Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2023

Notes:
California’s legislature has passed Senate Bill (SB) 403, which seeks to add caste among the categories officially protected from discrimination in the state.
The Bill introduces comprehensive measures to counter discrimination across sectors such as education, employment, housing and public services.

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The DFL (Deutsche Fußball Liga) has entered into a collaboration with the Government of the State of Maharashtra, after a MoU was signed as part of the prestigious Shree Shiv Chhatarapati Awards ceremony in Pune, India.
The MoU lays out three core elements to support the advancement of football within the state of Maharashtra: improving the technical and sporting expertise at all levels within clubs, associations, colleges and schools; strengthening football structures across the Indian subcontinent; and specifically supporting the progression of football within the Maharashtra district.

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The Ministry of Textiles has approved the Startup Guidelines for Technical Textiles – Grant for Research and Entrepreneurship across Aspiring Innovators in Technical Textiles (GREAT) providing grant-in-aid upto INR 50 Lakhs for upto a period of 18 months.
Ministry of Textiles gives nod to 26 engineering institutions for introduction of Technical Textiles under National Technical
Textiles Mission.

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Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman launched the Mera Bill-Mera Adhikar Scheme from Gurugram on September 1.
The scheme will be launched in the states of Assam, Gujarat, and Haryana; and the UTs of Puducherry, Daman & Diu, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli. Two bumper prizes of ₹1 crore each will be given away every quarter to the winners of Mera Bill Mera Adhikaar’.

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The new U.S. – India Renewable Energy Technology Action Platform (RETAP) under the Strategic Clean Energy Partnership has been launched.
RETAP was announced meeting in Washington D. C., between His Excellency Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States of America and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, when the two leaders announced the expansion of collaboration on new and emerging technologies to accelerate the clean energy transition.

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China is exploring ways to produce its own high-bandwidth memory (HBM), the next-generation of memory chips tailored for artificial intelligence (AI) processors, amid US sanctions.
China’s top dynamic random access memory (DRAM) maker, ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), is the country’s best hope for HBMs.

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Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das has been ranked as the top central banker globally by US-based Global Finance magazine.
Das has been rated ‘A+’ in the Global Finance Central Banker Report Cards 2023.Das has been placed at the top of the list of three central bank governors who have been rated A+.

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SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages Abadi and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) Scheme of Ministry of Panchayati Raj has been conferred with the prestigious National Award for e-Governance 2023 (Gold) for Application of Emerging Technologies for Providing Citizen Centric Services.
It was granted at the 26th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) organized by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India in Indore.

Notes:
The Indian Army has launched ‘Project Naman’ to establish facilitation and grievance redressal centers for veterans and the families of personnel who have sacrificed their lives for the nation. The first center will be located in Delhi Cantonment. ‘Naman’ will house a Common Service Centre providing government-to-customer services, including pension account updates on the SPARSH portal. The SPARSH portal, initiated by the Ministry of Defence, is designed to manage pension sanction and disbursement for the Armed Forces, including the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Defence Civilians. This system offers complete transparency to defense pensioners, recording their pension history from its inception to the end of the pension due to the last eligible beneficiary. The Defense Accounts Department, under the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Pensions), will oversee this comprehensive system, handling all aspects of the pension cycle, including initiation, sanction, and disbursement, revision, and grievance resolution. ‘Project Naman’ and the SPARSH portal aim to enhance support and services for Indian Army veterans and their families.

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Adopt a Heritage 2.0 Scheme is a government initiative aimed at enhancing amenities at historical monuments in India through corporate involvement and their CSR funds. This program is a revamped version of the 2017 scheme and operates under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act (AMASR Act) of 1958. Interested stakeholders can adopt specific monuments or amenities through the dedicated web portal, providing comprehensive information and financial requirements. To promote heritage awareness, an Indian Heritage App will be launched, showing monuments with details, photos, amenities, geotagged locations, and a citizen feedback mechanism. This initiative is collaboration between the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture, and the Archaeological Survey of India.