UPSC ENGLISH QUIZ 23.07.2025

Explanation

• President of India presented the Swachh Survekshan Awards 2024-25 (9th Edition) organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in New Delhi.
• The awards, instituted under the Swachh Bharat Mission under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, were started in 2016 with 73 cities.
• This year, 4,589 cities were covered in the survey that was held from April 2024 to March 2025.
• The President highlighted that cleanliness is one of the most important aspects of the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision and urged countrymen to move forward in making the country clean, healthy, and developed.

This year, the awards were presented in revamped format

• Union Housing and Urban Affairs said last year stated that the next round of the Swachhata rankings will have a separate category for cities that have been ranked number one in the past, leaving the general competition open for new winners.
• To address it, in this 9th edition of SS, a special category Super Swachh League has been introduced, creating a separate league of cities excelling in cleanliness. This category recognises the cities that had been in the top three of their categories in the previous three years.

Explanation

• Ministry of Minority Affairs (MoMA) launched Skill Training and Women Entrepreneurship Development Project under Pradhan Mantri Virasat Samvardhan (PM VIKAS) Yojana.
• Under this, 150 youth will be trained in Internet of Things and 300 women trainees will be trained in Leadership and Entrepreneurship Development.
• During the training, the candidates will be given stipend and will be supported for employment and self-employment opportunities.

Pradhan Mantri-Vikas (PM-VIKAS) Yojana

• It is a skill development initiative of the Ministry of Minority Affairs (MoMA) focused on skill training, entrepreneurship and leadership development needs of minority and artisan communities across the country.
• The scheme is implemented in coordination with Skill India Mission and is integrated with Skill India Portal (SIP).
• PM VIKAS Scheme integrates the earlier skill and education initiatives of the Ministry to provide a common platform to promote socio-economic development of the six notified minority communities of India – Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis (Zoroastrians).
• Under the scheme, beneficiaries are also provided with credit linking facility by linking them with loan schemes offered by National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC).

Explanation

• Scientists have detected signals from the largest black hole merger collision ever observed, marking a landmark achievement in the study of the most powerful celestial collisions in the universe.
• The discovery was made through gravitational waves and opens up new possibilities in understanding black hole physics and the origin of the universe.
• The event, named GW231123, was observed by the LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA collaboration, which together form the Gravitational Wave Network.

Black Hole Merger

• A black hole merger occurs when two black holes orbiting each other slowly move closer to each other, emitting gravitational waves (ripples in space-time that arise from some of the most violent and energetic events in the universe).
• When these black holes come very close to each other, they collide and merge into a larger, single black hole.
• These gravitational waves are detected on Earth by gravitational wave observatories such as the LVK network (LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA).

Explanation

• Gujarat became the first state in India to launch a genome sequencing project focused entirely on tribal communities.
• The project was announced at a consultation meeting chaired by State Tribal Development Minister Kuber Dindor.
• It aims to identify genetic health risks for tribal populations and enable precision healthcare.
• It was confirmed that the genomes of 2,000 individuals from 17 tribal districts will be sequenced under the initiative.
• The project is titled “Creation of Reference Genome Database for Tribal Population in Gujarat” and is being led by the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC).
• This genome project is a part of the state’s 2025–26 budget and has been integrated with broader health planning.
• The initiative will focus on early detection and targeted treatment of genetic disorders such as sickle cell anemia, thalassemia and certain inherited cancers.
• Mr. Dindor stated that the initiative would bridge scientific research and traditional knowledge for long-term improvement in tribal health.

Explanation

• India achieved international acclaim at the 57th International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) in Dubai, with all four participants winning medals.
• Two gold medals were secured by Devesh Pankaj Bhaiya from Maharashtra and Sandeep Kuchi from Telangana.
• Silver medals were won by Debadatta Priyadarshi from Odisha and Ujjwal Kesari from Delhi.
• The event, held from July 5 to 14, saw participation from 354 students representing 90 countries.
• India finished sixth in the overall medal tally along with Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Israel.
• This was India’s 26th appearance at the IChO, where students have consistently delivered impressive performances.
• HBCSE, under the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), acts as the nodal center for training and selecting Indian students for various International Olympiads in subjects including Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Astronomy and Astrophysics.