Current Affairs Quiz - August, 2023

Notes:
Union government said that India had seen no deaths due to manual scavenging in the last five years, as per the data submitted by the Social Justice Ministry.
It also added that 330 people had died while being engaged in cleaning sewers and septic tanks. Social Justice Ministry says manual scavenging no longer practised in India; Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Bihar among States with all districts reporting free status.

Notes:
West Bengal, which is home to about 40% of mangrove forests in India, announced the setting up of a ‘Mangrove Cell’ in the State, on the occasion of the International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem.
This platform will bring continuity to the efforts of State government in mangrove management. The Cell has an annual action plan for the plantation of mangroves and it will look at maintenance and coordinate with NGOs.

Notes:
The government has said that integration of child helpline with Emergency Response Support System, ERSS -112 has been completed in nine States in the first phase.
These States are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Dadra, and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Gujarat, Ladakh, Puducherry, and Mizoram. A 24×7 dedicated WCD Control Room is set up for Child Helpline in each State and Union Territory and integrated with ERSS-112.

Notes:
Maharashtra-based Aditya Samant became India’s 83rd Grandmaster after earning his third GM norm at the Master Tournament (MTO) in the Biel International Chess Festival.
He had earned his first norm to become a grandmaster at the Abu Dhabi Masters last year in August. His second norm was achieved in December last year at the 3rd El Llobregat Open.

Notes:
The NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has recently captured a captivating near-infrared image of the dynamic young stars, Herbig-Haro 46/47.
These are in the Vela constellation, which are about 1,470 light-years away from Planet Earth. These stars are actively forming and orbiting each other in a mesmerizing display. These stats are an  important object to study because it is relatively young — only a few thousand years old.

Notes:
The Mukhyamantri Jan Arogya Mela is a scheme pertaining to the state of Uttar Pradesh, was started in the year 2020. It has benefited over 12 crore patients in the state.
The Union Health Ministry has planned to adopt Uttar Pradesh’s successful healthcare model, including the concept of Jan Arogya Mela, which provide medical attention to attendees and refer critical patients to specialized hospitals.

Notes:
China has granted Pakistan a two-year rollover on a USD 2.4-billion loan for a period of two years.
This move is expected to provide relief to Pakistan, which is facing a severe Balance of Payments crisis. Its current reserves barely cover two months’ worth of import bills.

Notes:
As the G20 chair, India is working with Japan and other G7 countries on the one side, and Russia-China on the other side to formulate the G20 leaders’ declaration in Delhi.
Japan holds the current chairmanship of the G7 grouping, which has been the most vocal over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Notes:
Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the Akhil Bhartiya Shiksha Samagam at Bharat Mandapam in Delhi. He also released the first instalment of funds under the PM SHRI Scheme.
The two-day conference aligns with the third anniversary of the introduction of National Education Policy -NEP 2020.

Notes:
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) added two semiconductor design startups, Aheesa Digital Innovations, and Calligo Technologies, to the SemiconIndia futureDESIGN DLI scheme.
This was announced during the 2nd edition of the SemiconIndia 2023 conference in Gandhinagar. These startups/MSMEs will receive support under the scheme.