UPSC QUIZ 10.11.2023

Explanation:

• Indian Prime Minister has announced an extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) for an additional five years.
• The PMGKAY was first introduced in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, and was designed to provide 5kg free foodgrains to eligible ration card holders under the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA).
• Initially set to expire in December 2022, the scheme was extended till December 2023 and now, it has been extended for an additional five years.
• Since its inception, the government has allocated 1,118 lakh metric tonnes of foodgrains from its central procurement pool at a cost of Rs 3.9 lakh crore.

Explanation:

• India and Bhutan agreed to discuss new routes of Regional Connectivity, and upgrade border and immigration posts, in order to enhance trade and Partnership during Bhutan King’s India visit.

Regional Connectivity

• India and Bhutan have agreed to discuss new routes of regional connectivity, which includes the development of a cross-border rail link between Gelephu in Bhutan and Kokrajhar in Assam, spanning 58 km.
• Additionally, there is a plan to explore a second rail link of approximately 18 km between Samtse in Bhutan and Banarhat in the tea gardens area of West Bengal.
• Both sides discussed upgrading border and immigration posts to support this project, and it could be a significant development in the border area.

Trade and Connectivity

• The two countries agreed to facilitate trade by allowing Bhutanese trade items to be carried further from Haldibari in West Bengal to Chilahati in Bangladesh, aiming to enhance trade opportunities and ease the movement of goods between Bhutan and Bangladesh through Indian territory.

Explanation:

• Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral addressed the fourth edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC) where he stressed that building networks and partnerships like the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) would be instrumental in ensuring the security and stability of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

IPMDA

• The IPMDA, introduced by the Quad group (consisting of India, Australia, Japan, and the US) at the Tokyo summit, 2022, aims to monitor "dark shipping" and create a more comprehensive and precise real-time maritime overview of partner nations' waters.
• It focuses on integrating the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean region (IOR) in the Indo-Pacific.

Dark Shipping

• Dark shipping is a term used to describe a vessel operating with its Automatic Identification System (AIS) turned off .
• AIS transponder systems transmit a ship’s position at sea, alongside identification data and other useful information that vessels and maritime authorities can reference.

Explanation:

• India celebrates as Vidit Santosh Gujrathi (FIDE Grand Swiss) and Vaishali Ramesh Babu (FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss) secure victories in the FIDE Grand Swiss Open, earning coveted spots in the 2024 Candidates Tournament for a chance to challenge the World Chess Champion.The World Chess Championship 2024 is scheduled to take place in Toronto, Canada in April 2024.

FIDE Grand Swiss Open

• The FIDE Grand Swiss Open is a chess tournament that is part of the qualification for the World Championship cycle.
• The FIDE Grand Swiss and FIDE Women’s Grand Swiss 2023 was held at the Villa Marina, Douglas, Isle of Man.
• The top two players in the open event will qualify for the 2024 Candidates Tournament, which will determine the challenger for the World Champion.

Explanation:

• Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) launched a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) portal to improve transparency in CSR initiatives.
• The portal was launched during the closing ceremony of “Vigilance Awareness Week 2023 (30 October to 5 November)” held at the registered office of the company in Delhi.
• The theme of this week was “Say no to corruption; commit to the Nation”, which aimed to raise public awareness about corruption and promote a corruption-free work environment.
• The objective of this portal is to facilitate transparency in receipt and disposal of CSR requests through various organizations and institutions.
• IREDA is a Mini Ratna (Category-I) enterprise of the Government of India under the administrative control of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).