Daily Current Capsules

Railway Infrastructure projects

The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone and inaugurated and dedicated to the Nation around 2000 railway infrastructure projects worth more than Rs. 41,000 crores
Lakhs of people connected with the Viksit Bharat Viksit Railways event from 500 railway stations and 1500 other venues.
550 stations in 12 states spread over 300 districts are being revamped.
Baleshwar Station in Odisha is designed on the theme of Bhagwan Jagannath Temple and Sikkim’s Rangpur will carry the imprint of local architecture, Sangner station in Rajasthan displays 16th-century hand-block printing, the station at Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu will display Chola influence and Ahmedabad Station is inspired by Modhera Surya Mandir, Dwarka Station is inspired by the Dwarkadheesh Temple, IT City Gurugram station will carry the IT theme, meaning “Amrit Bharat Station will introduce the specialities of that city to the world”

Background

The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for redevelopment of 553 railway stations under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme.
These stations, spread across 27 States and Union Territories, will be redeveloped at a cost of over Rs. 19,000 crores.
These stations will act as ‘City Centres’ integrating both sides of the city.
The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone, inaugurated and dedicated to the nation 1500 Road Over Bridges and Underpasses.

Bharat Tex 2024

The Prime Minister, inaugurated Bharat Tex 2024, one of the largest-ever global textile events to be organized in the country at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi

Know! about Bharat Tex

Bharat Tex 2024 is being organized from 26-29 February 2024. Drawing inspiration from the 5F Vision of the Prime Minister, the event has a unified farm to foreign via fibre, fabric and fashion focus, covering the entire textiles value chain.
It will showcase India’s prowess in the textile sector and reaffirm India’s position as a global textile powerhouse.
Organized by a consortium of 11 Textile Export Promotion Councils and supported by the government, Bharat Tex 2024 is built on the twin pillars of trade and investment, with an overarching focus on sustainability.
The four-day event features over 65 knowledge sessions with more than 100 global panelists discussing various issues faced by the sector.
Over 3,500 exhibitors, over 3,000 buyers from over 100 countries, and more than 40,000 business visitors, besides textiles students, weavers, artisans and textile workers are expected to take part in Bharat Tex 2024 along with policymakers and global CEOs.

National Science Day 2024

National Science Day is celebrated every year on February 28 to commemorate the discovery of the ‘Raman Effect’ and raise awareness about the importance of science and its role in improving the lives of people.

Why is it celebrated on February 28?

The National Science Day was first observed on the day when Indian Physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman (C V Raman) announced the discovery of the “Raman Effect” in 1928, for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930.
He was the first Indian to receive this prestigious award in the field of science.

Raman Effect

The Raman Effect is the phenomenon when light traverses a transparent material, and some of the light that is deflected changes in wavelength.

National Science Day (Inception)

The history of National Science Day can be traced back to 1986 when the Indian government accepted the proposal of the National Council for Science and Technology Communication and designated February 28 as National Science Day to commemorate the discovery of the “Raman Effect”.

National Science Day 2024: Theme

The theme for National Science Day 2024 is “Indigenous Technologies for Viksit Bharat.”

WTO MC13

The thirteenth Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) began in Abu Dhabi on 26 February.
Two countries – Comoros and Timor Leste acceded to the WTO on the opening day.
India had been supporting these accessions and welcomed the expansion of the organization.
The WTO will be completing 30 years of its establishment next year.
In the session on sustainable development and policy space for industrialization, India highlighted the need for avoiding fragmentation of the multilateral trading system and the importance of remaining focused rather than mix non-trade issues with the WTO agenda.
India explained that it has put forward and propagated a sustainable way of living based on traditions and values of conservation and moderation including through a mass movement for LiFE- “Life Style for Environment” as a key to combating climate change.
In the second session on Trade and Inclusion, India cautioned members that mixing non-trade topics with WTO rules can lead to greater trade fragmentation.
Bringing issues like Gender and MSMEs in the realm of WTO discussions was not practical because these issues were being discussed in other relevant international organizations already.

National Industrial Corridor Development Programme

National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation Limited (NICDC) under Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India and the Foundation for Innovation and Technology Transfer at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (FITT-IITD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi with an objective to evaluate optimality of locations for development of Greenfield Industrial Smart Cities in India leveraging the principles and framework of PM GatiShakti.
NICDC and FITT-IITD collaborates to assess the optimal locations for developing greenfield industrial smart cities across India by leveraging the spatial & analytical data tools of PM GatiShakti, National Master Plan portal.
This initiative aligns with India’s vision to emerge as a global manufacturing hub, emphasizing the importance of data-driven, decision-making in sustainable futuristic urban planning and development.

