Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2021

Notes:
The James Webb Space Telescope is being manufactured in collaboration between European Space Agency (ESA), Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and NASA.
It is a successor of NASA’s Hubble Telescope and will complement its discoveries. The telescope is scheduled for launch from French Guiana on an Ariane 5 rocket on 31 October 2021. NASA announced that two comprehensive systems tests have been completed by the testing teams.

Notes:
ISRO has recently completed the development of a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), which is capable of producing high-resolution images.
NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR) is a collaboration for a dual-frequency L and S-band SAR for a joint earth observation satellite mission. It will be the first satellite mission to use two different radar frequencies to observe the earth surface.

Notes:
The Odisha government announced the setting up of District Investment Promotion Agencies (DIPAs) in 30 districts.
The DIPAs will operate under the leadership of the District Collector with other district officials including SPs. The DIPAs will be housed at the District Collectorate and will seek to promote local entrepreneurship and investment.

Notes:
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released the interim economic outlook. It has pegged India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth to rebound to 12.6% in FY22.
As per the organisation, the growth of India will be the fastest in the world, followed by China at 7.8% growth. OECD also estimated that India’s GDP is expected to grow at 5.4% in the following financial year.

Notes:
The Arjuna Sahayak irrigation is being implemented by the Government of Uttar Pradesh on the river Dhasan.
The estimated cost of the project is Rs.2,600 crore and is scheduled to be completed in this year. It is expected to irrigate more than 1.5 lakh farmers and provide water to 168 villages of the state.

Notes:
In line with the principles of New Education Policy (NEP) AICTE has stated that Physics, Chemistry and Maths will not be mandatory for admission in Engineering courses.
AICTE has stated that these subjects will continue to be important engineering courses but students who opt for Biotechnology, Textile or Agriculture Engineering etc will have an option not to study Maths, Physics and Chemistry in Engineering.

Notes:
India’s COVID 19 vaccination drive has reached an important milestone of administering 3 crore vaccinations to the public in a record time.
India has become one of the very few countries to achieve this fete. India commenced its vaccination drive on 16th January 2021 and this milestone has been achieved in a shortest possible time.

Notes:
The Chenab Bridge is a steel and concrete arch bridge being constructed by the Indian railways. It is constructed between Bakkal and Kauri of Jammu and Kashmir. When completed, it would be the world’s highest bridge.
Recently, the Railways has achieved an engineering fete by completing the construction of the arch bottom of the bridge.

Notes:
The National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research Act, 1998 was enacted to declare the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research at Mohali, Punjab to be an institute of national importance.
Six new institutes in Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Hajipur, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Raebareli were set up during 2007-08. Recently a bill was introduced in Lok Sabha to provide the national importance tag to six institutes.

Notes:
The Marine Aids to Navigation Bill, 2021 was recently introduced in the Lok Sabha. The bill seeks to provide a new framework to establish and manage vessel traffic services.
It also seeks to use the term “marine aids to navigation” instead of “lighthouse” to facilitate use of modern forms of aids to navigation. It aims to repeal the colonial Lighthouse Act, 1927, and empower the DG of Lighthouses and Lightships (DGLL) with additional power.