Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2023

Notes:
The Union Minister for Jal Shakti commenced a two-day National Conference on Rural Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Partners’ Forum (RWPF).
The conference’s theme is ‘Accelerating Progress towards a Swachh Sujal Bharat’. It was organised in New Delhi.

Notes:
The IRC (Indian Road Congress) codes and guidelines were issued recently by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
These guidelines, approved by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, aim to improve road safety by incorporating best practices and global standards, providing better visibility and intuitive guidance to drivers.

Notes:
The Karnataka Fisheries Development Corporation (KFDC) will soon offer Matsya Vahini e-autorickshaws to fishermen on a lease basis, enabling them to sell fish and value-added fish products more effectively.
The project’s pilot phase commences in Bengaluru, with the distribution of 150 such vehicles, priced at ₹8 lakh each, to selected fishermen beneficiaries identified by the Fisheries Department.

Notes:
Brammah is a mountain massif located in the Kishtwar Himalayas of Jammu and Kashmir, India, situated east of Kishtwar town and in close proximity to the Himachal Pradesh border.
An Indian team has made history by successfully reaching the summit of Mt Brammah 1, which is standing at a height of 6,416 metres.

Notes:
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) asked its affiliated schools to consider providing the option of Indian languages mentioned in Schedule 8 of the Constitution as a medium of instruction, in addition to the existing options, from pre-primary classes to Class 12.
The move is a part of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which envisages the use of mother tongue or regional or Indian languages as the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5, and preferably till Grade 8 and beyond.

Notes:
The Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat released the Manual for Disaster Management Plan (DMP) during the two-day national conference of Rural WASH Partners Forum. The Manual is developed by Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation to ensure safety, uninterrupted supply and minimum loss of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) assets and services involving stakeholders at national, state, district, and village level.

Notes:
An invasion of Ludwigia peruviana over the last decade is suppressing edible forage for elephants, gaurs and other herbivores, increasing the risk of man-animal conflict in the area.
The aquatic weed is native to some countries in Central and South America, including Peru. It is threatening elephant habitats and foraging areas in Valparai, a Tamil Nadu hill station close to the Kerala border.

Notes:
The Market Access Initiatives (MAI) Scheme has been updated to allow startups and new exporters to receive airfare reimbursement for participating in international events, and existing exporters will now receive a 20% higher ceiling for this incentive.
Despite these measures, India’s goods exports experienced a significant 22% year-on-year contraction in June, reaching $32.97 billion, marking the steepest decline in three years. The MAI Scheme aims to provide financial support for export promotion activities.

Notes:
Byculla railway station is India’s oldest railway station. Following five years of extensive restoration efforts, India’s oldest railway station in central Mumbai, with a remarkable 169-year-old history, has been meticulously revived.
As a result of this remarkable achievement, the station has been honoured with the prestigious Asia Pacific cultural heritage award by UNESCO.

Notes:
In the desert city of Yazd, Iran, residents have ingeniously designed tall, chimney-like structures called wind catchers or badgirs, which draw in cooling breezes to provide relief from the extreme heat that often exceeds 40 degrees Celsius during the summer.
These architectural marvels are a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative to energy-consuming air-conditioners, making them both cost-effective and carbon-free.