT initiative of Gujarat government successfully completed 20 years.
• It was started by PM in 2003 when he was the CM of Gujarat.
• SWAGAT acts as a bridge between citizens and government by using technology to solve their day-to-day grievances in a time-bound manner.

ANSWER: A

• The Himachal Government has decided to reduce the lease period of government land given to the industry, educational institutions and charitable institutions and for tourism projects from 99 to 40 years.
• The Revenue Department has issued a notification in this regard while inviting objections from any affected person within 30 days, which will be considered before finalising these new rules.
• The amendment will be made to Rule 7 of the Himachal Pradesh Lease Rules, 2013, by way of the Himachal Pradesh Lease (Amendment) Rules, 2023.
• The period for leasing out government land will be reduced to 40 years even though this can be further extended by five, 10, 15 or more years.
• However, no amendment has been proposed for making changes in the lease amount, which varies depending upon the purpose for which it is being leased out.
• Huge chunks of government land have been given on lease for hydro-power projects, mining, tourism projects, industries, charitable and religious institutions, and for creating sports infrastructure.