Know! about NICDC

National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) is a Special Purpose Vehicle that envisages to establish, promote and facilitate development of the National Industrial Corridor Development Programme, India’s most ambitious infrastructure programme aiming to develop new industrial cities as “smart cities” and converging next generation technologies across infrastructure sectors.
The programme is aimed at providing impetus to planned urbanization in India with manufacturing as the key driver.

Annual Aegis Graham Bell Awards

Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), the premier Telecom R&D centre of the Government of India, strikes a hat-trick by securing top position in three awards at 14^th Annual Aegis Graham Bell Awards, which was held on 21^st February, 2024 at NDMC Convention Centre, New Delhi for its indigenously designed & developed innovative Telecom solutions in various categories.

CDOT is declared TOP WINNER in three categories as below:

The 1st award was jointly shared with Google India, in the category “Innovation in AI” for its pioneering ASTR Project.
ASTR (AI & Facial Recognition-powered Solution for Telecom SIM Subscriber Verification) is a game-changer in the fight against cyber crimes. Designed to analyze, identify, and eliminate fake/forged mobile connections, it’s a crucial step towards ensuring a #secure telecom environment.
Second award belongs to the category “Innovation in Social Good” for its ground breaking CEIR(Central Equipment Identity Register) solution.
CEIR helps in revolutionizing mobile security by detecting clone IMEIs, restricting import of counterfeit mobile devices and also enabling the blocking and tracing of lost or stolen phones.
The 3rd award bagged is for “Innovation in Telecom” category for its Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) product.
India employs quantum mechanics to create an unbreakable cryptographic protocol even with Quantum computers. This revolutionary solution ensures unbreakable security for communications between two networks, parties.

Investor Information and Analytics Platform

Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT launched ‘Investor Information and Analytics Platform’ developed by IIT Madras
This platform will act as a one-stop shop for startups to seamlessly access Venture Capitalists (VCs) and investors networks, Govt schemes and several other components of the startup landscape for all stakeholders.
By integrating information at different levels, the platform is also a one-stop shop for entrepreneurs to search for information on government agencies, incubators, investors, VCs and banks that invest in startups.
This platform has been developed by the Researchers at the Centre for Research on Start-ups and Risk Financing (CREST) of IIT Madras.
It will significantly help startup founders, entrepreneurs and Young Indians who intend to build their own devices, services and platforms for India and for the world.

Homosep Atom

India’s ﬁrst septic tank/manhole cleaning robot, offering an end-to-end solution to eliminate manual scavenging, is strengthening the swachhata abhiyan in different corners of the country.
The technology called Homosep Atom developed by the startup incubated in the Department of Science and Technology (DST)-Technology Business Incubator (TBI) of IIT Madras, solves manual cleaning methods and transforms it to robotic cleaning methods.
DST-Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) are established in Academic /Technical /R&D Institutions as part of NIDHI programme to support and nurture knowledge-driven innovative start-ups into successful enterprises.
The startup called Solinas, which developed this affordable robotic solution integrated Artificial Intelligence (AI) to inspect, clean, and manage conﬁned space for sanitation purposes.
Solinas is a deep-tech and climate tech startup born out of IIT Madras, founded with the intent to solve the challenges that revolutionizes the water and sanitation sector and improves the climatic conditions.
The IIT Madras DST-TBI was also instrumental in advancing the product development of Solinas in the early stages.

Garbhini-GA2

Researchers at the Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council – Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad and Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras), as part of the Interdisciplinary Group for Advanced Research on Birth Outcomes – DBT India Initiative (GARBH-Ini) program have developed a model for estimating the GA in pregnant women during the second and third trimesters.
Currently, the age of a foetus (gestational age, GA) is determined using a formula developed for Western populations and are likely to be erroneous when applied in the later part of pregnancy due to variations in the growth of the foetus in Indian population.
The newly developed second and third-trimester GA formula, Garbhini-GA2, accurately estimates the age of a foetus for the Indian population, reducing error by almost three times.
Accurate GA is necessary for the appropriate care of pregnant women and for determining precise delivery dates.
Garbhini-GA2 can be deployed in clinics across India, improving the care delivered by obstetricians and neonatologists, thus reducing maternal and infant mortality rates in India.
The GARBH-Ini program is a flagship programme supported by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Govt of India.
The data science research was funded by the Grand Challenges India program of the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), DBT, Govt. of India.

