Current Affairs Quiz - June, 2024

Notes:
India dissociated from the final document of a Peace Summit in Switzerland, emphasizing peace proposals acceptable to both Russia and Ukraine. The summit, held on June 15-16, 2024, addressed the ongoing Ukraine war’s impact. Key points included nuclear safety at Ukraine’s plants, global food security, and humanitarian issues like prisoner exchanges and the return of displaced Ukrainians. Attendees reaffirmed commitments to international law and UN resolutions.

Notes:
IN-SPACe’s Pre-Incubation Entrepreneurship (PIE) program aims to foster innovation and entrepreneurship in India. It targets Indian citizens, especially recent graduates, and startups registered after July 1, 2022. The program spans 21 months across three phases—Ideate, Innovate, and Demonstrate—to transform ideas into prototypes. Participants gain entrepreneurial skills and may receive grants to advance scientific discoveries and socio-economic growth, without prior funding from private or government sources.

Notes:
Scientists have discovered how to control the Casimir Effect to enhance tiny machines. The Casimir Effect, predicted by Hendrik Casimir in 1948, involves an attractive force between two closely placed uncharged conducting plates due to quantum vacuum fluctuations. This phenomenon, filled with virtual particles, has been experimentally verified and is crucial in nanotechnology and condensed matter physics, significantly impacting micromachined devices and our understanding of vacuum energy.

Notes:
The ICIMOD’s Hindu Kush Himalaya snow update for 2024 reported record low snow persistence in India’s Ganga River basin, alongside similar challenges in the Brahmaputra and Indus basins. The HKH region spans eight countries and is crucial for Asia’s major river systems, supporting 1.9 billion people. It holds vast snow and glacier resources, essential for ecosystem services and downstream communities, making it pivotal for water supply across South and East Asia.

Notes:
The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was awarded the 2024 Blue Planet Prize for its role as the global authority on biodiversity, ecosystem services, and nature’s contributions to people. Established in 1992, this prestigious award by Japan’s Asahi Glass Foundation recognizes scientific contributions towards solving global environmental challenges. IPBES shares the honor with Robert Costanza from University College London for his work in ecological economics, each receiving USD 500,000 for their achievements.

Notes:
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued a notice to the Odisha government over unpaid compensation for a custodial death. From 2017 to 2022, India reported over 660 custodial deaths, with Gujarat having the highest at 80. Constitutional safeguards include Articles 14 and 21, while legal safeguards encompass Sections 330, 331 IPC, and 176 Cr.P.C. NHRC guidelines and Supreme Court rulings further protect detainees, ensuring prompt reporting and proper arrest procedures.

Notes:
According to the World Bank’s Global Gas Flaring Tracker Report, gas flaring reached 148 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2023, the highest since 2019. Gas flaring, the burning of natural gas during oil extraction, persists due to market constraints, regulatory issues, and political factors. Although flaring safely disposes of gas, it wastes a valuable resource that could be used for power generation or conservation.

Notes:
Telugu Desam Party’s Narsipatnam MLA, C. Ayyanna Patrudu, was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the 16th Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly on June 22, 2024. His election was unopposed as no other MLA filed a nomination for the Speaker’s post.

Notes:
Indian botanists discovered two new plant species in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Arunachal Pradesh. Dendrophthoe longensis, an aerial stem-parasitic plant, was found on mango trees in the evergreen forests of the Andamans. Petrocosmea arunachalense, a small, white, and hairy herb with purple blotches, was discovered in a cave in Arunachal Pradesh. It is only the second known Petrocosmea species in India.

Notes:
Despite extensive cleanup efforts, Paris’ Seine River remains too polluted for swimming events in the upcoming Olympic Games. The Seine, France’s second-longest river at 775 kilometers, has a drainage basin of 79,000 square kilometers, mainly in northern France. Originating in Burgundy, it flows through Paris for 13 kilometers before emptying into the English Channel. Major tributaries like the Marne join it near Paris.