Daily Current Affairs Quiz: May 24, 2024

Notes:
Spain has joined the International Solar Alliance (ISA) as its 99th member. The ratification was handed over in New Delhi by Ambassador José María Ridao Domínguez to Joint Secretary Abhishek Singh. The ISA, co-founded by India and France during COP21 in 2015, aims to promote solar energy deployment, enhancing energy access, security, and transition in member countries to combat climate change.

Notes:
The Indian athletic contingent won three medals at the inaugural Asian Relay Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, held on May 20-21, 2024. The Indian team secured one gold in the 4×400-meter mixed relay, setting a national record of 3 minutes 14.1 seconds with Muhammed Ajmal, Jyothika Sri Dandi, Amoj Jacob, and Subha Venkatesan. The men’s 4×400-meter relay team won silver, clocking 3 minutes 05.76 seconds, and the women’s 4×400-meter relay team also secured silver with a time of 3 minutes 33.55 seconds. Sixteen countries participated, and this event was a qualifier for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Notes:
According to the Wildlife Institute of India, about 4,000 dolphins inhabit the Ganga and its tributaries, with Uttar Pradesh home to approximately 2,000. To protect these dolphins, the UP government declared a Dolphin Sanctuary in Chambal, where 111 dolphins have been recorded. Prime Minister Modi’s Project Dolphin has raised public interest in these endangered animals. The Namami Gange initiative aims to stabilize and double the dolphin population by 2030, integrating pollution control, wetland conservation, and public participation. The river dolphin is a globally endangered species, thriving in various rivers like Ganga, Yamuna, and Chambal.

Notes:
Six people, including two children, drowned after their boat capsized in the Ujani Dam backwaters in Pune, Maharashtra. Ujani Dam, located on the Bhima River near Ujjani village in Solapur, is an earth-fill cum masonry gravity dam. Constructed from 1977 to 1980, it serves irrigation and hydroelectric power needs. The dam is 63 meters high, 2,534 meters long, and has a 12MW power generation capacity, but suffers from severe water pollution.

Notes:
The SAM pilot models were recently launched in Telangana as part of the AMRUT scheme. SAM is a sustainable urban water management technique involving shallow borewells to pump and recharge groundwater. It aims to raise water tables through rainfall recharge. The initiative is linked to the National Aquifer Mapping and Management program (NAQUIM), which characterizes aquifers and develops groundwater management plans.