ANSWER: C

 ANSWER: D

 ANSWER: D

ANSWER: D

• About 2,500 kg drugs worth Rs.12,000 cr were seized by Narcotic Control Bureau (NCB) and Indian navy as a part of Operation Samudragupt, which targets maritime trafficking of drugs originating from Afghanistan.
• It is one of the biggest drug seizures of drug methamphetamine
  • It is a potent central nervous system stimulant drug.
• Methamphetamine was sourced from Golden crescent, comprising Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan.
  • Golden Triangle includes Myanmar, Laos and

 ANSWER: A

• The Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) has secured the 2^nd position among 66 ministries in the Data Governance Quality Index (DGQI) assessment for 2022-2023 Q3.
• Administered by the Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO) under NITI Aayog, the DGQI survey has the objective of evaluating the level of maturity of administrative data systems and their application in the decision-making process of various Ministries and Departments on implementation of Central Sector Schemes (CS) and Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS).
• DGQI assessment encompasses six pivotal themes, including Data Generation, Data Quality, Use of Technology, Data Analysis, Use and Dissemination, Data security and HR Capacity and Case Studies.
• The DGQI assessment covers three key pillars of data preparedness:
  • Data Strategy
  • Data systems
  • Data-driven outcomes.

 ANSWER: B

• The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has established the Centre for Processing Accelerated Corporate Exit (C-PACE) to streamline the process of removing companies from the MCA Register.
• The purpose of C-PACE is to reduce the burden on the registry and provide a convenient process for stakeholders to remove their company’s name from the register.
  • This initiative is part of MCA’s effort to make doing business and exiting easier for companies.
• C-PACE will operate under the Registrar of Companies (RoC) and will handle applications for processing and disposal.
• Harihara Sahoo, ICLS, has been appointed as the first registrar of C-PACE, which will be supervised by the Director General of Corporate Affairs (DGCoA), New Delhi.
• Centre is situated at the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) in Manesar, Haryana.

 ANSWER: A

• T P Rajendran committee has said that of the 1,135 responses it received from various stakeholders, around 55 per cent were from the farming community and they expressed concern over the possible loss to their crops if the pesticides are withdrawn from the market.
  • The farmer groups with which the panel and its members interacted emphasised the cost-effective protection these 27 pesticide-based formulations gave over several decades.
• The P. Rajendran Committee, was constituted by the Centre to study all aspects related to safety, toxicity, efficacy etc. of the 27 pesticides which include insecticides, fungicides and herbicides.
  • List of these 27 pesticides was carved out of a more extensive list of 66 pesticides reviewed by Anupam Varma committee.
• However, government has recently proposed to ban only 3 of the earlier listed 27 pesticides.

 ANSWER: D

• Burachapori Wildlife Sanctuary was in news after Assam CM shared photographs of a successful eviction drive there.
  • This lead to expansion of the sanctuary by 16000 bughas.

About Burachapori Wildlife Sanctuary

• It is located on the southern bank of the river Brahmaputra in the Sonitpur district, Assam.
• Though two wildlife sanctuaries i.e Laokhowa WS and Burachapori WS in Assam have two different names, they are ecologically and geographically a singular entity.
• The area was declared a Reserved forest in 1974; it became a sanctuary in 1995.
• The Bura Chapori Wildlife Sanctuary serves as a notified buffer zone of the renowned Kaziranga Tiger Reserve.
• It comprises of a mosaic of wet alluvial grassland, riparian and semi-evergreen forests dotted by wetland and river systems.
• Flora comprises of abundance of freshwater mangrove trees and many species of trees and medicinal plants in the sanctuary. E.g. simul, korai, ajar and hijal
• Fauna-Bengal Florican, One-horned Rhinoceros, Tiger, otter, civet cat, leopard cat, Asiatic buffalo, wild boar and barking deer.

 ANSWER: C

• It is an India-Indonesia Bilateral exercise.
• The indigenously built anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kavaratti arrived at Batam, Indonesia to take part in this exercise.
• The primary purpose of the Samudra Shakti exercise is to enhance interoperability and mutual cooperation between the naval forces of India and Indonesia.

ANSWER: A

• Prof Jayant V. Narlikar, a renowned astronomer and founder director of IUCAA , received the inaugural Govind Swarup Lifetime Achievement Award from the Astronomical Society of India (ASI).
• Narlikar is a past president of ASI and was the founding director of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA).
• Prof Narlikar’s notable achievements include his research on the Universe, his contributions to Astrophysics, particularly the Narlikar-Hoyle theory, and his pioneering work in cosmology research in India.

About the award

• The Govind Swarup Lifetime Achievement Award is an award given by the Astronomical Society of India (ASI) to recognize individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the field of astronomy throughout their careers.
• The award was instituted in 2022 and is named after Govind Swarup, a pioneer in the field of radio astronomy in India.
• It carries a cash prize of Rs. 1,50,000/-, funded by the family of Govind Swarup, as well as a plaque, and a citation.

 ANSWER: B

• Prraneeth, a 15-year-old chess player from Telangana, achieved the title of Grandmaster, becoming the sixth from the state and the 82nd in India.
• He secured this milestone by defeating GM Hans Niemann from the US during the penultimate round of the Baku Open 2023.
• The first Indian grandmaster was Viswanathan Anand, who won the title in 1988.

ANSWER: D

• The International Day of Living Together in Peace is celebrated annually on May 16 to encourage peace, tolerance, inclusivity, understanding, and solidarity among individuals and communities globally.
• In 2017, the UN General Assembly designated May 16 as the International Day of Living Together in Peace.

 ANSWER: B

• International Day of Families is celebrated on May 15^th to raise awareness of the importance of families and their role in society.
• The theme of International Day of Families 2023 is ‘Demographic Trends and Families’.
• The first International Day of Families was celebrated in 1994.

ANSWER: D

• Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri was recently given the charge of Cooperation Department, in addition to his three current portfolios.
• He would now look after Jal Shakti, Transport, Language, Art and Culture and Cooperation departments.