Daily Current Affairs Quiz: March 13, 2023

 ANSWER: B

 ANSWER: C

 ANSWER: C

 ANSWER: A

• Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) is a state-of-the-art satellite instrument producing data that will be used in health studies to examine the health effects of various types of air pollution.
• It is a joint effort between NASA and Italian space agency.
• Its measurements of sunlight reflecting off airborne particles will help determine abundance, size and optical properties of certain pollutants in the atmosphere.
• Three-year mission will focus on several primary target areas including Los Angeles, Atlanta, Boston, Spain, Beijing and New Delhi

ANSWER: D

• In a first, Gujarat set to shift 10 Indian grey wolves (Canis lupus pallipes ) from a conservation breeding centre to forested areas in an attempt to check population of wild herbivores.
• Indian wolf is a subspecies of grey wolf inhabiting semi-arid and arid areas extending from Indian subcontinent to Israel.
• Threats to the spcies include habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation, retaliatory killing coupled with disease threats.
• IUCN status: Least Concern

 ANSWER: D

• Freddy (active for 33 days now) is on track to become the longest-lasting tropical cyclone.
  • Current record is held by Hurricane/Typhoon John (1994) which lasted for 31 days.
• The storm first developed off the North Australian coast in early February and then tracked across the entire Indian Ocean before striking the east coast of Madagascar on February 21, 2023.
• It then crossed the Mozambique Channel and made landfall in Mozambique’s Inhambane province near Vilankulo, where it stalled and dropped a huge amount of rain before doubling back and nearly hit the west coast of Madagascar again.
• Long life of Freddy is fuelled by energy provided from warm ocean surface.
• Also, there has been not much land interaction.
• Conditions favourable for Tropical cyclone
  • Large sea surface with temperature higher than 27° C.
  • Presence of Coriolis force.
  • A pre-existing weak low-pressure area or low-level-cyclonic circulation.
  • Upper divergence above sea level system.

 ANSWER: A

• Department of Land Resources is organizing a National Conference on implementation of ULPIN.
• Bhu-Aadhaar or ULPIN is a 14-digit alpha-numeric number generated based on latitude and longitude coordinates of each land parcel.
• It is part of Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme.
• ULPIN is an authoritative source of information on any parcel of land or property to provide Integrated Land Services to the citizens.

 ANSWER: B

• The Prime Minister whilw inaugurating the 3rd Session of the National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (NPDRR) gave an example of Bhunga houses of Kutch which survived the earthquake to a large extent.
  

ABOUT BHUNGA HOUSES OF KUTCH

• They are traditional houses, a unique type of round mud hut walled with thatched roof.
• After the devastating earthquake of 1819, the people of Kutch came up with an innovative circular design of bhungas to minimize the damage to their lives as well as properties.
• The reworked design of bhungas that is about 200 years old stood very firm during the earthquake of 2001 when it was very close to the epicenter.
• These houses are commonly called ‘Architecture without Architect’ because of the superior architectural knowledge gained by the locals through the years.
• The design of the house is such that it keeps the interior cool in summers and warm in winters and they are tremendously strong and can withstand natural calamities like desert storms and earthquakes.

 ANSWER: C

• CISF Raising Day 2023 is celebrated on 10 March every year but this year the date got revised to 12 March.
• It is annually observed as the Raising Day when the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) was set up under the Union ministry of Home Affairs.
• CISF is one of the seven Central Armed Police Forces in India and is responsible for providing security to various public sector undertakings, airports, and other important installations.
• The CISF was set up under the act of the Parliament of India on March 10, 1969.
• Since then, CISF Raising Day is being celebrated on March 10 each year.
• However, in 2023, the date was revised to 12th March.

 ANSWER: A

• Under Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), Centers of Excellence (CoEs) are being established in various States through Bilateral Cooperation or Research Institutes.
• These CoEs serve as demonstration and training centres for the latest technologies in the field of horticulture.
• 3 CoEs that have been approved include:
  • CoE for Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) at Bengaluru, Karnataka
  • CoE for Mango and Vegetables at Jajpur, Odisha
  • CoE for Vegetables and Flowers at Ponda, Goa
• MIDH is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the holistic growth of the horticulture sector covering fruits, vegetables and other areas.
• Under MIDH, the Government contributes 60% of the total outlay for developmental programmes in all the states (except Northeastern and Himalayan states where GOI contributes 90%) & 40% is contributed by State governments.
• Implementing agency -National Horticulture Board, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer’s Welfare

ANSWER: C

• According to the Geneva-based Diplo Foundation, India, Brazil, and South Africa, which have together formed the tripartite IBSA Forum, may play a prominent role in the process of reforming digital governance.
• As per report, “The first tangible results from IBSA’s digital momentum could be expected during India’s G-20 presidency, which, among others, will promote ‘a new gold standard for data”.

About IBSA

• The IBSA is a trilateral, developmental initiative between India, Brazil and South Africa to promote South-South cooperation and exchange.
• Genesis- The grouping was formalised and named the IBSA Dialogue Forum when the Foreign Ministers of the three countries met in Brasilia (Brazil) on 6th June 2003 and issued the Brasilia Declaration.
• Collaboration:
  • Joint Naval Exercise: IBSAMAR (IBSA Maritime Exercise) is an important part of IBSA trilateral defence cooperation.
  • IBSA Fund: Established in 2004, IBSA Fund (India, Brazil and South Africa Facility for Poverty and Hunger Alleviation) is a unique Fund through which development projects are executed with IBSA funding in fellow developing countries. It is managed by the United Nations (UN) Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC).

 ANSWER: C

• Prime Minister dedicated World`s longest railway platform of 1.5 kilometres at Sri Siddhaarooda railway station in Hubballi in Karnataka.
• It is to be noted that Indian Railways, South Western Railway Zones Hubbali is now registered in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest platform.
• Gorakhpur platform in Uttar Pradesh is the second longest at 1,366.33 meters, and Kollam Junction in Kerala has the third longest platform at 1,180.5 meters.

ANSWER: A

• Mount Merapi, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, erupted, spewing out smoke and ash that covered villages near the crater. There were no immediate reports of casualties, the the National Disaster Mitigation Agency said.
• The Mount Merapi is the Fire Mountain in Indonesia and Java.
• It is an active stratovolcano that is located on the border between the Central Java and Yogyakarta provinces, Indonesia.
• It is considered as the most active volcano in Indonesia and is erupted regularly since 1548.

ANSWER: B

• Ram Chandra Paudel has been elected to serve as the new president of Nepal.
• According to the Nepalese Election Commission, he received 33,800 electoral votes, while his opponent, Subash Chandra Nembwang, received 15,500 votes.
• Ram Chandra Paudel received votes from 352 members of provincial assemblies and 214 members of parliament.

ANSWER: A

• The University of Calicut (Kerala) emerged the overall winner in the All-India Inter-University Powerlifting (Women) Championship 2022-23 that concluded in Dharamshala.
• Players from 88 registered teams took part in the 47-kg, 52-kg, 57-kg, 63-kg, 69-kg, 76-kg, 84-kg and 84 plus kg weight categories.
• Chandigarh University secured the overall second position while Preeti of Singhania University, Jhunjhunu (Rajasthan), was adjudged the best powerlifter.

 ANSWER: A

• Acting Chief Justice of HP High Court Justice Sabina laid the foundation stone of Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre in Kullu.
• It will be constructed at a cost of Rs 1.50 crore.
• The five-storeyed building will have a parking facility, Lok Adalat, Mediation Centre, Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre and other offices.