Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2023

Notes:
India for the first time invited bids for 20 critical mineral blocks, including lithium and graphite. This is not only seen to boost economic development but also a part of the nation’s strategy to ensure adequate domestic resources of essential raw materials for powering the green energy transition.
The auction will be held online, using a transparent two-stage ascending forward auction process. Eligible bidders will be chosen based on the highest percentage of the quoted value of dispatched minerals they offer.

Notes:
The Union Cabinet has approved Central Sector Scheme for providing Drones to the Women Self Help Groups (SHGs), with an outlay of Rs. 1261 Crore for the period from 2024-25 to 2025-26.
The scheme aims to provide drones to 15,000 selected Women SHGs during the period 2023-24 to 2025-2026 for providing rental services to farmers for agriculture purpose. the scheme seeks to empower women Self Help Groups (SHGs) and bringing new technologies through drone services in agriculture sector.

Notes:
Union Cabinet approved a special development mission for Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) with a total outlay of over ₹24,104 crore over a three-year period.
The scheme will focus on 11 critical interventions through 9 Ministries including Ministry of Tribal Affairs.An amount of Rs.15,000 crore will be made available to implement the Mission in the next three years under the Development Action Plan for the Scheduled Tribes (DAPST).

Notes:
National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) launched Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Quarterly Bulletin for July – September 2023
As per the report, the unemployment rate in urban areas of the country decreased from 7.2% in July-September 2022 to 6.6% in July–September 2023.

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Sri Lanka has reached an agreement in principle with India and the Paris Club group of creditors including Japan, on a debt treatment plan.
It will help the crisis-hit island nation tap the next tranche of the International Monetary Fund’s nearly-$3 billion recovery package.

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Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is an intergovernmental body that develops food standards, guidelines, and codes of practice. The CAC was established in 1963 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The CAC’s headquarters are in Rome. Recently, India’s proposal at Codex Alimentarious Commission (CAC) meet for standards for millets, covering parameters like moisture content and quality, was unanimously endorsed. The standards cover 15 varieties and will aid the promotion of millets in global trade and food markets. The CAC praised India’s specifications. The decision comes as 2023 was declared the International Year of Millets to boost production and consumption.

Notes:
Virgin Atlantic operated Flight100 from London to New York, the first ever transatlantic passenger flight fully powered by sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The Boeing 787, with Rolls-Royce engines, aims to demonstrate SAF’s viability as a safe, low-carbon substitute for conventional jet fuel. As the aviation industry faces pressure to reduce emissions and climate impact, SAF has potential as a compatible drop-in replacement requiring no new infrastructure. Flight100 represents an important first step in testing and scaling up commercial use of 100% SAF on long flights. Its completion will help make the case for ramping up SAF production and adoption across more routes. The flight proves such ambition is technologically possible with today’s planes and engines while we continue striving to make SAF affordable and available at scale.

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Anthrobots are tiny, self-assembling robots made from human cells. They can move around in a lab dish and are capable of healing neurons and damaged tissue. Anthrobots are made from human tracheal cells and can be created without genetic modifications. They are made up of a few hundred cells and only last a few weeks before breaking down. This means they can be easily reabsorbed into the body after their work is done. Anthrobots could be used in personalized medicine. They could help heal wounds or damaged tissue by forming large structures that span the width of a wound.
A team at Tufts University and Harvard University’s Wyss Institute created anthrobots.

Notes:
The government has approved a five-year extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), its flagship free foodgrain scheme for the poor, beyond December 2023. Launched in 2020 to provide relief during the COVID-19 crisis, the PMGKAY supplies 5 kgs of free ration monthly to over 800 million beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act. The scheme will now continue till 2028 at an estimated expenditure of Rs 1.18 lakh crore annually.

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The EU has introduced a new policy called the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism or CBAM to account for carbon emissions from imported goods. This applies to imports of products like iron, steel and aluminum which require a lot of energy to make and therefore result in high emissions.  Under the CBAM, companies importing these goods into the EU will have to buy carbon certificates corresponding to the polluting emissions.

This is to ensure imported products face similar carbon costs that European producers pay already under EU emissions rules.  The aim is to prevent European manufacturers being undercut by cheaper imports not subject to carbon pricing. It also incentives foreign exporters to transition toward cleaner production.  However, organizations like the World Bank and UN warn that these extra charges could negatively impact developing countries that export to EU, especially industries unable to quickly cut emissions. So while CBAM protects EU competitiveness, it may burden trading partners and needs to be designed sensitively.