Daily Current Affairs for State Exams 20 September 2022

दैनिक करंट अफेयर्स 20 सितम्बर 2022

Important News: International

Poland opens new canal at Vistula Spit

Why in News:

For ships to be able to cruise to the ports of the Vistula Lagoon without having to rely on the Pallava Strait, Poland has constructed a new maritime canal between the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Gdansk in Russia.

Key Points:

The 83rd anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Poland during World War II saw the opening of the new canal.
It was done in order to allegorically represent the cessation of Russian influence over the economy and growth of the nation.
By around 100 kilometers, this halves the distance between Baltic and El blog.
Smaller vessels and boats can currently utilize this channel, but cargo ships are currently prohibited until the port of Elblag’s entry is 5 meters deep.
This project has a USD 2 billion price tag overall.
In the Baltic Sea, the Vistula Spit is an aeolian sand spit or peninsular portion that divides the Vistula Lagoon from Gdansk Bay.
Given that the border between Poland and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian semi-exclave, runs through the spit, it is politically divided between Poland and Russia.

Source: Indian Express

Important News: National

KRITAGYA 3.0

Why in News:

KRITAGYA 3.0 has been launched by ICAR with an aim to promote "Speed Breeding" for crop improvement.

key points:

Indian Council of Agricultural Research along with its National Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP) and Crop Science Division has launched a hackathon KRITAGYA 3.0 with an aim to promote speed breeding for the improvement of crops.
This initiative will help in providing opportunities to students, faculties, entrepreneurs, innovators, and others to showcase innovative approaches and technological solutions for crop improvement.
Along with achieving desired solutions in the crop sector, it will also encourage wider adoption of technology-enabled solutions in the agriculture sector.
It will provide an opportunity to learn, innovate and solve problems faced in the crop sector and will also boost employment and entrepreneurship in the country.
KRITAGYA 3.0 has been launched in line with the National Policy on Education, 2020.
The National Agricultural Higher Education Project (NAHEP) was launched in November 2017 by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research with the assistance of the World Bank.
The main objective of the National Agricultural Higher Education Project is to assist the participating agricultural universities and ICARs in providing high-quality education to the students.

Source: PIB

Dharmendra Pradhan launched Ramakrishna Mission’s Awakening program

Why in News:

The 'Awakening' program of Ramakrishna Mission has been launched by the Union Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Dharmendra Pradhan for the students of classes 1st to 5th.

key points:

Under Ramakrishna Mission, Delhi Branch, since 2014, Awakening Citizen Program (Awakened Citizen Program/ACP) for Middle School students is being successfully conducted.
About 6,000 schools (Kendriya Vidyalaya’s, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya’s, government, and private schools) comprising 55,000 teachers and 12 lakh students have benefitted under the ACP.
A program called 'Awakening' which is closely linked to the National Policy on Education (NEP) 2020 has been designed and conducted in 126 schools.
During the COVID pandemic, this pilot program has provided great consolation to struggling teachers, parents, and students, as shown in the encouraging response received from the participants.
This 'Awakening' program is an initiative towards ensuring holistic personality development of a child in line with the philosophy of National Policy on Education (NEP), 2020.
Ramakrishna Mission was established by Swami Vivekananda in the year 1897, with the aim of bringing the best ideas by Swami Vivekananda to the doorsteps of the poorest and most deprived people, through the Ramakrishna Mission.
Ramakrishna Mission works in the field of value-based education, culture, health, women empowerment, youth, and tribal welfare, and relief and rehabilitation.

Source: The Hindu

Important News: State

Andaman and Nicobar Islands become India’s first Swachh Sujal Pradesh

Why in News:

Andaman and the Nicobar Islands have been declared as India's first Swachh Sujal Pradesh by Union Minister of Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.

key points:

With this achievement, all the villages in Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been granted Har Ghar Jal Certification and have been verified as Open Defecation Free.
Safe and secure drinking water supply and its management is an important aspect of Sujal and Swachh.
There are three important components of Sujal and Swachh State:
- Safe and secure drinking water supply and management.
- ODF Plus: ODF Sustainability and Solid and Liquid Waste Management (SLWM) and
- Cross-cutting interventions such as convergence, IEC, action plan, etc.
On the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, there are 62,000 rural households spread over 266 villages in 9 blocks of three districts, the union territory supplying piped water to all 368 schools, 558 Anganwadi centers, and 292 public institution centers in the state.
World Water Day, 22 March 2021, was announced by Andaman and Nicobar Islands to achieve 100% coverage of rural households with tap water connections.
Andaman and Nicobar Islands has become the third state/UT in the country after Goa and Telangana to achieve 100% coverage with tap water supply to rural households.

Source: Business Standard

Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineering Limited (GRSE), Kolkata, has been awarded the 'Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar' by the Ministry of Home Affairs

Why in News:

The Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, has awarded the "Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar" to Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineering Limited (GRSE), Kolkata.

Key Points:

The Government of India has recognized Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineering Limited as having the best official language implementation among Public Sector Undertakings in Zone "C" for the fiscal years 2021–2022.
During Surat's Hindi Divas festivities, the prize was given out.
The Hon. Union Home and Corporation Minister Shri Amit Shah are in charge of organizing the celebrations during Hindi Diwas.
For the best official language implementation in the years 2011–2012, 2012–2013, 2014–2015, 2015–2016, and 2016–2017, GRSE was awarded the "Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar."
The highest honor bestowed by the Indian government in the area of official language implementation is called the "Rajbhasha Kirti Puraskar."
Only one Defense and Public Sector Undertaking in Kolkata, Garden Reach Shipbuilders, and Engineering Limited, has been recognized with this honor.

Source: Economic Times

Important News: Defence

BSF’s first female camel riding squad to be deployed along the India- Pak border

Why in News:

The first all-women camel riding squad of the Border Security Force (BSF) will be deployed along the India-Pakistan border in Rajasthan and Gujarat.

key points:

For the first time, the newly formed squad will participate in the BSF Raising Day Parade on December 1, this squad is the first of its kind in the world.
The BSF is the only force in the country to have a camel contingent and a camel cavalry band.
The BSF, traditionally known as the first line of defence, uses camel contingents to carry out surveillance across the vast expanses of the Thar Desert.
BSF is a Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) that functions under the Central Government.
BSF was established in the year 1965 after the Indo-Pakistani War.
The BSF Act was passed by the Parliament in 1968 and the rules governing the Act were framed in the year 1969.
India is a federation of states and under the one border one force policy, BSF is deployed along the borders of Pakistan and Bangladesh.
BSF is also deployed in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas and on the request of State Governments, BSF is also regularly deployed for election and other law and order duties.
The Border Security Force was established on 1 December 1965 and its headquarters is located in New Delhi.

Source: Times of India

Important Awards

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh presents INSPIRE Awards to 60 Startups

Why in News:

INSPIRE Award – MANAK by Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (MoS) for Science and Technology has provided financial assistance to 60 startups and 53,021 students.

key points:

The INSPIRE Award has been instituted by the Department of Science and Technology (DST).
The annual INSPIRE Awards- MANAK competition in the year 2020-2021 attracts 6.53 lakh unique ideas and innovations from all the State and Union Territories (UTs) of the country.
A total of 53,021 students out of 6.53 lakh were identified for financial assistance of Rs 10,000 to develop their prototypes and these innovators would be provided full incubation support for their entrepreneurship.
556 students have made their place in the 9th National Level Exhibition and Project Competition (NLEPC) as a synergy of scientists, researchers, scholars, and science and technology.
In India, ideas and innovations have been represented in the INSPIRE Awards- MANAK scheme by 702 districts out of 766 districts.
INSPIRE Awards- MANAK, a flagship scheme of the country, is implemented by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) jointly with National Innovation Foundation India (NIF).
The objective of this project is to motivate the students in the age group of 10-15 years to study in classes 6 to 10.
MANAK aims to innovate one million original ideas rooted in science and social applications to foster a culture of creative and innovative thinking in school children.

Source: Indian Express

Important: Books

Manoj Bajpayee publishes the book “Muskurate Chand Lamhe Aur Kuchh Khamoshiyan”

Why in News:

At a gathering in New Delhi, actor Manoj Bajpayee published a book titled Smiling Chand Lamhe Aur Kuch Khamoshiyan in the presence of Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apoorva Chandra.

Key Points:

The collection of poems known as Musketeering Chand Lamhe Aur Kuch Khamoshiyan includes a wide range of poems.
The author of Musketeering Chand Lamhe Aur Kuch Khamoshiyan is Jivesh Nandan.
Indian actor Manoj Bajpayee primarily performs in Hindi-language movies, while he also features in Telugu and Tamil-language productions.
The birthdate of Manoj Bajpayee is April 23, 1969.
Six Filmfare Awards, two Asia Pacific Screen Awards, and three National Film Awards have all been given to Manoj Bajpayee.
For his contributions to the arts, Manoj Bajpayee was also given the Padma Shri in 2019, India's fourth-highest civilian honor.
In 1998, Ram Gopal Varma's crime drama Satya earned Manoj Bajpayee the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor and the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Later, for the movie Shool, Manoj Bajpayee received the second Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor (1999).
He received the National Film Award for Best Actor for his work in the movie Bhonsle at the 67th National Film Awards.

Source: Indian Express