Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2023

Notes:
The First meeting of Sustainable Finance Working Group under G20 was recently hosted in Guwahati, Assam.
The G20 meeting in Assam deliberated on sustainable financing solutions. The delegates also discussed raising funds through green bonds, sustainability linked bonds and other such instruments for projects.

Notes:
The United States and the Philippines announced plans to expand America’s military presence in the Southeast Asian nation.
The countries decided to accelerate full implementation of their ‘Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA)’. As part of the agreement, the U.S. has allocated $82 million toward infrastructure improvements at five current EDCA sites. This will provide access to four more bases to the US.

Notes:
Australia’s central bank said that its new USD 5 bill would feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III.
The King is still expected to appear on coins that currently bear the image of the late Queen Elizabeth II. The bank will consult with Indigenous groups in designing the USD 5 note.

Notes:
India will be invited as the theme country at the Madrid International Book Fair in 2025, the Ambassador of Spain to the country Jose Maria Ridao.
Spain is the theme country at the 46th International Kolkata Book Fair, which began recently. As part of the cultural exchange between the two countries, Spain has donated books to five universities in Bengal.

Notes:
Lucknow will host the first meeting of the G20 Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG). A Digital India Mobile Van has been introduced with respect to the meeting.
The Digital India Mobile Van will tour other cities in the country, enlightening citizens about G20 DEWG and Digital India’s key initiatives including PMJDY, DigiLocker, Aadhaar, UMANG, e-Way Bill, e-Aushadhi, Aarogya Setu, Co-WIN, e-Rupi, and India Stack Global.

Notes:
Medium-density Amorphous (MDA) Ice is a new form of ice that was recently discovered by scientists. This ice has same density and structure as water.
The ice was created by scientists in a container with stainless steel balls at a -200°C. The MDA ice does not have any ordered structure. It will provide the opportunity to improve the understanding of the properties of water.

Notes:
A new report ‘Teleconnections Among Tipping Elements in the Earth System’ Report, has found a direct link between deforestation of the Amazon rainforest and the temperature changes in Tibet.
Tibet is situated more than 15,000 km from the rainforest. It revealed the strong link between climate tipping elements. A tipping point is a threshold beyond which major, irreversible changes occur in a specific region.

Notes:
The Budget presented by Kerala announced a road map for setting up green hydrogen hubs in Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram in the next two years.
A scheme of ₹200 crore has been announced for viability gap funding/grant/equity support to set up the green hydrogen hubs. An amount of ₹20 crore is earmarked additionally for the purpose in the Budget.

Notes:
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 4 February as the International Day of Human Fraternity in 2020.
It celebrates the values of compassion, religious understanding, and mutual respect. On the occasion, the UN chief called for renewed commitment to form an ‘alliance of peace’ amid a surge in hate speech, sectarianism and strife.

Notes:
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs signed a MoU with Engineers India Limited to develop Waste to Energy and bio-methanation projects in cities with a population of million plus.
It was signed as a part of furthering the ‘Green Growth’ agenda. There are 59 million plus cities in India and EIL will assist them in developing such projects for larger quantum of waste integrating circularity in waste management.