Current Affairs Quiz - January, 2023

Notes:
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the Chief Minister’s Residential Land Rights scheme (Mukhyamantri Awasiya Bhu Adhikar Yojana).
Chief Minister also gave land rights letters to the eligible beneficiaries of this scheme. The objective of this scheme is to provide free plots to the poor living in rural areas for building their houses.

Notes:
A bird survey was conducted at the Silent Valley National Park, located in the Nilgiri hills in Kerala, in the last week of December.
The survey identified 141 species, of which 17 were new. So far, 175 species of birds have been spotted in Silent Valley. The first survey was held in the National Park in December 1990, 30 years ago.

Notes:
The government has approved Rs 28.11 crore to extend the interest-free loan to tobacco farmers Andhra Pradesh.
This measure will help the Flue Cured Virginia tobacco farmers overcome the damage caused by Mandous Cyclonic rains, as per the Commerce Ministry. The interest-free loan to the eligible farmers will be administered by the Tobacco Board.

Notes:
Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is organising ‘Startup India Innovation Week 2023’ from January 10-16.
It aims to celebrate the Indian startup ecosystem. On the National Startup Day on January 16, DPIIT will felicitate the winners of National Startup Awards.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the government’s Aspirational Block Programme (ABP), to  improve performance of blocks lagging on development parameters.
The Aspirational Blocks Programme is on the lines of the Aspirational District Programme that was launched in 2018, covering 112 districts across the country. The new programme will cover 500 districts across 31 states and Union Territories initially.

Notes:
The first phase of the caste-based census kicked off in Bihar, in which the number of all households in the state will be counted.
The Bihar cabinet on June 2, 2022 decided to conduct the caste-based census in the state. The  decadal census conducted by the Union Government counts religious groups and Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs).

Notes:
Christmas is celebrated on December 25, according to the Gregorian calendar, in most of the Western world.
Orthodox Christians follow the Julian calendar and mark the festival on January 7. Russian President Vladmir Putin called for a temporary 36-hour ceasefire in Ukraine to allow Orthodox followers to attend Christmas services. Orthodox Christians are estimated to be between 200 and 300 million people globally.

Notes:
The National Health Authority (NHA) is introducing a new system to measure and grade hospital performance under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).
The new initiative will introduce the concept of ‘value- based care’, where payment will be outcome based and providers will be rewarded according to the quality of the treatment delivered. The providers will be rewarded for helping the patients improve their health.

Notes:
Uttarakhand authorities declared ‘Joshimath’ as a landslide and subsidence-hit zone, after cracks appeared in many roads and hundreds of houses.
The exact reason behind Joshimath land subsidence is still unknown but unplanned construction, over-population, obstruction of the natural flow of water, and hydel power activities are cited as possible causes.

Notes:
Delhi government announced imposition of a temporary ban on plying of BS-III petrol and BS-IV diesel four-wheelers in the national capital.
The decision was in view of the worsening air quality, as it reached the severe category owning to unfavourable meteorological conditions including clam winds and low temperatures. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) directed to implement anti-pollution curbs.