Daily Current Affairs Quiz: January 20, 2024

ANSWER: D

ANSWER: B

ANSWER: C

ANSWER: B

• The Future of Growth Report was released by the World Economic Forum at Annual Meeting 2024.
• The report took a holistic look at GDP alongside the quality of growth across 107 economies in four dimensions- Innovativeness, Inclusiveness, Sustainability, Resilience.
• High-income economies score high on innovation and inclusion, while lower-income economies on sustainability.
• Among the lower middle-income economies, India and Kenya scored high on sustainability, Jordan on innovativeness; Vietnam on inclusiveness; and the Philippines on resilience.
  • Common challenges preventing a stronger balanced growth performance of this group included technology absorption, lack of social safety nets, insufficient investment in renewable energy, and insufficient healthcare system capacity.
• The report highlighted a significant economic slowdown, estimated to fall to the lowest rate in three decades by 2030.
• At an individual level, none of the 107 economies covered by the report attained a score higher than 80 on any of the framework’s four dimensions.
• It has called for a new approach to economic growth that balances efficiency with long-term sustainability and equity, examining speed and quality together.

ANSWER: D

• Odisha Chief Minister recently unveiled a sprawling heritage corridor around the Jagannath Temple in Puri.
• The heritage corridor is one of the two major temple projects the State government has undertaken in recent years, the other being the renovation of the Maa Samalai Temple at a cost of ₹200 crore in western Odisha town of Sambalpur.

ABOUT JAGANNATH TEMPLE

• The Jagannath temple located in Puri, Odisha is a sacred temple devoted to Lord Jagannath (a form of Vishnu) along with his brother Lord Balabhadra and sister Devi Subhadra.
• Constructed by- Ananta Varman Chodaganga Deva of Eastern Ganga Dynasty dating back to 12th century.
• It is known as the “White Pagoda” and one of the four pilgrimage sites of Char Dham Pilgrimage.
• It is also called as ‘Yamanika Tirtha’ where, according to the Hindu beliefs, the power of ‘Yama’, the god of death, has been nullified in Puri due to the presence of Lord Jagannath.
• Famous for its Annual Ratha yatra, or chariot festival, in which the three principal deities are pulled on huge and elaborately decorated temple cars.
• The temple is built in the Kalinga style of architecture, with the Pancharatha (Five chariots) type consisting of two anurathas, two konakas and one ratha.
• Jagannath temple is a pancharatha with well-developed pagas.
• It is enclosed by a high wall with four gates, each facing a cardinal direction.

This is the first temple in the history of Kalinga temple architecture where all the chambers like Jagamohana, Bhogamandapa and Natyamandapa were built along with the main temple.

ANSWER: A

• The Cochin Port Joint Trade Union Forum has appealed to Prime Minister to revive commercial activities on Willingdon Island.
• Kochi’s iconic Willingdon Island is one of the largest man-made islands in the country, created (1920-1940) using dredged soil.
• It is named after the then British Viceroy of India, Lord Willingdon.
• It once served as a vital transportation centre, accommodating both Cochin Airport and the Harbour Railway terminus.
• It is also home to the Kochi Naval Base of the Indian Navy and the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology
• The island is connected to the mainland by the Venduruthy Bridge.

ANSWER: D

• “Conversations with Aurangzeb” is a novel by Tamil literary icon Charu Nivedita, translated into English by Nandini Krishnan.
• This book represents a unique fusion of historical narrative and satirical commentary, offering readers a fresh perspective on both historical and contemporary themes.

ANSWER: A

• The Assam Government revived the traditional buffalo fight (Moh-Juj), nine years after it was stopped following the Supreme Court’s ban on Tamilnadu’s Jallikattu and bullock cart races in Maharashtra.
• On December 8, 2023, the state cabinet approved traditional buffalo fights under strict SOP.
• It is said that Moh-Juj was introduced to Assamese culture by 30^th Ahom king Swargadeo Rudra Singha nearly 200 years ago.

ANSWER: C

• In a move aligning with the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020, Himachal Pradesh has unveiled the ‘My School-My Pride’ campaign under the ‘Apna Vidyalay’ programme, aimed at revolutionising the quality of education in government schools.
• This initiative will encourage active participation from individuals and organisations to adopt schools and contribute to various aspects of students’ growth.
• The stakeholders will be urged to provide career counselling, offer remedial teaching, coach students for examinations, and engage in community support services.
• The initiative also involves monetary contributions for infrastructure development, event sponsorship, scholarships, and support for the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) programme.