Current Affairs | National | International | SSC | UPSC 5th August 2024

 

1. India retains eighth position in global agriculture exports in 2023: WTO 

• Despite a drop in its agriculture exports in 2023 to $51 billion from $55 billion in 2022, India maintained its position as world’s eighth largest exporter of agriculture products in the year as seven of the top ten exporting nations witnessed a decline, per figures collated by the WTO. 
•  Among the leading exporters of agricultural products, Brazil, the European Union and Thailand increased their exports by 6 per cent, 5 per cent and 0.2 per cent respectively in 2023. 
• The other seven economies in the top 10 saw a decrease in their exports of agricultural products. 
• The EU maintained its top position in 2023 by exporting agriculture produce valued at $836 billion compared to $799 billion in 2022. The US, too, continued at the second spot despite a drop in agriculture exports in 2023 to $198 billion as opposed to $222 billion in the previous year. 
• Brazil’s agriculture exports increased to $157 billion in 2023 from $148 billion in 2022 while it retained the third spot. 
•  China was the fourth largest agriculture exporter in 2023 with shipments valued at $95 billion which was marginally below exports worth $96 billion in 2022. 
•  Other countries among top ten agriculture exporters include Canada, Mexico, Indonesia and AAustralia. 

2.Tata Group unveils ₹27,000 crore semiconductor facility in Assam

•  At the Tata Group’s ₹27,000-crore greenfield semiconductor assembly and test facility in Assam, which is expected to be operationalised by next year, around 15 billion chips will be packaged annually for customers globally. 
• The chips, which will be packaged at the Jagiroad facility in Assam, will power electric vehicles, healthcare devices, mobile phones, laptops, and other key products of leading global companies around the world. 
• This assembly and test facility will be able to directly ship semiconductor chips to end-users and OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) in India and the world. 
• The facility is expected to generate over 27,000 direct and indirect jobs in the region. 
• The project is envisioned under the Government of India’s Semiconductor policy, which is driven by the India Semiconductor Mission and the Government of Assam’s Electronics policy. 

About Assam 

• Formation – 26 January 1950
• Capital – Dispur 
• Chief Minister –Himanta Biswa Sarma 
• Governor – Gulab Chand Kataria 
• State Fruit – Kaji Nemu 
• Rajya Sabha Seat – 7 
• Lok Sabha Seat – 14 

3. Jakarta hosts 5th AITIGA joint committee meeting progresses ASEAN-India trade relations 

• The 5th meeting of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) joint committee was held at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia. 
• AITIGA Joint Committee had initiated discussions for review of AITIGA in May 2023 and after finalising its Terms of Reference and Negotiating Structure, AITIGA JC and its Sub-Committees started negotiations in February 2024. 
• The first 2 rounds of negotiations were held in February 2024 in New Delhi and in May 2024 in Putrajaya, Malaysia. 
• During the third round of negotiations in Jakarta, Indonesia, all eight Sub-Committees focused on ‘National Treatment and Market Access’, ‘Rules of Origin’, ‘Standards, Technical Regulations and Conformity Assessment Procedures’, ‘Sanitary and Phytosanitary’, ‘Legal and Institutional Issues’, ‘Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation’, ‘Trade Remedies’, and ‘Economic and Technical Cooperation’ convened alongside the 5th AITIGA JC and engaged in substantive discussions, making significant progress.

 4.On August 17, India is expected to host the third edition of the Voices of the Global South summit. 

• The summit will focus on addressing key challenges, including climate change, the impact of conflicts, and development issues.This summit will be held in virtual mode. 
• The summit will be chaired by PM Narendra Modi and ministerial level meetings will also be held. 
• By hosting this Summit, India wishes to provide a platform for the countries of the Global South to share their perspectives, challenges and priorities on a common platform. 
• The first edition of the 'Global South Summit' was held in January 2023, in the year of India's G20 presidency. 
• The second edition of the summit took place in November 2023, following the New Delhi G20 Leaders' Summit in September. 

5.The Ministry of Ayush and WHO signed a donor agreement. 

