Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2023

Notes:
Authorities in Western Australia announced that they have found a tiny radioactive capsule which went missing last month.
The capsule was found when a vehicle equipped with specialist equipment detected radiation. The object was lost while being transported along a 1,400 km route across the state. It contains a small quantity of Caesium-137, which could cause skin damage, burns or radiation sickness.

Notes:
Maharashtra tops the list in sales of electric vehicles across all segments which have availed of the FAME II subsidy.
It is followed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The top five states collectively account for over 56 per cent of the 0.85 million electric vehicles bought through the scheme, according to government data. Under the FAME II scheme, the government earmarked Rs 10,000 crore as a subsidy to electric vehicles. The scheme has been extended till March-end 2024.

Notes:
The United Nations food agency, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) price index tracks the most globally traded food commodities.
As per the recent FAO Food Price Index (FFPI), World food prices decline for 10th month as recorded in January- FAO Food Price Index (FFPI). The index averaged 131.2 points in January against 132.4 for December.

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:
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:
The First G-20 Energy Transition Working Group meeting was recently inaugurated in Bengaluru in the presence of Union Minister of Power and New and Renewable Energy R K Singh and Union Minister of Coal and Mines Prahlad Joshi.
India stands committed to reduce emissions intensity of GDP by 45 percent by 2030 from 2005 level. The country also aims to achieve close to 50 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030.

Notes:
Indian Railways introduced Garvi Gujarat tour under Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat Scheme to showcase heritage of Gujarat.
This Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist Train with 1st AC and 2nd AC Class will be operated for eight days inclusive tour. It can accommodate one hundred and 56 tourists onboard. It includes visit to prominent pilgrimage and heritage sites of Gujarat including the Statue of Unity, Champaner, Somnath, Dwarka, Nageshwar, Beyt Dwarka, Ahmedabad, Modhera and Patan.

Notes:
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that the US has emerged as India’s top destination for merchandise exports during April-December this fiscal at USD 59.7 billion.
The US was followed by UAE (USD 23.31 billion); Netherlands (USD 14.1 billion); China (USD 11 billion); Singapore and Bangladesh (about USD 9 billion each).

Notes:
The India Energy Week is being organized from February 6 to 8 in India. The objective of this week-long event is to showcase India’s influence as a leader in the energy transition.
While inaugurating the 2023 India Energy Week, Prime Minister Modi launched Indian Oil’s ‘Unbottled’ initiative, which involves using recycled polyester and cotton for creating retail customer attendants and LPG delivery personnel uniforms. Indian Oil’s Indoor Solar Cooking System was also rolled out for commercial purposes.

Notes:
The eXperiential Technology Innovation Centre (XTIC) is a newly established research institute in IIT Madras.
It is India’s research and product innovation centre focusing on extended reality and haptics technology. An MoU was signed recently between ISRO and the IIT Madras to develop a training module for the Indian spaceflight programme at the XTIC. It will be developed using the augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality.