Daily Current Affairs Quiz: January 9, 2025

Notes:
Divers near Kalpeni Island in Lakshadweep discovered possible wreckage of a 17th or 18th-century European warship. Kalpeni Island is part of the Lakshadweep archipelago in the Arabian Sea, covering 2.79 square kilometers. It is 287 kilometers from Kochi, Kerala, and lies southeast of Kavaratti Island. Kalpeni forms a single atoll with islets Tilakkam, Pitti, and Cheriyam. The island is known for coral reefs, clear waters, white beaches, and a 2.8-kilometer-wide lagoon, it is ideal for snorkeling and scuba diving. The island’s culture reflects its Maliku community heritage, with a climate similar to Kerala.

Notes:
Dr. V. Narayanan, Director of Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), has been appointed as the new ISRO Chairman and Space Secretary. He will succeed S. Somanath on January 14, 2025, for a two-year term or until further orders. Dr. Narayanan, a propulsion expert, joined ISRO in 1984 and has worked on projects like ASLV, PSLV, GSLV Mk-II, and GSLV Mk-III. He chaired the expert committee for Chandrayaan-2’s hard landing and delivered propulsion systems for Chandrayaan-3. His predecessor, S. Somanath, led major missions, including Chandrayaan-3, Aditya-L1, and Gaganyaan’s first flight.

Notes:
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) launched a cashless treatment scheme for road accident victims. The scheme will cover all road accidents caused by motor vehicles, implemented through an IT platform combining eDAR and NHA systems. A pilot program, started in Chandigarh in 2024 and expanded to six states, focused on providing timely medical care during the golden hour. Initiatives include Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) for trucks, E-Rickshaw safety guidelines, vehicle tracking devices, and driver training institutes. Faceless services for vehicle registration and monitoring will be standardized nationwide by March 2025.

Notes:
A male tiger from Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary in Yavatmal, Maharashtra, traveled 500 km to Solapur, an unusual journey. Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Yavatmal district, Maharashtra. It is called as the “Green Oasis” of southern Maharashtra. It is irrigated by rivers like Purna, Krishna, Bhima, and Tapti, providing abundant water. The sanctuary lies in a basalt region formed by ancient lava activity.

Notes:
Researchers introduced Twigstats, a tool for time-stratified ancestry analysis, in a Nature study. Twigstats significantly enhances statistical power and reduces errors in ancestry studies. It provides high-resolution, precise individual-level ancestry analysis. The tool is coded in C++ and uses the statistical language R. Twigstats enables fine-grained analysis of specific historical periods.