Positronium

For the first time, an international collaboration of researchers has successfully demonstrated the laser cooling of Positronium, a short-lived hydrogen-like atom that provides an ideal testing ground for bound-state quantum electrodynamics.
The Antihydrogen Experiment: Gravity, Interferometry, Spectroscopy (AEgIS) collaboration has performed complex experiments at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in order to obtain this breakthrough.
The results could pave the way for taking up advanced studies leading to improved understanding of the physical nature, comprising matter and antimatter facilitated through the interactions between light and charged matter.

Know! about Positronium

Positronium is a fundamental atom that comprises an electron (e-) and a positron (e+). Electrons and positrons are leptons, and they interact through electromagnetic and weak forces.
A usual atom is made up of a mixture of baryons and leptons. Since Positronium is only made up of electrons and positrons, and no usual nuclear matter, it has the unique distinction of being a purely leptonic atom.

Agalega Island

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Mauritius, H.E. Mr. Pravind Jugnauth, jointly inaugurated the new Airstrip and St. James Jetty along with six community development projects at the Agalega Island in Mauritius on 29 February 2024
The inauguration of these projects is a testimony to the robust and decades-old development partnership between India and Mauritius.
The projects will fulfil the demand for better connectivity between mainland Mauritius and Agalega, strengthen maritime security and foster socio-economic development.
The inauguration of these projects is significant as it follows the recent launch of UPI and RuPay Card services in Mauritius by the two leaders on 12 February 2024.

SWAYAM Plus platform

Union Minister of Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, launched the SWAYAM Plus Platform.
The Platform will widen the scope of the classroom adding 43 million students of Higher Education students and working professionals.
Courses are to be in local languages to empower every student in order to realize the dream of Viksit Bharat, as innovation has no language
Going beyond STEM education, courses involving music, painting, creative arts, humanities, and liberal arts, are to be part of the Platform to bring about all-round development in our youth, he stressed.

Know! more about SWAYAM Plus

SWAYAM, the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform providing educational opportunities for a vast number of learners, was launched by the Ministry of Education in 2017.
In alignment with NEP 2020, the SWAYAM Plus platform will now include courses supporting industry needs that enhance learners’ employability.
Developed in collaboration with industry giants like L&T, Microsoft, CISCO, and more, SWAYAM Plus features innovative elements such as multilingual content, AI-enabled guidance, credit recognition, and pathways to employment.
SWAYAM Plus primarily focuses on achieving the following: Building an ecosystem for all stakeholders in professional and career development, including learners, course providers, industry, academia, and strategic partners; Enabling a mechanism that provides credit recognition for high‐quality certifications and courses offered by the best industry and academia partners; Reaching a large learner base by catering to learning across the country, with a focus on reaching learners from tier 2 and 3 towns and rural areas and Offering employment focused courses, based on learner needs – across chosen disciplines with options to learn through resources in vernacular languages.
SWAYAM Plus also envisions bringing in features such as access to mentorship, scholarships, and job placements as value-added services in due course of time, thus building a digital ecosystem for learners to pursue upskilling/re-skilling at all levels, namely certificate, diploma or degree.

Government declares ‘Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu Kashmir’ as an ‘Unlawful Association’ for a further period of 5 years

Government of India has declared ‘Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu Kashmir’ as an ‘Unlawful Association’ for a further period of 5 years under Section 3(1) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) 1967.
The last ban on the ‘Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu Kashmir’ was imposed, vide Gazette Notification Number S.O. 1069(E), dated the 28^th February, 2019.
Jamaat-e-Islami Jammu Kashmir is continuing to be involved in fomenting terrorism and anti-India propaganda for fueling secessionism in Jammu and Kashmir, which is prejudicial to the sovereignty, security and integrity of India.

Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act is an Indian law aimed at prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
Its main objective was to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India.
The most recent amendment of the law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2019 (UAPA 2019) has made it possible for the Union Government to designate individuals as terrorists without following any formal judicial process.
The National Integration Council appointed a Committee on National Integration and Regionalisation to look into the aspect of putting reasonable restrictions in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India.

