Current Affairs | National | International | SSC | UPSC 4th October 2024

1. Government launched the Prime Minister’s Internship scheme to provide 1.25 lakh internships in FY 2024-25. 

• The government launched the pilot phase of the Prime Minister’s Internship Scheme to provide 1.25 lakh internship opportunities during the fiscal year 2024-25. 
• The top 500 companies in India are participating in this scheme. This scheme was announced in the Budget 2024-25. 
• Its main aim is to create 1 crore internship opportunities for young people in top companies over the next five years. 
• This initiative will be managed through an online portal developed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) 
• To qualify for the scheme, candidates must meet the following criteria: 
• Age range: 21 to 24 years 
• Should not be engaged in full-time employment 

• Individuals from families with government employees are not eligible ○ Graduates from prestigious institutions like IITs, IIMs, or those with qualifications such as CA or CMA are excluded 
• The internship program will be rolled out in two phases, aiming to train 10 million youth over five years. 

2. Cabinet approved India’s decision to join the International Energy Efficiency Hub. 

• Union Cabinet approved a Letter of Intent to Join the International Energy Efficiency Hub. 
• This strategic move is aligned with India’s commitment to promote sustainable development and reduce greenhouse gas emissions through global cooperation. 
• The International Energy Efficiency Hub (Hub) was established in 2020 as the successor to the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC).
• This hub will bring together governments, international organizations, and private sector entities to collaborate on promoting energy efficiency. 
• The International Energy Efficiency Hub (Hub) comprises 16 members, including the United States, China, the United Kingdom, and Germany. 
• The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) is a statutory agency under the Ministry of Power. 
• It will facilitate India’s engagement in the Hub’s activities and will ensure alignment with national energy efficiency goals. 
• India’s participation in the International Energy Efficiency Hub is a step towards a transition to a low-carbon economy. 

3. India’s Maritime Decarbonization Conference concluded in New Delhi. 

• The Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways and the Asian Development Bank co-hosted the Conference on Maritime Decarbonization in India.
• 200 delegates discussed the future of green shipping and port operations.
• The conference is committed towards the vision of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2070. 
• India’s maritime sector is a key driver of the economy but also a critical factor in the fight against climate change. 
• The delegates discussed covered a range of critical themes, including green port infrastructure, clean harbour craft, and the use of zero-carbon fuels. 

4. Vistara to get AI2 flight number after merger with Air India 

• National carrier Air India said that flights operated by Vistara will start using the flight code ‘AI2’ after the merger of the two airlines next month. Currently, Air India uses the airline code ‘AI’ while Vistara uses ‘UK.’ 
• Despite the integration on November 12, the Vistara experience will “remain the same. The merger involves Vistara, a joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, and Air India. 
• Though the legal entities and Air Operator Certificates will become one on 12 November, the Vistara experience will remain. 
• Vistara aircraft, crew and service will continue to operate as before, but with AI2XXX flight numbers bookable via airindia.com. 
• In parallel, Air India’s narrow-body fleet continue to be upgraded with new aircraft being delivered, legacy aircraft being refitted with entirely new interiors and Vistara’s catering now also extended 

5. Union Cabinet made the decision to merge all Central schemes in the agriculture sector into two new schemes. 

• The new schemes are called Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PM-RKVY) and Krishonnati Yojana (KY). 
• The projected cost of new schemes is ₹ 1,01,321.61 crore. 
• The States will be required to contribute the remaining ₹32,232.63 crore to the schemes, with the Central Government contributing ₹69,088.98 crore. 
• For PM-RKVY, ₹57,074.72 crore has been set aside. The goal is to advance sustainable farming practices. 
• KY has allocated ₹44,246.89 crore for addressing food security and agricultural self-sufficiency. 
• State governments will carry out the implementation of both programs. 
• The two new schemes would combine programs like Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, Rainfed Area Development, Agroforestry, and Soil Health Management. 
• The centre has made the decision to streamline different programs in order to prevent duplication, guarantee convergence, and give States flexibility. 
• Value chain development and private sector involvement are also planned under two schemes. 

6. World Animal Day: 04 October 

• World Animal Day is observed annually on 04 October. 
• This day highlights the importance of animals and spreads awareness for their welfare. 
• World Animal Day has been marked since 1925. It was for the first time celebrated on 24th March 1925 in Germany. 
• Heinrich Zimmermann, a cynologist, started it. A cynologist is one who specializes in training and care of dogs.
• It is now observed on October 4th to coincide with Saint Francis of Assisi's feast day, who is the patron saint of ecology and animals. 
• The theme for World Animal Day 2024 is "The world is their home too". 

