Current Affairs Quiz - March 2022

Notes:
The Office of Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade releases Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI).
The combined Index of Eight Core Industries stood at 144.4 in January 2022, at an increase of 3.7 per cent from that of January 2021. The production of Coal, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Steel, Cement and Electricity industries increased in January 2022, the other two being Crude Oil and Fertilizers.

Notes:
Scientists have described a new species of the Neotropical orchid genus Maxillaria from northern Ecuador.
Named Maxillaria anacatalinaportillae, it grows as an epiphyte in cloud rainforests at altitude of 1,700 m above sea level. According to the IUCN Red List criteria, the species should be classified as ‘Critically Endangered’, as per the Scientists.

Notes:
Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman launched the Electronic Bill (e-Bill) processing system, announced in Union Budget 2022-23, on the occasion of 46th Civil Accounts Day. The move is a part of ‘Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) and Digital India eco-system’
Currently, the suppliers of various goods and services to the Government have to submit physical, ink signed copies of their bills to the respective Ministries/Departments/Offices of the Government of India.

Notes:
In May 2008, 107 states concluded an international treaty prohibiting the cluster weapons, named the ‘Convention on Cluster Munitions’.
Recently, Russia has been accused for using cluster bombs and vacuum bombs in the ongoing war against Ukraine. As per the convention, the cluster munitions release explosive sub-munitions each weighing less than 20 kilograms, and includes those explosive sub-munitions. They are non-precision weapons designed to injure or kill human beings over a large area.

Notes:
The aggressive Russian attack on Ukraine puts at risk several works of art, cultural artefacts, and monuments.
It includes the ‘Museum of Freedom’ and ‘Odessa Fine Arts Museum’. Ukraine also has seven world heritage sites, including St Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv, and Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, or Kyiv Monastery of the Caves, an Orthodox Christian monastery founded in 1051.

Notes:
Kavach is the indigenously developed ‘Automatic Train Protection System’, which was recently tested on South Central Railway.
As per the Union Budget, the system is scheduled for complete rollout on 2,000 km in 2022-23. It is India’s own automatic protection system in development since 2012, under the name Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), which got renamed to Kavach.

Notes:
The Government of Himachal Pradesh, in its Budget for 2022-23 has announced to increase the Member of Legislative Assembly Local Area Development (MLALAD) fund from Rs 1.80 crore to Rs 2 crore.
Also, the state Government has proposed to increase the discretionary grant for MLAs from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12 lakh for FY 2022-23.

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER) is conducting a special campaign named ‘Nari Shakti of North East’ as a part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
The campaign is conducted ahead of the International Women’s Day (March 8) for recognizing the extraordinary efforts of Women & Girls in North East India.

Notes:
Assam Cabinet has approved the proposal to replace paper ballots with Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in the Guwahati Municipal Corporation polls.
The decision has been taken to ensure transparency and efficiency in elections. The cabinet also approved ‘Assam Occupational Safety, Healthy and Working Conditions Rules, 2022’.

Notes:
China’s Leshan Giant Buddha, a 233 feet tall stone statue, is the largest and tallest stone Buddha statue in the world. The statue faces Mount Emei, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996.
India’s largest reclining Buddha statue is being built in Bodh Gaya, by Buddha International Welfare Mission. The statue will be 100 feet long and 30 feet high and being made with fiberglass.