• The Ministry of Ayush and the World Health Organization signed a donor agreement during a signing ceremony in Geneva on July 31, 2024. 
• This agreement will create the terms for implementing the activities of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC) in Jamnagar. 
• Under this collaboration, India will donate US$ 85 million over 10 years (2022-2032) to support the operations of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC) in Jamnagar, Gujarat. 
• The donor agreement recognizes the establishment of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Center. 
• WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre is a knowledge hub for evidence-based Traditional Complementary and Integrative Medicine (TCIM). 

6. On 5 August, CDS General Anil Chauhan chaired the apex level tri-services financial conference in New Delhi.

 

• The aim of this conference was to enhance coherence and synergy in the financial matters of the Armed Forces. 
• The conference attended by the Ministry of Defence, Controller General of Defence Accounts and other senior officials. 
• The conference was coordinated by Headquarters of the Integrated Defence Staff. 
• This is in line with the objectives set for the ongoing drive for integration and jointness in the Armed Forces. 
• During the conference, aspects like understanding the viewpoint of various stakeholders in defence finance and finding solutions to the challenges faced in defence procurement were discussed. 

7. On 3 August, the Cabinet of Rajasthan approved the formation of four joint venture companies in the energy industry. 

• Formation of four joint venture companies with an investment of Rs 1.34 lakh crore has been approved. 
• They will work on projects related to renewable and thermal power generation and transmission.
• The development of metro rail projects in the state was also approved by the state Cabinet, which was presided over by Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma. 
•  Besides setting up of joint ventures for renewable and thermal power projects and power transmission projects, the Cabinet also approved the formation of an Infrastructure Investment Trust. 
• As per the Metro Rail Policy 2017, the proposal for formation of a joint venture company between the Central Government and the State was approved. 
• This joint venture will be for development, operation and implementation of current and future metro rail projects in Rajasthan.
• In these joint ventures, the share of state government companies will be 26% and the share of central government undertakings will be 74%. 

8. Haryana government will procure all crops in the state at minimum support price (MSP). 

• Chief Minister of Haryana Nayab Singh Saini said that the state government is presently procuring 14 crops at MSP. 
•  Additionally, the state government has decided to waive 133 crore rupees of unpaid "abiana" (canal water irrigation charges). 
• Additionally, the government has decided to end the "abiana" system.An annual benefit of 54 crore rupees to farmers will result from this. 
• The chief minister declared that farmers in Rohtak, Nuh, Fatehabad, and Sirsa who experienced crop damage due to natural calamity would receive pending compensation of 137 crore rupees within a week's time. 
• According to him, farmers will now be able to purchase a three-star motor for new tubewell connections from anywhere in the nation. 
• Only ten three-star motor firms are currently registered in the state. 
• According to the Chief Minister, 40,000 positions in the government sector would be filled. 

9. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the transportation of human organs by different modes have been released by the Centre.

• The government has released SOPs for transportation modes like air, road, railways and waterways.These are the first-ever guidelines issued by centre on transporting organs. 
• As per the SOP for air transportation, airlines that transport human organs are permitted to ask Air Traffic Control for priority takeoff and landing as well as arrange front-row seats. 
• Additionally, they can ask for a priority reservation and a provision allowing medical staff transporting organs to check in later. 
• As per the SOP, the source airport will inform and communicate with the destination airport to facilitate the arrival process.
•   According to the guidelines, the flight captain may inform during the flight that human organs are being transported. 
• According to the SOP, airport and airline personnel can arrange for trolleys to be used to transport the organ box from the aircraft to the ambulance upon arrival. 
• Airport officials should designate a green corridor that is free from obstruction. 
• As per the SOP, the "One Trigger System"—that is, a request from the organ allocation authority to start the organ transport procedure by establishing green corridors—might be considered. 
• In each state/city, a nodal officer from the police department can be appointed. 
• This officer will handle issues related to the creation of "green corridor" for organ transport in the state/city. 
• During transport, the organ box must be kept in the proper position and orientation (upright, straight, vertical, and 90 degrees to the surface). 
• Similarly, government has issued SOPs to facilitate transport of organs by road, trains and through ports via shipping. 