7. Supreme Court said that caste bias and segregation in prisons are violations of dignity. 

• On 3 October, the Supreme Court declared that caste-based discrimination of prisoners and the segregation of their work according to caste hierarchy are oppressive to fundamental human dignity and personality. 
• It also condemned the treatment of inmates from the de-notified tribes as “habitual offenders” within prison walls across India. 
• The court directed amendment of the jail manual within three months. 
• It ordered the removal of the ‘caste column’ and any reference to caste in the registers of undertrials and convicts kept in jails. 
• The court stressed that members of denotified tribes should not be arbitrarily arrested. 
• Chief Justice Chandrachud, who authored the judgment, referred to Article 15(1) of the Constitution, which enshrines the fundamental right against discrimination. 
• The court said the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, which prohibits manual scavenging, has a binding effect on prisons as well. 
• The court directed the Central government to make necessary changes in the 2016 manual and the 2023 Act within three months to remove caste-based discrimination. 

8. On 2 October, 'Bapu Tower' was inaugurated by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary.

• The inaugural ceremony was held at Gandhi Maidan, Patna. 
• This iconic five-storey building composed of cylindrical and rectangular structures houses several galleries dedicated to the life of the Father of the Nation. 
• A special segment on Mahatma Gandhi's Bihar visit and Champaran Satyagraha has been beautifully curated with audio-visual material for the viewers. 
• The entire complex of Bapu Tower is spread over seven acres of land, out of which six acres of land is left for parks and other facilities. 
• Built at a cost of Rs 129 crore, Bapu Tower is one of the biggest attractions of the modern cultural landscape of Bihar. 
• This cylindrical building is constructed from more than 40 tons of copper. 

9. Gaushala with Bio-CNG plant has been inaugurated by PM Modi in MP. 

• This Gaushala with Bio-CNG plant can produce three tonnes of natural gas per day using 100 tonnes of cow dung. 
• It has been set up in collaboration with the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). 
• ‘Lal Tipara Gaushala’ with a Bio-CNG plant in Gwalior has been virtually inaugurated by PM Modi. 
• It is India’s first modern and self-reliant gaushala. It was developed at a cost of ₹32 crore from the corporate social responsibility fund of the IOC. 
• PM Modi also launched multiple development projects of ₹685 crore in Madhya Pradesh on the occasion of Swachhta Diwas on October 2, 2024. 
• These projects include a sewerage scheme of ₹299.20 crore for Sagar urban body and water supply scheme of ₹75.34 crore of Chhindwara urban body. 
• These projects also include a water supply scheme of ₹61.17 crore for Seoni-Malwa urban body. 
• Swachhta Diwas is observed on Gandhi Jayanti (October 2) every year. 

10. Claudia Sheinbaum took oath as first female president of Mexico. 

• She replaced Andrés Manuel López Obrador as head of state in Mexico, which is world’s most populous Spanish-speaking nation. 
• She took oath on the floor of Congress for a six-year term lasting until 2030. 
• She is a climate scientist. She was elected as the first female president of Mexico on October 1st, 2024. 
• With almost 60% of the vote in June, Sheinbaum easily won. 
• She is going to be Mexico's 66th president. López Obrador took office six years ago. 
• She formerly served as Head of Government of Mexico City from 2018 until 2023.
• Mexico is a country in southern portion of North America. Mexico City is its capital and largest city. 
• The type of government is federal presidential republic. The currency is Mexican peso. 

11. Nepal, India and Bangladesh signed a tripartite agreement to facilitate cross-border electricity trade. 

• Nepal will export its surplus electricity to Bangladesh via India from June 15 to November 15 every year. 
• In the first phase, Nepal will export 40 MW of hydroelectricity to Bangladesh via Indian Territory. 
• India will make arrangements to supply the electricity from Nepal to Bangladesh. 
• The rate per unit of electricity has been fixed at 6.4 cents. Nepal will earn around $ 9.2 million by supplying electricity. 
• An MoU was signed between NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising, NTPC Vidyut Byapar Nigam CEO Deino Naran, and Bangladesh Power Development Board Chairman Mohamad Rizwan Karim, Nepal's Ministry of Energy officials in Kathmandu. 
• Nepal's Energy Minister Dipak Khadka and his Bangladeshi counterpart Sayeda Rijwana Hasan were also present. 

12. Prashant Kishor announces Jan Suraaj as a political party 

• Political strategist-cum-activist Prashant Kishor launched his political outfit Jan Suraaj Party, two years after he embarked on a campaign in Bihar to mobilise support for a “new political alternative”. 
• As a political party, Jan Suraaj would contest all 243 seats in the Assembly elections in Bihar, next year in October-November. 
• His party would contest in the bypolls in four seats of Bihar which are likely to be held in November this year. 
• The 47-year-old also named Manoj Bharti, a Madhubani-born former Indian Foreign Service officer, as working president of the party. 
• Mr Bharti comes from the Dalit community, has been educated at IIT Kanpur and Delhi and was in the Indian Foreign Service. He was also Indian ambassador in four countries. 

13. Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan launched by the Prime Minister from Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, on 2 October. 

• On 2 October 2024, the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA) launched, on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. 
• The total outlay of the scheme is Rs 79,156 crore (Central share: Rs 56,333 crore and State share: Rs 22,823 crore). 
• The Abhiyaan will cover around 63,843 villages, benefiting more than 5 crore tribal people in 549 districts and 2,911 blocks, spanning all tribal dominated villages and aspiring blocks in 30 States/UTs. 
• The Abhiyaan aims to enhance social infrastructure, health, education, and livelihoods in tribal areas through 25 initiatives by 17 Indian ministries for holistic and sustainable development. 
• Apart from this, the Prime Minister inaugurated 40 Eklavya Vidyalayas and laid the foundation stone of 25 new EMRSs, which will cost approximately Rs 2,834 crore. 
• Under the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN), PM also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of projects worth Rs 1,365 crore. 
• This includes 1387 km of roads, 120 Anganwadi centres, 250 multi-purpose centres and 10 school hostels being constructed by the Department of Rural Development, Women and Child Development, School Education and Literacy, and Ministry of Tribal Affairs under PM-Janman. 

14. Kerala ranked first in the urban governance index. 

• Praja Foundation conducted a two year-long study across several Indian cities, in which Kerala topped the Urban Governance Index (UGI).
• The study said that although the state ranked high in terms of financial empowerment, it still has a long way to go in empowering urban governance. 
• Kerala's top ranking in the Urban Governance Index is an acknowledgement of its achievements in decentralised planning. 
• The state scored 59.31 out of a possible 100 on various parameters, while Odisha stood second with 55.10 marks. 
• In fiscal empowerment, Kerala managed to score 23.22 out of 30 points, while Maharashtra stood second with 21.15 points. 
• However, it ranks only 20th in empowerment of municipal administration. 
• The report said that Kerala is the only state that has given the power to the mayor to write the 'annual confidential report' of the commissioner. 
• Only four states (Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Mizoram and Odisha) mandate that every councillor be part of at least one deliberative committee. 
• Additionally, the eighteen functions assigned to municipal governments under the 12th Schedule of the Constitution are increasingly being managed by multiple agencies, reducing the independence of municipal governments. 

15. Mankind Pharma secures CCI approval for ₹13,360-crore worth acquisition of Bharat Serums and Vaccines 

• A proposed acquisition of Bharat Serums and Vaccines by Mankind Pharma for ₹13,630 crore was approved by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). 
• Mankind Pharma had announced in July that it will fully acquire Bharat Serums and Vaccines from private equity firm Advent International for around ₹13,630 crore. 
• The company has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a 100 per cent stake in the Bharat Serums and Vaccines for an enterprise value of around ₹13,630 crore. 
• Mankind is a public listed company and is engaged in developing, manufacturing, and marketing a diverse range of pharmaceutical finished dosage formulations (FDFs) across various acute and chronic therapeutic areas, as well as several consumer healthcare products such as condoms, emergency contraceptives, pregnancy tests, vitamins, minerals, nutrients, antacids etc. 
• In India, the activities of BSV (including its wholly owned Indian subsidiary, BSV Pharma Private Limited, which is in the process of merging with BSV) are limited to developing, manufacturing, and marketing a range of biological, biotech, and pharmaceutical products in the therapeutic areas of women’s health, critical care, IUI-IVF, and emergency medicine. 

16. India becomes affiliate member of International Medical Device Regulators Forum 

• India has become an affiliate member of the International Medical Device Regulators Forum (IMDRF), which will open doors to invaluable opportunities for reliance and collaboration with regulatory authorities worldwide. 
• The IMDRF, which was established in 2011, is a group of global medical device regulators whose aim is to speed up the adoption of, international medical device regulatory harmonisation and convergence. 
• Its members include national regulatory authorities of the U.S., Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, the United Kingdom, Brazil, Russia, China, South Korea, Singapore and the World Health Organization (WHO). 
• The membership helps to harmonise regulatory requirements across the globe, which reduces complexities for manufacturers and helps safeguard public health by promoting collaboration, harmonising regulations, and promoting convergence. 

17. Carlos Alcaraz defeats Jannik Sinner to win first China Open Title 

• In tennis, second-seeded Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz beat defending champion and world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, winning 6-7 6-4 7-6 to claim his first China Open title. 
• Meanwhile, China’s Zheng Qinwen stormed into the quarterfinals of the women’s singles after defeating Amanda Anisimova of the United States. 
• Aryna Sabalenka secured her place in the quarterfinals by overcoming Madison Keys of the United States. Sabalenka will face the Czech Republic’s Karolina Muchova.