Raghanesda Solar Power Station in Gujarat

SJVN Limited has commissioned its 100 MW Raghanesda Solar Power Station located in district Banaskatha, Gujarat, reinforcing its commitment to sustainable energy solutions.
The project will generate 252 million units of energy in the first year while the cumulative energy generation over a period of 25 years is estimated to be 5,805 million units.
SJVN Green Energy Limited, the renewable arm of SJVN Limited, had secured the 100 MW Raghanesda Solar Power Station at a tariff of Rs. 2.64 per unit through Tariff Based Competitive Bidding conducted by GUVNL
SJVN had secured the financing for the project from Japan Bank for International Cooperation under Global action for Reconciling Economic growth and Environmental preservation (GREEN) program, reinforcing its dedication to green initiatives and responsible growth.

Know! about SJVN

SJVN Limited, a Mini Ratna- Category-I and Schedule – ’A’ Central Public Sector Enterprise under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power, Government of India, commenced its journey on May 24, 1988, as a joint venture of the Government of India and the Government of Himachal Pradesh.
A listed entity, SJVN has 55% of its shares held by the Government of India, 26.85% by the Government of Himachal Pradesh, and the remaining 18.15% by the public.
SJVN has diversified into almost all forms of energy i.e. Hydro, Thermal, Wind, Solar, Power trading and Transmission.

Lineman Diwas

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA), Ministry of Power is organizing the celebration of the fourth edition of ‘Lineman Diwas’, in New Delhi on March 4, 2024.
The day is being celebrated in order to recognize the tireless dedication and service of the linemen and ground maintenance staff who form the backbone of electricity distribution across the length and breadth of the nation.
The theme for the fourth edition of the celebration, which is being held in collaboration with Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd (Tata Power-DDL), is ‘Seva, Suraksha, Swabhiman’, which acknowledges the selfless service of linemen across the country.
The CEA aims to establish celebration of a dedicated day as ‘Lineman Diwas’ as a nationwide tradition across the country for all state and private transmission and distribution companies.
Lineman Diwas is being celebrated since 2021, with subsequent chapters having been held in 2022 and 2023. The fourth edition promises to continue the tradition of honouring linemen for their invaluable contributions to power distribution.

Fifth-cycle leopard population estimation

The fifth cycle leopard population estimation was carried out by the National Tiger Conservation Authority and Wildlife Institute of India, in collaboration with State

Key Findings:

India’s leopard population is estimated at 13,874 (Range: 12,616 – 15,132) individuals, representing stable population in comparison to the similar area being sampled in 2018 with 12852 (12,172-13,535) individuals.
This estimate represent population of 70% of leopard habitat, the Himalayas and semi arid parts of country which are not tiger habitat were not sampled.
Central India shows a stable or slightly growing population of leopards
Shivalik hills and Gangetic plains experienced decline
If we look at the area which was sampled both in 2018 and 2022 across India, there is a 1.08% per annum growth.
In Shivalik hills and Gangetic plains, there is a -3.4% decline per annum, while the largest growth rate was in Central India and Eastern Ghats of 1.5%.
Madhya Pradesh houses the largest population of leopards in the country followed by Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu
Tiger Reserves or sites with highest leopard population are, Nagarajunasagar Srisailam (Andhra Pradesh), followed by Panna (Madhya Pradesh), and Satpura (Madhya Pradesh).
The fifth cycle of leopard population estimation (2022) in India focused on forested habitats within 18 tiger states, covering four major tiger conservation landscapes. Non-forested habitats, arid, and high Himalayas above 2000 msl (~ 30% area) were not sampled for leopard.

India has conducted the first human clinical trial of gene therapy for haemophilia A (FVIII deficiency)

India has conducted the first human clinical trial of gene therapy for haemophilia A (FVIII deficiency) at Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore.
The programme is supported by the Department of Biotechnology, the Centre for Stem Cell Research – a unit of InStem Bengaluru, in collaboration with Emory University, USA at Christian Medical College, Vellore.
The trials involved deploying a novel technology of using a lentiviral vector to express a FVIII transgene in the patient’s own haematopoietic stem cell which will then express FVIII from specific differentiated blood cells.

