Current Affairs Quiz - September, 2024

Notes:
Seiyhama village in Nagaland celebrated the Naga king chili festival, showcasing community farming. Naga King Chili, also known as Bhoot Jolokia or Ghost Pepper, is one of the world’s hottest chillies. It was certified by Guinness World Records in 2006, with heat exceeding 1 million Scoville Heat Units. It received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2008. The chili is primarily cultivated in Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, and to a lesser extent in Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, and Meghalaya. Peak harvest months are August-September, and it is grown in large bamboo groves.

Notes:
The Pench Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh is facing habitat stress due to an overpopulation of spotted deer, leading to relocation efforts to restore ecosystem balance. The spotted deer, also known as Chital, is the most common deer species in Indian forests. Its scientific name is Axis axis. It is native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely found across Asia, including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and a small group in Pakistan.

Notes:
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) commended India for achieving high technical compliance with its recommendations to combat illicit finance. FATF is an intergovernmental body focused on fighting money laundering and terrorist financing. Its objective is to set international standards and promote effective policies at national and international levels. It was established in 1989 during the G7 Summit in Paris. FATF expanded its mandate to include terrorism financing in 2001. It includes 39 member countries, such as the US, India, China, and several European nations. India joined FATF in 2010.

Notes:
Recent flooding in the Saryu River severely disrupted transportation and impacted local communities in Ballia district, Uttar Pradesh. The Saryu River flows through Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh and holds ancient significance, being mentioned in the Vedas and the Ramayana. It is formed at the confluence of the Karnali and Mahakali rivers and is a tributary of the Ganges River.

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:
Indian men’s and women’s chess teams won gold at the 45th FIDE Chess Olympiad in Budapest, 2024. The men’s team (Arjun Erigasi, Praggnanandhaa, Gukesh, Vidit, Harikrishna) won the gold medal and the Hamilton-Russell Cup. The women’s team (Vantika Agarwal, Divya Deshmukh, Harika Dronavalli, Vaishali, Tania Sachdev) won the gold medal and Vera Menchik Cup. The 46th Olympiad will be held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in 2026.

Notes:
Azerbaijan has proposed a new climate fund to be financed through voluntary contributions from fossil-fuel producing countries and companies. This initiative was introduced during the climate change conference COP29, aimed at addressing the financial needs of developing nations in combating climate change. While the proposal is well-intentioned, there are concerns about its potential effectiveness, given the challenges in securing adequate funding. The fund’s establishment reflects ongoing struggles in climate finance negotiations, especially regarding the commitment of developed countries to mobilize sufficient resources for climate action.

Notes:
Nearly 97.7% of atrocities against Scheduled Castes in 2022 were reported from 13 states. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh recorded the highest number of such cases. The same 13 states reported 98.91% of atrocities against Scheduled Tribes. A total of 51,656 cases were registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in 2022. Uttar Pradesh had 12,287 cases (23.78% of total), Rajasthan had 8,651 cases (16.75%), and Madhya Pradesh had 7,732 cases (14.97%).

Notes:
The Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry approved the Sustainability in spice sector through progressive, innovative and collaborative interventions for export development (SPICED) scheme to boost spice exports. It aims to enhance the export of spices and value-added spice products, improve cardamom productivity, and upgrade spice quality for export. The scheme will be implemented until 2025-26, covering the remaining 15th Finance Commission term. It focuses on value addition, innovation, and sustainability in the spice sector.

Notes:
Astronomers using the Green Bank Telescope (GBT) discovered a new millisecond pulsar in the Terzan 6 globular cluster. Pulsars are rapidly rotating neutron stars that emit radiation in regular pulses, from seconds to milliseconds. They have strong magnetic fields, funneling particle jets along magnetic poles, producing powerful beams of light. These beams are swept around as the star rotates due to misalignment between the magnetic field and spin axis. The pulsar appears to “switch off” when the light faces away from Earth, creating its periodic pulses.