Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2024

Notes:
A recent study of fossils from Australia showed tectonic activity played a key role in the evolution of Coelacanths. Coelacanths are deep-sea fish found near the coasts of southern Africa and Indonesia. These fish are evolutionarily unique due to their lobe-shaped fins, with bones similar to those in human arms. Coelacanths are more closely related to tetrapods, such as frogs, than to most other fish species.

Notes:
India hosts the second Global Food Regulators Summit from September 19-21, 2024, in New Delhi. It is organized by FSSAI under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Delegates from over 70 countries are expected, with 5,000 attending in person and 1.5 lakh joining virtually. The summit aims to enhance global collaboration on food safety, risk assessment, and regulatory strategies. FSSAI will launch new initiatives like the Food Import Rejection Alert Portal, Food Import Clearance System 2.0, and update the State Food Safety Index 2024.

Notes:
The International WASH Conference 2024, organized by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, held from September 17-21 in New Delhi. It aims to promote dialogue and collaboration for equitable and efficient water resource use for current and future generations. The conference theme is ‘Sustaining Rural Water Supply’ and will focus on addressing global water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) challenges. It serves as a platform for sharing knowledge, showcasing innovations, and best practices. The event has a special focus on achieving Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6).

Notes:
The Union Home and Cooperation Minister launched the standard operating procedure for ‘White Revolution 2.0’ to empower women and combat malnutrition through dairy development. The initiative aims to empower women farmers, increase local milk production, improve dairy infrastructure, and boost dairy exports. The goal is to increase milk procurement by dairy cooperatives by 50% over five years by providing market access in uncovered villages. It plans to set up and strengthen 100,000 cooperative societies linked to milk routes with necessary infrastructure like AMCU, DPMCU, and Bulk Milk Coolers. Initial funding of ₹40,000 per M-PACS will be provided by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), with future support expected from the National Programme for Dairy Development 2.0.

Notes:
The President of the French Space Agency (CNES) recently discussed various topics, including 60 years of French-India space cooperation and upcoming missions like Gaganyaan and TRISHNA. The TRISHNA mission is a collaboration ISRO and CNES. Its main objectives are to provide high-resolution observations of Earth’s surface temperature, vegetation health, and water cycle dynamics. The mission will assess urban heat islands, detect thermal anomalies from volcanic activity, and monitor snow-melt runoff and glacier dynamics. Additionally, it will gather data on aerosol optical depth, atmospheric water vapor, and cloud cover.

Notes:
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared Jordan the first country in the world to eliminate leprosy, a major public health achievement. WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praised Jordan for its efforts to stop leprosy transmission and reduce its stigma. Jordan has not reported any local cases of leprosy for over 20 years. The declaration followed an independent assessment of the situation in the country. Despite Jordan’s success, leprosy still affects over 120 countries, with more than 200,000 new cases reported annually.

Notes:
The International Day of Peace is celebrated annually on September 21. It aims to promote peace and highlight the importance of global unity for a peaceful and sustainable world. This year’s theme, ‘Cultivating a Culture of Peace,’ emphasizes the importance of fostering peaceful relations among all races and ethnicities. The day commemorates the 25th anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly’s Declaration and Programme of Action on a Culture of Peace, promoting awareness and actions that contribute to a sustainable and harmonious world.

Notes:
Tata Steel has commissioned India’s largest blast furnace at its Kalinganagar plant in Odisha as part of Phase II expansion. A blast furnace is a vertical steel shaft lined with fire-resistant materials, producing liquid metals by reacting air with metallic ore, coke, and flux. The furnace operates at over 300°C, with the hottest part water-cooled and supported by a steel frame. It produces pig iron from iron ore and is used for processing other metals like lead and copper. The process is continuous, with raw materials added at the top and molten metal and slag removed from the bottom.
Once started, it runs continuously for 4-10 years, stopping only for maintenance.

Notes:
The NAS 2024 will be conducted on December 4, covering nearly five million students across 792 districts in India. This large-scale assessment aims to evaluate the learning achievements of students in Classes 3, 6, and 9, expanding from previous surveys. The results will help identify trends in educational outcomes and inform policy decisions, especially after the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notes:
The Quad countries—India, the US, Australia, and Japan—launched the Quad Cancer Moonshot Initiative to tackle cancer. It aims to combat cervical cancer through expanded screenings and HPV vaccinations. This collaborative effort among India, the United States, Australia, and Japan addresses a significant health crisis in the Indo-Pacific region, focusing initially on cervical cancer, a largely preventable disease. India will contribute 10 million to the WHO’s Global Initiative on Digital Health and provide 7.5 million in HPV tools and vaccines. An AI-based treatment protocol is being developed, along with support for radiotherapy and capacity building in the Indo-Pacific region.