Know! about India’s Startup Mission

“India is ranked as the world’s 3^rd largest Startup Ecosystem with more than 100 unicorns and Incubators under DST are providing job opportunities to nearly 1.5 lakh youth.
The Aroma Mission and Purple Revolution are examples of Agricultural transformation through science, innovation and technology which also gave a new avenue for Agri-startups,”
India is globally among the top five countries in scientific research publications, 40^th in Global Innovation Index (GII) showcasing remarkable climb from 81^st rank in 2015
India’s patent filing has crossed 90,000 which is highest in two decades

Knowledge and Awareness Mapping Platform

CSIR-NML and KAMP Empower 150+ Teachers Nationwide with Cutting-Edge Experiential Learning Techniques in Science Education
On the 27th of February, a specialized online teacher training program took place, accommodating over 150 teachers from diverse schools, all across the nation.
The program focused on the theme ‘Fostering Experiential Learning in Science Education, Beyond the Textbook’.
This event marked KAMP’s fifth Continuous Professional Development program tailored for teachers in collaboration with the CSIR-NML.
Through this program, the teachers received the opportunity to interact and learn from prestigious scientists

Know! about CSIR-NML

CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory (CSIR-NML) is a leading Indian research organization specializing in Minerals, Metals, and Materials, with a focus on science, technology, industrial services, and human resource development.
Since its establishment, CSIR-NML has diversified its research areas, including extractive metallurgy, alloy development, refractory materials, corrosion studies, mathematical modeling of metallurgical processes, mineral research, advanced materials, integrity evaluation of industrial components, surface engineering, and sustainable metals production.

Know! about KAMP

Knowledge and Awareness Mapping Platform is an Initiative and Knowledge Alliance of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) – National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (NIScPR) and industrial partner M/S Nysa Communications Pvt. Ltd. (NCPL), it intends to develop creativity, meaningful learning, critical reading, and thinking skills that bring out the inherent abilities of the students.

Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality.

Union Minister of Women & Child Development and Minority Affairs, Government of India launched the logo and the website for the Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality.
Mr. Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Mr. Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII, and other dignitaries were present at the occasion.

Know! about the alliance

The launch of the ‘Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality’ at Davos is a purposeful initiative by India
The Alliance for Global Good: Gender Equity and Equality marks a significant milestone in the global pursuit of gender equality.
It is a testament to India’s unwavering commitment to the cause of women-led development
The Alliance aims to bring together global good practices, knowledge sharing and investments in the field of women’s health, education, and enterprise and aligns with several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-Being;4- Quality Education; 5 – Gender Equality and Empowerment;17 – Global Partnership for Development and more.
The Alliance is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and anchored by the CII Centre for Women Leadership with the World Economic Forum as a ‘Network Partner’ and Invest India as an ‘Institutional Partner’.
Born out of the G20 Leaders’ Declaration and India’s abiding commitment to the cause of women-led development, the Alliance is poised to make a transformative impact on gender-related issues.

Language Atlas of India

The Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA), an autonomous body under the Union Culture Ministry, has proposed to conduct a linguistic survey

Know! about the proposed Language Atlas

India recognizes 22 languages officially, which are part of Schedule 8 of the Indian Constitution.
According to Census data, 97 % of the Indian population speaks one of these languages.
There are an additional 99 non-scheduled languages included in the Census, and according to the 2011 Census, around 8 million people identify one of these non-Scheduled languages as their mother tongue.
The native language of 2 million people remains unaccounted for due to the decision to not include languages with less than 10,000 speakers in the Census since 1971.
Many of these languages not recorded in the official Census records are spoken by tribal communities.
The first and most exhaustive Linguistic Survey of India (LSI) was carried out by Sir George Abraham Grierson and published in 1928.

Know! about Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA)

It was constituted and registered at New Delhi on 24th March 1987.
IGNCA was established as an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Culture, as a centre for research, academic pursuit, and dissemination in the field of the arts.
The Arts encompass a wide range of subjects – from archaeology and anthropology to the visual and performing arts, enveloping them in a complementary and non-demarcated vision.

Mission Utkarsh

A national event on collaboration between the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Ministry of Ayush for nutritional improvement in adolescent girls took place at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed on the occasion for implementation of a project to control anemia among adolescent girls through Ayurvedic interventions in the five districts under‘Mission Utkarsh’ between the Ministry of Ayush and the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Union Minister for Ayush emphasized the need for a “Anemia Mukt Bharat”.
Under this Mission Utkarsh program, over 94,000 adolescent girls between the age group of 14-18 years registered under Poshan Tracker at approximately 10,000 Anganwadi Centres will be benefited in the 12 months period of the program.