10. Kelly Ortberg appoints as new CEO of Boeing 

• Longtime aerospace executive Robert “Kelly” Ortberg has been selected as the CEO of Boeing. 
• She will replace Dave Calhoun. 
• Ortberg, 64, started his career at Texas Instruments before joining Rockwell Collins, an aviation tech company, in 1987. 
• He joined Rockwell as a program manager and worked his way up to become its CEO in 2013. Rockwell was named one of the best large employers in the country by Forbes under Ortberg’s leadership. 
• He oversaw the acquisition of Rockwell by United Technologies Corporation in 2018 and retired in 2021. 

Recent Appointment in Foreign 

• Head of the EU assembly – Roberta Metsola;2nd time (Malta)
• UK’s First woman Finance Minister – Rachel Reeves 
• President of FATF – Elisa de Anda Madrazo (replace T. Raja Kumar) 
• First woman brigadier in Pakistan Army from minority community – Helen Mary 
• Defence minister of Russia – Andrei Belousov (replace Sergei Shoigu) 
• UN Resident Coordinator in Indonesia – Gita Sabharwal (India) 
• MD of International Monetary Fund – Kristalina Georgieva (2nd time) 

11. State-of-the-art web portal “Nivahika” launched by National Institute of Technology-Calicut (NIT-C). 

• This is expected to revolutionise the way institutions manage and report on data. 
• On August 2, NIT-C director Prasad Krishna inaugurated the portal, said, with Nivahika, we now have a reliable tool that ensures accuracy and consistency, aiding in everything from centre presentations to national rankings. 
• The development of Nivahika was overseen by the office of the Dean (Planning & Development), with significant support from the Centre for Information Technology, Research and Automation, Computer Networking Centre and Central Computer Centre. 
• The portal is designed for systematic and timely recording of key activities of various departments and multidisciplinary centres, to ensure that critical data is available at any time. 
• Nivahika will streamline the availability of institutional data and also provide secure access to authorized personnel. 

12. Union Home Minister launched the e-Sakshya, Nyaya Setu, Nyaya Shruti and e-Summon App in Chandigarh. 

• Union Home Minister launched the e-Sakshya, Nyaya Setu, Nyaya Shruti and e-Summon apps for the three new criminal laws in Chandigarh. 
• He said Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) have an ethos of justice. 
• Under e-Sakshya, all videography, photography and testimonies will be saved on the e-evidence server. 
• Under the e-summon, all evidence will be sent electronically from the court to the police station and also to the person to whom the summons is to be sent. 
• Police, medical, forensic, prosecution, and prisons will be interlinked on the Nyaay Setu Dashboard. 
• The court will be able to hear witnesses through video conferencing through the Nyaay Shruti. 
• Chandigarh is likely to be the first place to have 100% implementation of the new criminal laws.

 13. Manu Bhaker named flag bearer at Paris Olympics Closing Ceremony 

• India’s two-time Olympic bronze medallist Manu Bhaker is set to be India’s flagbearer in the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics. 
• India’s men’s flagbearer for the ceremony is yet to be confirmed. 
• The closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics will take place on August 11. 
• Bhaker brought her A-game in Paris and broke numerous accolades to claim two bronze medals in the Summer Games. 
• Bhaker is the first athlete from the Indian contingent after independence to get two medals in a single edition of the Paris Olympics. 
• Earlier in the 1900 Olympics, Norman Pritchard won two medals while representing India, both silver in the 200m and 200m hurdles. 
• Bhaker also joined an elite group of athletes to have multiple individual medals at the Olympics: PV Sindhu (badminton silver at Rio 2016 and bronze medal at Tokyo 2020) and Sushil Kumar (wrestling bronze at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics). 

14. Novak Djokovic won his first Olympic gold medal in Olympics. 

•  Novak Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) in men's tennis singles final.He already has a record of 24 Grand Slam titles. 
•  Novak Djokovic also became the oldest person to win a medal at the Olympics. 
•  Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Steffi Graf and Serena Williams are the only players to win all four Grand Slam tournaments and Olympic singles gold. 
• Lorenzo Musetti defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime to win the bronze medal. He became the first person to win medal in tennis in last 100 years. 

