Current Affairs | National | International | SSC | UPSC 11th October 2024

1. India’s textile sector is expected to grow to nearly 350 billion dollars by 2030. 

• As per the trade data for August 2024, the sector has seen 11 per cent year-on-year growth in ready-made garments. 
• Moreover 90 thousand crore rupees of investment is expected to flow through the PM Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (PM MITRA) Park and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes in the next 3-5 years. 
• Seven PM Mitra parks are sanctioned across the country and each park is expected to attract an investment of Rs 10,000 crore. 
• It will generate 1 lakh direct employment and 2 lakh indirect employment. 

2. 1st phase of 2nd Army Commanders’ Conference will be organized in hybrid mode at Gangtok. 

• The first phase of the Second Army Commanders’ Conference for the year 2024 will be organized in a hybrid mode at Gangtok in Sikkim. 
• It will serve as a forum for senior commanders to review current operational preparedness, deliberate on critical strategies, and outline future directives. 
• The critical national security issues and strategic aspects aimed at sharpening the Indian Army’s warfighting capabilities. 
• The second phase of the Army Commanders’ Conference will be held in Delhi on 28th and 29th October. 
• During the conference, the meetings of various Boards of Governors will deliberate upon welfare measures and schemes. 

3. India and ASEAN called for collaboration on digital public infrastructure and AI. 

• A collaboration has been emphasised by India and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to leverage Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) across a range of sectors, including education, healthcare, agriculture and climate action. 
• In a Joint Statement on Advancing Digital Infrastructure, India and ASEAN acknowledged opportunities for cooperation to share knowledge, experience, and best practices to promote DPI development across the region. 
• They recognised financial technology and innovation as important drivers for bilateral economic partnership. 
• India-ASEAN also recognised that cooperation in cyber security is an important part of the comprehensive strategic partnership.

4. On October 10, Rafael Nadal announced his retirement from professional tennis. 

• Rafael Nadal, 38, will make his last appearance for Spain at the Davis Cup final in Malaga in November. 
• The Davis Cup knockout stage will be played from November 19-24. 
• He has won 92 ATP-level singles titles, including 36 Masters titles, and one Olympic gold medal, 63 of which have been won on clay courts. 
• She has won 22 Grand Slam titles including 14 French Open titles. 
• Nadal also won an Olympic gold medal in 2008 and contributed to Spain's success by winning five Davis Cup titles. 
• A five-time year-end world number one, he has remained in the ATP top 10 for an incredible 17 years, from 2005 until March 2024. 
• He spent 209 weeks ranked as the world's top player and won at least one title every year from 2004 to 2022. 

5. A key enzyme to overcome cancer drug resistance has been discovered by scientists. 

• A new therapeutic target has been identified by scientists from the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkata. 
• Scientists discovered this target by activating the DNA repair enzyme Tyrosyl-DNA phosphodiesterase 1 (TDP1). 
• This discovery could pave the path for combination therapy, providing hope to cancer patients who are resistant to current treatments. 
• Current anticancer medications such as Camptothecin, Topotecan, and Irinotecan work by blocking the enzyme Topoisomerase 1 (Top1), which is required for DNA replication and transcription. 
• However, cancer cells frequently develop resistance to these medications, prompting researchers to consider alternate therapy options. 
• The study highlights two key proteins-Cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (CDK1) and TDP1. 
• The study suggests that combining CDK1 inhibitors (avotaciclib, alvocidib, roniciclib, riviciclib, and dinaciclib) with Top1 inhibitors could improve cancer treatment efficacy. 
• This discovery, which targets both CDK1 and TDP1, opens the door to precision medicine approaches that could be especially beneficial against malignancies that are resistant to traditional treatments. 

6. The registration portal for 5th phase of Yuva Sangam under Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat has been launched by the Ministry of Education. 

• Yuva Sangam is a central government’s initiative. This seeks to strengthen people-to-people connections between youth of different states and union territories. 
• In this initiative, youth between the ages of 18 and 30 can take part by registering on the Yuva Sangam portal. 
• 21st October is the last date for registrations for Yuva Sangam. 
• During Yuva Sangam tours, multi-dimensional exposure under five broad areas will be provided to the visiting delegation over a period of 5-7 days. 
• The five broad areas are Paryatan, Parampara, Pragati, Paraspar Sampark, and Prodyogiki. 

