Daily Current Affairs Quiz: August 19, 2023

ANSWER: C

ANSWER: A

ANSWER: D

ANSWER: B

• President Droupadi Murmu launched the sixth vessel of the Project 17 Alpha Frigates, Vindhyagiri’, a stealth guided missile frigate of the Indian Navy.
  • Previous five were INS Nilgiri, Udaygiri, Himgiri, Taragiri, and Dunagiri.

PROJECT 17A

• These warships are follow-ons of the Project 17 Class Frigates.
• The Project 17A ships have been designed in-house by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau, a pioneer organisation for all warship design activities.
• Ships under Project 17A are constructed by two companies – Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE).
  • The new Vindhyagiri was unveiled at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited in Kolkata.
• These guided-missile frigates have been constructed with a specific stealth design, which has radar-absorbent coatings and is low-observable which can make its approach undetectable for the enemies. The new technology also reduces the infrared signals of the ship.
• A substantial 75% of the orders for equipment and systems of Project 17A ships are from indigenous firms, including Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

ANSWER: C

• ALS is a neurodegenerative disease in which special nerve cells called motor neurons in the brain and spine – which control an individual’s voluntary functions like walking, chewing, talking, moving their arms- are affected.
• As these nerve cells progressively die, the muscles dependent on them are unable to function or move, due to which they begin to atrophy or waste away.
• ALS is a progressive disease.
• Once it involves the motor neurons that regulate respiratory muscles, breathing gets affected.
• Currently, there is no effective cure for ALS and the best therapies are drugs and other interventions that could lengthen the life of the person with ALS (or PALS).
• The average survival time is between 20 to 48 months on an average.

ANSWER: D

• The Central Water Commission launched an app, called ‘Floodwatch’, which can forecast the chances of floods a day in advance.
• It also provides a seven-day advisory on the chances of floods at various stations in the country where the CWC maintains its measurement gauges.
• The app has a map of India with coloured circles at water stations across the country indicating the current risk of flooding.

• Clicking on a circle shows the current water level at the station, the highest level historically attained, the danger level and warning level.
• The warnings are in English or Hindi with an option for a voice-enabled prompt.
• The app will also provide State-wise/basin-wide flood forecast up to 24 hours or flood advisory, up to seven days, that can be accessed via selecting specific stations.
• Flood watch uses advance technologies such as satellite data analysis, mathematical modelling and real-time monitoring to deliver accurate and timely flood forecasts.

ANSWER: B

• World Humanitarian Day is observed annually on August 19^th.
• WHD is a campaign by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
• The theme for World Humanitarian Day 2023 is ‘No matter what’.
• Brief History
  • On 19 August 2003, a bomb attack on the Canal Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, killed 22 humanitarian aid workers, including the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello.
  • In 2008, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution designating 19 August as World Humanitarian Day (WHD).

ANSWER: C

• Matti banana, a native variety of Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, was recently granted the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
• It is also known as Baby banana.
• Matti banana has six types that differ in colour, aroma, taste, and texture, and are suitable for baby food and medicinal use.

ANSWER: A

• Goa’s CM released a biodiversity atlas of Mayem village in North Goa, which he termed as “India’s first village atlas”.
• This unprecedented atlas offers a comprehensive socio-cultural history that traces back to the 12th century.

ANSWER: D

• World Photography Day is observed annually on August 19^th.
• It commemorates the invention of the daguerreotype, a photographic process developed by Frenchman Louis Daguerre in 1837 that marked a significant milestone in the history of photography.
• The World Photography Day 2023 theme is “LANDSCAPES”.