15. Daljit Singh takes additional charge of Director General BSF. 

•  Daljit Singh Chawdhary has assumed the additional charge of Director General of Border Security Force. He is a 1990 batch officer of the Indian Police Service, Uttar Pradesh cadre. During his carrer, he has served in different capacities in Uttar Pradesh and also has served ADG in Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and as SDG in Central Reserve Police Force. He is the winner of the four Gallantry medal the police medal for meritorious Service, and the President's police medal for distinguished service. He is the winner of 4 police medals for Gallantry, the police medal for meritorious Service, the President's police medal for distinguished service. 

Border Security Force (BSF): 

•  It was founded on 1 December 1965.It is responsible for guarding the India's borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.‘Jeevan Paryant Kartavya’ is the motto of the Border Security Force.Its headquarters is located in New Delhi.It works under the Ministry of Home Affairs. 

16.Veteran Gandhian Shobhana Ranade passes away

 

• Veteran Gandhian and social worker Shobhana Ranade passed away at the age of 100. 
• She was honoured with the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award, for her social work in 2001. 
• Ranade’s work for destitute women and children is remarkable. She helped set up the Gandhi National Memorial Society at Aga Khan Palace, Pune, and a training institute for women. 
• She established a children’s village called ‘Baal Gram’ and gave a home to hundreds of orphan children. She was an active member of the Save Ganga Movement, a movement established to prevent pollution of the Ganga River through the Gandhi National Memorial Society. 

17.Former England batter Graham Thorpe passes away 

• Former England batter and coach Graham Thorpe passed away. 
• Shortly before that, he had accepted the job as head coach of Afghanistan. 
• Thorpe played 100 Tests for England, scoring 16 centuries, before retiring in 2005. 
• He started his coaching career in Australia before joining the England and Wales Cricket Board as a batting coach.
• He was an assistant coach for the men’s team under Trevor Bayliss and Chris Silverwood. 

18.Human rights body calls for immediate announcement of Assembly election in J&K

 

• The Forum for Human Rights in Jammu and Kashmir, led by a group of concerned citizens, has called for an immediate announcement of the dates of Assembly election in the Union Territory, much before the Supreme Court's September 30 deadline, arguing that "security should not be a consideration given that elections have been held in far worse security situations". 
•  While passing the order on revocation of Article 370, the Supreme Court had directed that the Election Commission should conduct election to the Legislative Assembly of J&K by September 30 
•  holding the election, possibly on grounds of rising militant attacks, will be counter- productive, the forum adds 
•  The forum was formed after August 5, 2019, when the special status of J&K under Article 370 of the Constitution was revoked by Parliament. 
•  Former Union Home Secretary G.K. Pillai and Radha Kumar, former member, Group of Interlocutors for J&K, chair the forum. 
•  Its members include Justice Ruma Pal (retd), former Supreme Court judge; Justice A.P. Shah (retd), former Chief Justice of the Madras and Delhi High Courts; Justice Bilal Nazki (retd), former Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court; Nirupama Rao, former Foreign Secretary; Major General Ashok Mehta (retd); Air Vice-Marshal Kapil Kak (retd); and Lieutenant-General H.S. Panag (retd). 
•  "Delay in the announcement of election dates has given rise to speculation that the election might be postponed beyond the Supreme Court's deadline of September 30, 2024, possibly on grounds of rising militant attacks. Analysts point out that delay would be counterproductive. It will increase alienation and might play into the hands of spoilers," the forum said in its report "Jammu and Kashmir: a human rights agenda for an elected administration". 
• J&K has been under Central rule since June 2018 when the PDP-BJP alliance collapsed. The Assembly election was last held in 2014. 
• The forum says the delay in the announcement of election dates has given rise to speculation that they might be postponed beyond the SC deadline decades of peace, the bordering areas of Poonch and Rajouri districts in the Jammu division re-emerged as a locus for militancy with cross-border infiltration from Pakistan-held territories of the former State. 
• "Armed attacks on civilians and security forces have now spread through Poonch-Rajouri to Doda and Kathua and further, to bordering districts of south Kashmir such as Pulwama. The forest belts connecting these districts have been traditional routes of infiltration since the 1948 invasion by Pakistani tribals supported by the Pakistan army," the report stated. The forum expressed dismay over the pre-election grant of overweening powers to the Lieutenant-Governor. 
•  "There are worrying indications of pre-emptive actions to limit an elected administration's capacity to/govern even before legislative assembly elections are held. The new administrative rules issued on July 12, 2024, allocate key powers over the police, bureaucracy, attorney general and prosecutorial services to the L-G, setting up a potential stand-off between the elected administration on one side, and a nominated authority, civil and police services on the other, as happened in Delhi," the report said. It added that the new rules also cast doubt on whether Statehood will be restored, when and in which form. 
• "The new rules suggest the Union administration is contemplating a Delhitype hybrid instead," the forum said. 