Know! about the Mission Utkarsh

It is a joint public health initiative by the Ministries of Ayush and Women and Child Development.
It is initially be launched as a pilot project in five aspirational districts across five states – Assam (Dhubri), Chhattisgarh (Bastar), Jharkhand (Paschimi Singhbhum), Maharashtra (Gadchiroli), and Rajasthan (Dhaulpur)
It aims to control anaemia among adolescent girls using Ayurvedic interventions.
Ayurvedic medicines like Drakshavaleha and Punarnavadi mandoor will be given to improve the health of these anaemic adolescent girls for three months.
These Ayurvedic interventions, backed by evidence from institutions like the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), will offer a cost-effective solution to tackle anaemia.

UAE’s Exit From FATF’s Grey List

Recently, the United Arab Emirates (UAE)’ exit from the grey list, nearly two years after its inclusion by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Earlier, the UAE was placed under closer scrutiny in 2022, when the FATF highlighted the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing involving banks, precious metals and stones, as well as property.
The European Union lists the UAE as a high-risk country for money laundering and terrorist financing, alongside more than two dozen other states such as South Africa, North Korea and Afghanistan.
The bloc’s financial markets watchdog European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) in 2023 barred European banks and others from clearing trades with the Dubai Commodities Clearing Corporation.
Measures taken by the UAE to get off the grey list include increasing financial investigations and prosecutions, boosting international cooperation, and aligning virtual asset regulation with international standards.

Know! about Financial Action Task Force (FATF)

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) was established in 1989 and is based in Paris.
It is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog. The inter-governmental body sets international standards that aim to prevent these illegal activities and the harm they cause to society.
As a policy-making body, the FATF works to generate the necessary political will to bring about national legislative and regulatory reforms in these areas.
The 39-member body sets international standards to ensure national authorities can effectively go after illicit funds linked to drugs trafficking, the illicit arms trade, cyber fraud and other serious crimes.
When the FATF places a jurisdiction under increased monitoring, it means the country has committed to swiftly resolve the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to increased monitoring.
This list is often externally referred to as the “grey list”.

Impacts on India

Boost in Bilateral Trade: The removal of the UAE from the FATF’s grey list could boost confidence in the country and attract more money from overseas.
Increased Investments: With the UAE’s international standing bolstered, it could attract more foreign investments, including from India.
Enhanced Financial Security: The delisting of the UAE from the FATF’s grey list indicates its commitment to combating money laundering and terrorist financing.
Strengthened International Relations: The delisting could also strengthen the international relations between India and the UAE, fostering increased cooperation in various sectors

First private ammunition manufacturing open

In a first in the private sector, two facilities for the manufacture of ammunition and missiles were opened by Adani Defence and Aerospace in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh recently.
The Kanpur complex is set to become one of the largest integrated ammunition manufacturing complexes in South Asia.
The facilities will produce high-quality small, medium, and large-caliber ammunition for the armed forces, paramilitary forces, and the police.
It will make India self-reliant on missiles and ammunition
Recent geopolitical events have also re-emphasized the need for a reliable supply of ammunition from internal sources in preparedness for a long-drawn conflict.

Attukal Pongala

Recently, an annual event offering Pongala at Attukal was witnessed in Kerala.
It is a renowned religious event held annually at the Attukal Bhagavathy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala and falls on the ninth day of the annual ten-day festival.
It is dubbed as the ‘Women’s Sabarimala’, symbolising the strength and power of women.
It involves women preparing a sweet pudding of rice, jaggery, grated coconut, ghee, and banana in earthen pots.
This offering, known as ‘Pongala’, is prepared on makeshift brick stoves and is offered to the presiding deity, the Attukal Bhagavathy.
It is dedicated to Kannaki, the heroine of the Chilappatikaram.
The ritual can only be performed by women, and the streets of the city are known to be jam-packed with faithful devotees during the time of the festival.

Assam Repeals Muslim Marriage Act

Assam’s government has decided to repeal the Assam Muslim Marriage and Divorce Registration Act, 1935.
The Act is in line with the Muslim personal law. It lays down the process for registration of Muslim marriages and divorces.
The Act authorizes the state to grant licenses to “any person, being a Muslim” to register marriages and divorces, with Muslim registrars deemed to be public servants.
A 2010 amendment replaced the word ‘voluntary’ in the original Act with ‘compulsory’, making registration of Muslim marriages and divorces compulsory in the state of Assam.
The move is the first step towards implementing Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state.
This decision is another significant step towards prohibiting child marriages in Assam.
The Act contains provisions allowing marriage registration even if the bride and groom have not reached the legal marriageable age of 18 and 21, respectively.

