Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2023

Notes:
Six entities have been allowed to test their fintech products to prevent and mitigate financial fraud as part of the fourth cohort under the RBI’s regulatory sandbox scheme.
The Reserve Bank announced the the fourth cohort under the regulatory sandbox in June 2022 for the prevention and mitigation of financial fraud. The six entities are — Bahwan Cybertek, Crediwatch Information Analytics, enStage Software (Wibmo), HSBC in collaboration with Wibmo, napID Cybersec and Trusting Social.

Notes:
Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance commenced a three-week long organ donation initiative. As part of the initiative, a relay marathon called Zindagi Express is organised to tour nearly 5,500 km across the country to raise awareness about organ donation.
For the fourth year in a row, it joined hands with Mohan Foundation, an NGO working in the organ donation landscape.

Notes:
The 10th edition of the Dhaka Lit Fest (DLF) has recently kicked off in Bangladesh. The DLF is one of the largest literary festivals of Bangladesh.
The DLF is being organised after a gap of three years due to the pandemic. Over 500 literary personalities including Nobel Prize Winner for Literature Abdur Razzak Gurna, film makers, artists and people from the field of science are participating in the event.

Notes:
The National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the First Advance Estimates (FAE) of National Income for the financial year 2022-23.
Real GDP or in the year 2022-23 is estimated at ₹157.60 lakh crore. The growth in real GDP during 2022-23 is estimated at 7.0 per cent as compared to 8.7 per cent in 2021-22.

Notes:
As per a recent study by real estate consulting firm CBRE South Asia, Bengaluru led the rank in office space absorption.
Office space absorption in the city stood at 1.7 million square feet during the October-December 2022 period. Technology sector accounted for 43 per cent, while engineering and manufacturing was at 17 per cent.

Notes:
Avian flu has been confirmed in many Kerala districts and the Kerala Health Department has directed all districts to be on the alert.
Avian flu was also confirmed in a grama panchayat in the capital city Thiruvananthapuram. The district administration issued orders that all poultry and other pet birds in the affected wards be killed and that all egg, meat, bird fodder, and litter be destroyed.

Notes:
Union Home Minister Amit Shah unveiled a 120-feet-tall statue of a polo player riding a pony at Marjing Polo Complex in Imphal, Manipur
Manipur is considered the birthplace of the game and it reached the British before 1850.  In November last year, the first Chief Minister’s Sagol Kangjei Championship was held during the Sangai festival to promote the indigenous game. The ponies in Manipur are becoming vulnerable due to lack of grazing grounds.

Notes:
Bhitarkanika National Park, located in Odisha, reported an increase in the number of birds to 1,39,959 birds this year compared to 1,38,107 last year.
While the number of bird count increased, the diversity of species has decreased compared to last year. This year the National Park saw 140 species of birds compared to 144 last year. Many rare and endangered species were spotted this time.

Notes:
MSME Minister Narayan Rane launched the web portal for the Rs 6,062.45-crore Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) for MSMEs.
The scheme was originally announced back in 2020 by the government and the World Bank to support Covid-hit MSMEs in the country. Out of the total scheme’s limit, Rs 3,750 crore was approved by World Bank in June 2021 while the balance would be funded by the government.

Notes:
Japan continues to top the list of the world’s most powerful passport for the year 2023, according to the Henley Passport Index report 2023.
Japanese citizens can travel to as many as 193 countries visa-free or visa-on-arrival access destinations around the world. The second spot is shared by Singapore and South Korea. Indian passport ranks 85th in the world’s most powerful passport index 2023 and gives visa-free entry to 59 destinations.