Current Affairs | National | International | SSC | UPSC - 27th November 2023

 

National News 

1.Meghalaya’s launches ‘Water Smart Kid Campaign’ to foster water conservation awareness among young minds 

• With the aim to sensitizing the young minds on the importance of water conservation, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma on Wednesday launched the ‘Meghalaya Water Smart Kid Campaign’. 
• The campaign is an initiative under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) to create awareness about water conservation amongst the children. 

About Meghalaya 

• Capital: Shillong 
• CM-Conrad Sangma 
• Governor –Phagu Chauhan 

2.Madhya Pradesh gets India’s largest tiger reserve in Damoh, to be operational in next two to three months 

• The Central government has approved a proposal to merge the two wildlife sanctuaries in Madhya Pradesh to create the largest tiger reserve in the country spanning 2,300 square kilometres. 
• The Union government has issued a notification regarding the approval of the proposal to merge the Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary—located in central Madhya Pradesh covering parts of Sagar, Damoh, Narsinghpur, and Raisen districts—with the Rani Durgavati Wildlife Sanctuary in the Damoh district of the state. 

International News 

3.ASEAN-India Millet Festival 2023 Kicks Off In South Jakarta, Indonesia 

• The Indian Mission to ASEAN in collaboration with Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare is organizing the ASEAN-India Millet Festival 2023, in Indonesia from 22nd November to 26th November 2023. The inaugural session of the festival took place in the Kota Kasablanka Mall, a prominent shopping destination in South Jakarta, Indonesia. 
• A Millet-centric exhibition is being held as part of the festival featuring participation from Millet-based FPOs, start-ups and Indian chefs. 
• Aligned with the International Year of Millets (IYM) celebrations, an aim of this festival is to raise awareness and create a market for millets and millets-based products among the ASEAN Member states i.e. Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore. 

4.Geert Wilders New PM of Dutch 

• Geert Wilders, leader of the Freedom Party (PVV), secured a landmark win in the recent Dutch elections, signaling a growing shift towards far-right ideologies in Europe. 
• Wilders, known for his anti-immigration stance and admiration for leaders like Donald Trump and Viktor Orban, is eyeing the position of the Netherlands’ next prime minister. 

Newly Appointed Prime Minister & President 

• Prime Minister of Spain – Pedro Sanchez (re-elected) 
• Prime Minister of Slovakia – Robert Fico (4th time) 
• President of Ecuador – Daniel Noboa 
• President of Gabon – Gen Brice Oligui 
• President of Singapore – Tharman Shanmugaratnam (Indian origin) 
• PM of Luxembourg- Luc Frieden 

Defence News 

5.Indian Navy deploys INS Sumedha in Mozambique to boost interoperability

•  Under the ongoing extended operational deployment to Africa, the Indian naval ship Sumedha reached Maputo, Mozambique on November 21. 
• Aims-“The port call is aimed at strengthening long-standing diplomatic relations, reinforce maritime co-operation and boost interoperability between both the navies. Professional interactions, cross-deck visits, planning conferences and joint EEZ surveillance from November 23-25, 2023 are scheduled during the visit.” 

Banking News 

6.RBI extends payments infrastructure scheme by 2 years till Dec 2025

•  RBI has extended the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) scheme by another two years till December 31, 2025. It will now include beneficiaries of the PM Vishwakarma scheme. 
• “The decision to expand the targeted beneficiaries under the PIDF scheme will provide a fillip to the Reserve Bank’s efforts towards promoting digital transactions at the grassroots level. 
• About – The PIDF Scheme was operationalised in January 2021 for three years to incentivise the deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure such as physical Point of Sale (PoS), Quick Response (QR) codes in tier-3 to tier-6 centres, the north-eastern states and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. 
• Beneficiaries of the PM SVANidhi Scheme in Tier-1 and 2 centres were later included in August 2021. As of August 2023, over 2.66 crore new touch-points have been deployed under the Scheme. 

7.ADB approves $500 M in loan for healthcare, medical education in Maharashtra

• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $500 million loan to enhance the quality and affordability of tertiary health care and medical education in Maharashtra. 
• “ADB has been working with the state government of Maharashtra to achieve its vision of providing affordable and accessible tertiary health care to all by 2030 and strengthen a cadre of quality and professional medical practitioners. 

Recent Loan Approved by ADB 

• India, ADB signed USD 200 million loan deal to enhance urban services in Rajasthan. 
• Inda, ADB signed USD 130 million loan MoU to boost horticulture in Himachal Pradesh 
• India, ADB signed USD 295 million loan pact to upgrade the state highways in Bihar 
• India, ADB signed USD 200 million loan deal to enhance urban services in Rajasthan 
• ADB unleashes USD 170 million wave to transform Kochi’s water landscape 

Important Day News 

8.Uttar Pradesh Govt Declares November 25 As ‘No Non-Veg Day’ 

• The Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has designated November 25 as a “No Non-Veg Day“. 
• The decision is aimed at honouring the birth anniversary of spiritual leader Sadhu TL Vaswani and entails the closure of all slaughterhouses and meat shops across the state

9.November 26: World Sustainable Transport Day 2023 

• The United Nations General Assembly, in a decisive move towards fostering sustainable and environmentally friendly transportation, has designated November 26 as World Sustainable Transport Day.
•  World Sustainable Transport Day 2023 focuses on the theme “Sustainable transport, sustainable development”. 

10.Guru Nanak Jayanti 2023 

• This year, Guru Nanak Jayanti falls on November 27. The festival is observed on the full moon date of Kartik month, also known as Kartik Purnima. 
• Guru Nanak Jayanti, also known as Gurpurab, holds immense significance in the Sikh community as it marks the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the revered founder of the Sikh religion. 

Award News 

11.Irish author Paul Lynch wins 2023 Booker prize for his novel ‘Prophet Song’ 

• Paul Lynch who is an Irish author won the 2023 Booker prize for his fifth novel ‘Prophet Song.’
• Lynch the fifth Irish author to win the prize while the last Irish writer Anna Burns won the award in 2018. Booker Prize is awarded to the best novel of fiction written in English and published in UK and Ireland. 

Miscellaneous News 

12.Saffron of Kishtwar district receives GI tag from Geographical Indications Registry 

• Jammu and Kashmir, the Saffron of the mountainous Kishtwar district, which is cultivated and harvested in the higher reaches, has been given the Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the Geographical Indications Registry. 
• The spice is grown in some parts of the Kishtwar region of Jammu, along with parts of Kashmir 

Sports News 

13.Max Verstappen Won Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 

• Max Verstappen concluded his exceptional season with a comfortable victory at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, securing his 19th win of the campaign and 54th overall. 
• This accomplishment propels him to third place on the all-time list of Formula One champions. 

Recent Grand Prix Winner 

• Brazilian Grand Prix 2023- Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Sao Paulo Grand Prix 2023- Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Italian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Dutch Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Hungarian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands)
• British Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Austrian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Canadian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Spanish Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Monaco Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Miami Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Australian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands)
• Bahrain Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
•  Japanese Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands) 
• Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 
• Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2023 – Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 
• Singapore Grand Prix 2023 – Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz (Spain) 
• Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023- Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands