Current Affairs Quiz - April, 2024

Notes:
Sierra Leone’s President has declared a national emergency on substance abuse due to the surge in the use of the dangerous synthetic drug “kush.” The tropical West African country, bordered by Guinea, Liberia, and the Atlantic Ocean, faces this challenge. Its landscape comprises lightly wooded hills and mangrove swamps along the coast, with major rivers like the Rokel, Taia, Moa, and Sewa flowing through its terrain.

Notes:
Scientists have proposed a model elucidating Arrokoth’s ice core, a celestial body in the Kuiper Belt, named ‘sky’ in Powhatan language. Discovered in 2014 by Hubble, Arrokoth is the farthest explored object by humans, resembling a snowman. It’s believed to hold ancient gaseous ice. The Kuiper Belt, also known as Edgeworth-Kuiper belt, comprises icy bodies orbiting beyond Neptune, named after astronomer Gerard Kuiper who hypothesized its existence in the 1950s.

Notes:
The inaugural ‘Parivartan Chintan’ tri-service armed forces planning conference convened in New Delhi on April 8, 2024, organized by the Union Ministry of Defence. Led by the Chiefs of Army, Navy, and Air Force, alongside the Department of Military Affairs, the conference aimed to establish a unified, integrated theatre command. Chaired by Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, it sought to foster jointness, integration, and readiness for future conflicts through innovative reforms and initiatives.

Notes:
India gains approval from the Ministry of External Affairs to manage its second overseas port, Sittwe in Myanmar, following Chabahar in Iran. Sittwe, situated at the Kaladan River’s mouth in Rakhine State, Myanmar, is developed under the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP), supported by India’s grant aid. This strategic move is poised to amplify trade prospects for India’s Northeast, fostering enhanced commerce between India and Myanmar.

Notes:
Neptis philyra, a rare butterfly species known as the long-streak sailor, was recently discovered in India’s Tale Valley Wildlife Sanctuary. Previously found in east Asia, it boasts serrated wings with rich brownish-black on top and yellow-brown underneath, featuring a distinctive “hockey stick” pattern on the forewing. Part of the Nymphalidae family, it thrives in habitats like evergreen forests and rocky streams, marking a significant addition to India’s biodiversity.

Notes:
In 2023, investments from large foreign investors in Indian startups plummeted by 80% due to a funding winter in the country’s startup ecosystem. A funding winter signifies reduced capital inflows, influenced by various factors such as geopolitical unrest and financial irregularities. This phenomenon forces startups to prioritize profit maximization, conserve working capital, and suspend expansion plans and expenditures, ultimately challenging founders to navigate through a period of financial constraint and sustainability focus.

Notes:
India has achieved the elimination of visceral leishmaniasis, also known as kala-azar, meeting its target as per National Centre for Vector Borne Diseases Control data. Kala-azar is the second deadliest protozoan parasitic disease globally, endemic in 76 countries. It’s transmitted by infected sandflies and primarily affects the reticuloendothelial system. Post Kala-azar Dermal Leishmaniasis (PKDL) is a possible complication. Leishmaniasis is associated with poverty, malnutrition, weak immunity, and environmental changes like deforestation and urbanization.

Notes:
The European Union and India have partnered to advance electric vehicle (EV) goals, focusing on battery recycling technologies. This collaboration under the India-EU Trade and Technology Council aims to enhance cooperation between SMEs and startups in clean and green technologies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ursula von der Leyen initiated this effort in April 2022. Marc Lemaitre of the European Commission highlights the event’s significance in fostering a green and circular economy.

Notes:
The IMF’s Fiscal Monitor warns against relying solely on industrial policy initiatives to spur economic growth in the US, Europe, and beyond. Released biannually by the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department, it offers insights into public finance trends, fiscal outlooks, and policy implications for the global economy. Projections, aligned with the World Economic Outlook and Global Financial Stability Report, are crafted by IMF desk economists following WEO guidelines.

Notes:
Dr. Ashvini Keshavan, an Indian-origin neurologist and Senior Clinical Research and Honorary Consultant Neurologist Fellow at University College London (UCL), has been selected to be part of Britain’s research team on dementia. The team, called ADAPT (Alzheimer’s disease Diagnosis And Plasma pTau217), will focus on the biomarker p-tau217, which reflects the levels of two proteins found in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer’s disease: amyloid and tau. The team will conduct a clinical trial to see if measuring p-tau217 in the blood can increase the rate of diagnosis for Alzheimer’s disease in people with early dementia, as well as in those with mild, progressive memory problems.