Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2023

Notes:
The Next Census will only count Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh and Jain as distinct religion options.
This is despite demands from several sections including Sarnaism, the Lingayat religion, to be counted as a separate religion. Census 2021, which was to be conducted in two phases, has been postponed indefinitely, with the Central government initially attributing the delay to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notes:
A Submarine mud volcano is an underwater geological structure that was formed after the constant expulsion of gas or fluids like methane from the seabed.
Scientists have recently spotted a submarine mud volcano close to Norway’s Bear Island in Barents Sea. Bear Island is the southernmost island of the Norwegian Svalbard archipelago.

Notes:
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) is the largest public health initiative in history. It was founded in 1988.
Recently Cameroon, Chad and Niger have initiated Africa’s largest polio vaccination campaign since 2020 with the support from WHO via the GPEI.

Notes:
Gomphonema rajaguruii is a newly discovered species of oxygen-supplying algae. It is named after a veteran geo-archaeologist, the late Professor S N Rajaguru.
Gomphonema rajaguruii is a freshwater diatom species. The finding is unique because it shows the characteristics of two genus — Gomphonema and Gomphoneis.

Notes:
The ‘75th UN Peacekeepers Day’ is observed on 29 May every year. “Peace begins with me” is the theme of the 75th anniversary of Peacekeepers Day.
The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, or UNIFIL marked the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers and the 75th anniversary of United Nations peacekeeping.

Notes:
Hvaldimir is the name given to a beluga whale that is suspected of being a Russian spy. It was spotted recently off the Swedish coast.
It was earlier spotted in northern Norway in April 2019 wearing a camera harness. US Navy used dolphins and sea lions as spies.

Notes:
International Organic Mahotsav-2023 is being organized from June 2 to 4 in Gadiraju Palace in Visakhapatnam.
The Rythu Sadhikara Samstha (RySS) is organising the event, which will connect farmers practicing natural farming methods and potential consumers of these crops.

Notes:
The Union Cabinet has approved the City Investments to Innovate, Integrate and Sustain 2.0 (CITIIS 2.0).
CITIIS 2.0 is a program conceived by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in partnership with the French Development Agency (AFD), KfW, the European Union (EU), and National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). The program will run for a period of four years, from 2023 till 2027.

Notes:
India recently joined the Centralised Laboratory Network (CLN) to test vaccines during pandemic and epidemics. This network currently has 15 partner facilities in 13 countries.
CLN is a part of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the Network is the largest global group which has standardised methods and materials for testing.

Notes:
Operation ‘OP Clean’ was launched recently by the Punjab Police. Its aim is to make the state drug free.
650 police teams comprising over 5,000 personnel raided more than 2,000 locations across the state to keep a tab on activities of people involved in smuggling of commercial quantities of drugs.