ANSWER: A

ANSWER: B

ANSWER: C

ANSWER: B

• Over 260 people were detained in Tripura recently during a 12-hour statewide strike called by the Twipra Students’ Federation (TSF) to press for the introduction of Roman script for Kokborok, state’s indigenous lingua franca.
• Tripura’s script debate centring on Kokborok is several decades old.

ABOUT KOKBOROK LANGUAGE

• It belongs to Tibeto-Burman family of languages and has close affinity with other language family like Bodo, Garo, Dimasa etc.
• Kokborok was first recognised as an official state language of the state in 1979.
• It is also declared as official language of Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council.
• The language is spoken by many of Tripura’s 19 tribal communities as their first language.
  • Tripura has nearly 30 per cent of its 37 lakh population from the tribal communities.
• It is recognised as an official language in the state under its three-language policy and is accepted as a medium of communication by other tribal communities of the state, but it does not have a script.
• The government set up two commissions under former legislator Shyama Charan Tripura and linguist Pabitra Sarkar to decide the script for it.

ANSWER: A

• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) hosted its 5th regional meeting in Kigali, Rwanda, supported by the Government of Rwanda, with 36 countries and Ministers of 15 countries participating.
• A total of nine solar power demonstration projects were inaugurated in the Republic of Uganda, the Union of Comoros and the Republic of Mali.
  • Four of these projects are in Uganda, two in Comoros and three in Mali.

About

• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) is an action-oriented, member-driven, collaborative platform for increased deployment of solar energy technologies as a means for bringing energy access, ensuring energy security, and driving energy transition in its member countries.
• The ISA was conceived as a joint effort by India and France to mobilize efforts against climate change through deployment of solar energy solutions.
• HQ- Gurugram
• It was conceptualized on the sidelines of the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Paris in 2015.
• At present, 116 countries are signatories to the ISA Framework Agreement, of which 94 countries have submitted the necessary instruments of ratification to become full members of the ISA.
• All member states of the United Nations are now eligible to join the ISA.
• The ISA is guided by its ‘Towards 1000’ strategy which aims to mobilise USD 1,000 billion of investments in solar energy solutions by 2030, while delivering energy access to 1,000 million people using clean energy solutions and resulting in installation of 1,000 GW of solar energy capacity.
  • This would help mitigate global solar emissions to the tune of 1,000 million tonnes of CO2 every year.
• Currently, the ISA has 9 comprehensive programmes, each focusing on a distinct application that could help scale deployment of solar energy solutions.
• Activities under the programmes focuses on 3 priority areas – Analytics & Advocacy, Capacity Building, and Programmatic Support

ANSWER: C

• To safeguard the kakapo – a unique New Zealand parrot – the genomes of nearly all remaining individuals have been sequenced, providing vital information for conservation management.

ABOUT KAKAPO

• Scientific name– Strigops habroptila
• It is the heaviest parrot in the world, with some males exceeding 3 kilograms, and is thought to have the longest lifespan, up to 90 years.
• It is the only parrot species that can’t fly, instead climbing trees or foraging on the ground to find food like nuts and seeds.

• It is the only lek-breeding parrot species in the world.
• The green-coloured birds were once widespread throughout New Zealand, but now only 250- odd individuals are left that are managed by New Zealand’s Department of Conservation in partnership with Maori groups on five predator-free islands.
  • Predators include cats and dogs
• They only breed when rimu trees put out masses of fruit (rimu mast years) – every two to four years.
• Threats: Predators, disease, genetic inbreeding, infertility
• IUCN red list status – ‘critically endangered’

ANSWER: D

• Indian Space Research Organisation’s Liquid Propulsion Research Centre (IPRC) in Mahendragiri, has successfully tested the CE-20 cryogenic rocket engine.
• It will be used in ISRO’s ‘Mission Gaganyaan’.
• The cryogenic engine CE – 20 is to be used in the upper stage of the Launch Vehicle Mark – 3.
• It is the first Indian cryogenic engine to feature a gas-generator cycle.
• It uses liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen for producing thrust.

ABOUT MISSION GAGANYAAN

• It envisages demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3 days mission and bring them back safely to earth, by landing in Indian sea waters.

ANSWER: D

• Bhaderwah Rajmah and Sulai honey, both hailing from the districts of Doda and Ramban in Jammu and Kashmir, have been granted Geographical Indication (GI) tags.
• Bhaderwah Rajmash, a variety of red kidney beans characterised by its smaller size and distinct texture, boasts a sweet and nutty flavor that adds a delightful touch to various culinary creations.
• Sulai honey stands out as a premium and exotic honey variety originating from the enchanting landscapes of Ramban.
  • Revered for its exceptional taste worldwide, this honey is meticulously extracted from Sulai plants thriving in the Himalayan terrain of Ramban and Doda.

ANSWER: A

• Nagaland has become the first state in North Eastern region to launch the Aadhaar-Linked Birth Registration (ALBR) system.
• It focuses on simplifying the procedures of birth registration and Aadhaar enrolment for children aged 0 to 5 years.

ANSWER: C

• The government has recently appointed Jaya Verma Sinha as the Chairperson of the Railway Board.
  • The Board is the top decision-making body for the Ministry of Railways.
• Sinha is the first ever woman to head the Board in its 118-year-old history.

ANSWER: B

• As many as 732 persons tested positive for scrub typhus while five deaths due to disease have been reported in Himachal Pradesh so far this year.

ABOUT SCRUB TYPHUS

• Scrub typhus is a seasonal zoonotic (animal borne disease).
• It is caused by a bacteria- Orientia tsutsugamushi.
• It spreads through bites of infected chiggers (flea larval mites).
• The most common symptoms of scrub typhus are fever, headache, body aches and sometimes rash.
• Being curable, its early detection can help cure the disease.