Current Affairs Quiz - March, 2023

Notes:
The Centre has approved the Quality Control Order (QCO) for mandatory certification of cotton bales.
The compulsory requirement of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification for cotton bales sold in India is expected to check imports of substandard cotton and ensure domestic cotton meets certain minimum quality parameters, as per the Textiles Ministry.

Notes:
The Indian High Commission in London opened its visa application process for U.K. nationals to apply for the new Young Professionals Scheme (YPS).
Under the reciprocal scheme signed between India and UK at the G20 summit in Indonesia last November, Indian and British nationals aged between 18 and 30 can apply to live and work in either country for a period of up to two years.

Notes:
Dibang Hydropower Project, which was approved by the Central Government recently, is India’s largest-ever hydropower project.
It is being set up close to China’s border on the Dibang River, in Arunachal Pradesh’s Lower Dibang Valley District. This project will be developed by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) with an estimated cost of 319 billion INR.

Notes:
Axis Bank completed acquisition of Citigroup’s India consumer business for an overall consideration of ₹11,603 crore.
The Private sector lender completed acquisition of Citibank’s consumer business and non-banking financial company (NBFC) consumer business. The sale excludes Citi’s institutional client businesses in India.

Notes:
The first round of negotiations concerning the amendments to the WHO International Health Regulations 2005 concluded recently.
More than 300 suggested changes were proposed for this document. The International Health Regulations 2005 is being implemented by 196 countries across the world. It is the binding instrument of international law that entered into force in 2007.

Notes:
The Supreme Court said it will set up a six-member panel to look into regulatory mechanisms to protect investors’ interest after a report by a US short seller Hindenburg on the Adani conglomerate led to large investor losses.
The shares of Adani group firms nose-dived last month after the short seller Hindenburg Research alleged a massive financial fraud. The Adani group strongly denied the allegation and called Hindenburg’s report a “calculated attack” on India, its institutions and growth story.

Notes:
Ales Bialiatski, the Nobel laureate, and the co-founder of Viasna human rights group has been awarded 10 years of imprisonment by the Belarus Court.
He was arrested in 2021 and his human rights organization for charged with smuggling and violation of public order. He received Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 for his role in promoting human rights and democracy.

Notes:
Polystoechotes punctate, which was thought to be extinct in the eastern United States, has been recently found at the US state of Arkansas.
It was rediscovered in 2012 after more than 5 decades. As per the researchers, the giant Jurassic-era insect may also be found in remote parts of the Ozark mountains.

Notes:
Whiskey fungus, also known as Baudoinia compniacensis, is a black-coloured fungus that grows in the vicinity of bakeries and distilleries. This fungus thrives on the alcoholic vapours that evaporate from whiskey casks during maturation.
Although research has not shown any health risks from exposure to the fungus, it can damage trees and properties. A local court in Tennessee stopped the construction of a new barrel warehouse for Jack Daniel’s, after a resident sued the company for spread of whiskey fungus.

Notes:
Compensatory afforestation is a program implemented in India to ensure that forest land diversion for non-forest purposes, such as industrial or infrastructure development, is accompanied by afforestation on an equal area of land.
According to the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA), 45 percent of fund allocated by the Central Government for compulsory afforestation between 2017 and 2022 have not been utilized by Kerala.