7. As per the NABARD survey, the average monthly income of rural households has increased by 57%. 

• Between 2016-17 and 2021-22, the average monthly income of rural households has grown by over 57 percent. 
• The average monthly income increased from 8,059 rupees in 2016-17 to 12,698 rupees in 2021-22. 
• The average monthly expenditure of households also increased from over 6,600 rupees to over 11,200 rupees. 
• As per the survey, average household savings increased to over 13,200 rupees, from around 9,100 rupees during the period. 
• The percentage of households reporting saving has increased from 50.6 percent in 2016-17 to 66 percent in 2021-22. 
• The proportion of households with outstanding debt increased from 47 percent in 2016-17 to 52 percent in 2021-22. 
• The survey also registered an increase in insurance coverage among rural households in India. 
• The proportion of households with at least one member insured surged from 25.5 per cent in 2016-17 to 80.3 per cent in 2021-22. 
• The survey also highlighted the effectiveness of the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) in expanding financial inclusion among rural farmers. 
• Pension coverage has also improved, rising from 18.9 per cent to 23.5 per cent of households. 

8. PM Modi unveiled a 10-point plan to strengthen India-ASEAN ties. 

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 10-point plan to strengthen India-ASEAN comprehensive partnership. 
• PM Modi addressed the 21st India-ASEAN Summit.
• This 10-point plan will further strengthen the India-ASEAN partnership, including celebrating 2025 as the ASEAN-India Year of Tourism. 
• Prime Minister Modi also announced the celebration of the decade of Act East Policy through different activities, including Youth Summit, Start-up Festival, Hackathon, Music Festival, etc. 
• The Prime Minister also announced a regular mechanism of ASEAN-India Cyber Policy Dialogue for strengthening digital and cyber resilience and organising a workshop on Green Hydrogen. 
• India-ASEAN trade has doubled to over USD 130 billion in the past decade. 

9. 10 new ESIC Medical Colleges will be established by the Government at various locations in the country. 

• On October 8, the Ministry of Labour and Employment said the government will set up 10 new ESIC medical colleges and extend the unemployment allowance scheme for ESI Corporation members till June 2026. 
• Minister Mansukh Mandaviya announced several important decisions to further strengthen the infrastructure and medical facilities of ESIC in a meeting of the ESI Corporation. 
• He has extended the Atal Bimit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana for a period of two years from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2026. 
• Launched in 2018, the scheme aims to provide support in the form of unemployment allowance during the period when an insured person seeks new employment for income. 
• Further, it was also decided to provide medical care to ESIC beneficiaries under the convergence programme of ESIC with Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) at all India level. 

10. Indian Institute of Skills (IIS) Mumbai inaugurated by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. 

• On October 9, the foundation stone of various development projects worth over Rs 7600 crore laid in Maharashtra by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 
• The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Indian Institute of Skills (IIS) in Mumbai as a significant step towards enhancing the employability of Indian youth for national and global opportunities. 
• It aims to develop an industry-ready workforce for Industry 4.0 through hands-on training in cutting-edge technologies such as factory automation, digital manufacturing, mechatronics, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and additive manufacturing. 
• Established through the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model, the institute is a collaboration between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India and Tata IIS (a Section 8 Company under Tata Trusts). 
• Built on a sprawling 4-acre campus within the National Skill Training Institute (NSTI) at Chunabhatti, Mumbai, IIS is designed to prepare an industry-ready workforce equipped with cutting-edge technology and hands-on training. 
• IIS Mumbai will provide specialized training in key areas such as Factory Automation, Digital Manufacturing, Mechatronics, Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics and Additive Manufacturing. 

11. Eight products of Assam received the GI tag. 

• The Geographical Indications Registry in Chennai has granted the GI tag to eight products from the Assam region. 
• Traditional food items and several unique varieties of rice beer received the GI tag. 
• The application for Geographical Indication tags for three variants of rice beer was filed by the Bodo Traditional Brewers Association. 
• ‘Bodo Jou Gwra’, ‘Maibra Jou Bidwi’ and ‘Bodo Jou Gishi’ received the GI tag. 
• The Bodo people believe that rice beer originates from lord Shiva and is considered as a medicine. 
• The Association of Traditional Food Products applied for four GI tags. 
• ‘Bodo Napham’, an important and favourite dish of fermented fish, received the GI tag. 
• A GI tag has also been secured by ‘Bodo Ondla’, a rice powder curry flavoured with garlic, ginger, salt, and alkali. 
• The ‘Bodo Gwkha’ has also received the GI tag. It is locally known as ‘Gwka Gwkhi’. 
• Bodo Narzi’, a semi-fermented food prepared with jute leaves, has also received the GI tag.