Sweden to join NATO

Hungary’s parliament approved Sweden’s Nato bid, marking a significant step towards the expansion of the military alliance in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Hungary’s decision comes two years after both Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO in May 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Sweden’s entry makes it easier for NATO to exert control and reinforce its vulnerable Baltic states, Russia can still menace the region from the heavily-armed exclave Kaliningrad and threaten undersea infrastructure.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a military alliance established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) of April 4, 1949, sought to create a counterweight to Soviet armies stationed in central and eastern Europe after World War II.
It was the US’s first peacetime military alliance outside the Western Hemisphere.

Temples from the Badami Chalukya period discovered

Archaeologists have unearthed two ancient temples dating back to the Badami Chalukyan period, along with a rare inscription, in Mudimanikyam village of Nalgonda district, Telangana
The temples are estimated to be at least 1,300 years old (8th or 9th century AD).
It is located on the way to the Krishna river
They showcase unique architectural styles, blending Badami Chalukyan and Kadamba Nagara influences.
In one temple, a panavattam (base of a Shiva lingam) in the sanctum sanctorum has been found. In another, a Vishnu idol was recovered.
The discovery also includes an nscription, labelled as ‘Gandaloranru’, dating back to the 8th or 9th Century AD, offering clues about the historical context of the region.
From the 5th century CE onwards (535-757CE), the Chalukyas of Badami were the leading force in Deccan.
The temple architecture of Chalukya Period is actually the mixture of Nagar and Dravida styles. However, this style has been termed as Besar style.
This style originated and flourished at Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal of Karnataka state between 5th to7th century CE.

India calls for restoration of Appellate Body and Dispute Settlement Reforms at ongoing WTO Ministerial Conference-13 in Abu Dhabi

At the Working Session on Dispute Settlement (DS) Reforms, at the World Trade Organization’s 13th Ministerial Conference on 28 February 2024, India emphatically called for the restoration of the Appellate Body as the top-most priority of any reform process, along for effective formalisation of the ongoing informal dispute settlement reform discussions among some Members at the WTO.
The Appellate Body – the appellate arm of the DS system – had been non-functional since December 2019, due to the blocking of appointment of its Members by the United States. This had called into question the WTO’s overall credibility and the rules-based trade-order it upholds.
India recalled the commitment of WTO Members of 12th Ministerial Conference to conduct discussions with the view to having a fully and well-functioning dispute settlement system accessible to all Members by 2024.
As a way forward, India sought the immediate and effective formalization and multilaterization of the informal DS reform process by rectifying the procedural and substantive defects.

To this end, India proposed a three-point action plan for Members:

First, to transition the discussions on dispute settlement reforms to WTO formal bodies, preferably under the guidance of the Dispute Settlement Body Chair to meet the mandates of paragraphs 3 and 4 of the MC12 Ministerial Declaration.
Second, to ensure that the transition is not just a mere formality but results in an effective multilateralization of the process which is Member-driven, open, transparent and inclusive, taking into account the myriad capacity and technical challenges of developing country Members and LDCs.
Third, to prioritise the restoration of the Appellate Body.

Suryadipta Projects

The launch of ‘Ammunition Cum Torpedo Cum Missile Barge, LSAM 18’, 4^th Barge of 11 x ACTCM Barge Project, built by MSME Shipyard, M/s Suryadipta Projects Pvt Ltd, Thane for Indian Navy, was undertaken on 28 Feb 24.
The contract for building 11 X ACTCM Barge was signed between MoD and M/s Suryadipta Projects Pvt Ltd, Thane on 05 Mar 21.
The availability of these Barges would provide impetus to operational commitments of IN by facilitating Transportation, Embarkation and Disembarkation of articles/ ammunition to IN Ships both alongside jetties and at outer harbours.
These Barges are indigenously designed and built under relevant Naval Rules and Regulation of Indian Register of Shipping.
The model testing of the Barge during design stage was undertaken at Naval Science and Technological Laboratory, Visakhapatnam.
These Barges are proud flag bearers of Make in India initiative of Government of India (GoI).

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TEAM CL/GKP

Current Affairs 26-29 Feb 2024