19. Chennai Double-Decker Corridor 

•  The double-decker Metro construction for Corridor 4 in Chennai is progressing swiftly. 
• It marks India`s first double-decker Metro with both lines supported on the same pier.
•   The 5 km stretch will feature four stations-Alwarthirunagar, Valasaravakkam, Karambakkam, and Alapakkam. 

20. Tentative List for World Heritage site 2024 

• There are nearly 60 properties in India which find a place in the Tentative List for further inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. 
• A Tentative List is an inventory of those properties that each State Party intends to consider for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 
•  Recently the mound-burial system of the Ahom dynasty in Assam - 'Moidams' was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. 
• The site was put in the Tentative List of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2014.
• As of now, 42 properties have been inscribed on the World Heritage List."

 21. Project Tiger and tribals displacement 

• The Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG), released the report highlighting the impact of Project Tiger on tribal and forest-dwelling communities. 
•  The report was titled “India’s Tiger Reserves: Tribals Get Out, Tourists Welcome.” 
• It stated that out of these 5.5 lakh people identified for relocation by the Tiger Projects. 
• About 20,857 families, comprising 92,605 people, were relocated by December 31, 2021, as per the central govt. 
• Therefore, about 457,394 persons or 1,03,016 families are yet to be relocated.
• In monetary terms, it would cost Rs 15,2766 million or US$1,853 million in addition to the requirement of massive land for resettlement. 
• While 2,54,794 persons were identified for relocation from 50 tiger reserves from 1973 to 2021. 
•  At least 290,000 persons are slated to be displaced from six tiger reserves being created from 2021 period. 
• It means a whopping 967% increase of displacement per tiger reserve in the post2021 period. 
• The report states that among the 2.9 lakh persons are expected to be displaced in the post-2021 period, 4,000 from the Srivilliputhur-Megamalai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu, about 4,400 from Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan. 

22. H5N1 Vaccines Using mRNA 

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced, a new project to develop vaccines for human bird flu infections, using cutting-edge messenger RNA technology.    
• Argentinian Sinergium Biotech would lead the effort and had already begun developing candidate H5N1 vaccines.  
•   The bird flu H5N1 was first emerged in 1996, but since 2020 an exponential growth in outbreaks in birds has occurred in parallel to mammals, and a few humans.
• This has prompted fears the virus could spark a future pandemic. 

23. RBI’s 5th Cohort Regulatory Sandbox

•   RBI said five entities were selected for the test phase of the regulatory sandbox’s theme-neutral fifth cohort that it had announced in October last year. 
•  The banking regulator received 22 applications for this cohort of the regulatory sandbox. 
• A regulatory sandbox refers to live testing of new products or services in a controlled regulatory environment for which regulators may or may not permit certain relaxations for the limited purpose of testing.

 24. Tiger deaths in India 2024

•  The number of tiger deaths in India has significantly decreased, with 81 reported fatalities from January 1 to July 29, 2024.
•  114 fatalities recorded during the same period last year.
• This represents a 29 per cent decline in tiger deaths. 
•  The year 2023 was the worst for the tiger population, recording the highest number of mortalities in a decade with 178 tigers dying. 
• A total of 628 tigers died in India during the past five years due to natural causes and other reasons, including poaching. 
• Meanwhile, 349 people were killed in tiger attacks during this period, with Maharashtra alone recording 200 deaths. 
•  96 tigers died in 2019, 106 in 2020, 127 in 2021, 121 in 2022, and 178 in 2023.