Current Affairs - 2019-20

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India and Switzerland have signed two pacts for technical cooperation in the field of Railways after delegation level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting President of Swiss Confederation Doris Leuthard in New Delhi. The aim of pacts is to cooperate in the areas of traction rolling stock, EMU and Train sets, traction propulsion equipments, freight and passenger cars, etc. To boost bilateral ties, Swiss president, Doris Leuthard is on a 3-day visit to India. The visit is significant as Switzerland is the chair of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) where India has been seeking membership. The main theme of the presidential visit is the Treaty of Friendship signed between Switzerland and India in 1948, in which the two countries gave assurances of “perpetual peace” and “unalterable friendship”.

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India fulfils 85% of its crude oil requirements through imports. As of June, 2022, Iraq, Russia and Saudi Arabia are India’s largest three crude oil suppliers.

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Southern birdwing is the largest butterfly of India, endemic to peninsular India. It was recently in news when the State Forest department of Karnataka sent a proposal to the state government to declare Southern Bird Wing butterfly as the state butterfly. 

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Gujarat’s Dahej is all set to get India’s first roll on-roll off (Ro-Ro) vessel passenger ferry services around April 2017. The Rs 550 crore projects being executed by the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB), and is expected to bring down travel time between Saurashtra regions in Gujarat with its Southern parts significantly. From Ghoga in Saurashtra to Dahej in South Gujarat takes around 10-12 hours for trucks and buses, and even by cars it is not less than 6-8 hours. Once the Ro-Ro ferry service commences, this time would be dramatically shortened to one and a half hours. Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are vessels designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, trailers, and railroad cars that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using a platform vehicle, such as a self-propelled modular transporter. This is in contrast to lift-on/lift-off (Lolo) vessels, which use a crane to load and unload cargo. Roll-on/Roll-off or ‘Ro-Ro’ services for freight transport have being proposed to be introduced at five places – Kolkata, Sahibganj, Varanasi, Patna and Bhagalpur besides setting up small terminals at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore.

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The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) won the international competition to adopt the Wax Deoiling Technology at Numaligarh Refinery Ltd (NRL) in Assam. The Wax Deoiling Plant is based on indigenously developed technology and in line with the Make in India initiative. The Wax Deoiling Technology is used to produce waxes from petroleum streams. Paraffin wax is used for making candles, polishes, medicines, food packaging, paints, leather etc, while Microcrystalline Wax is mainly used in cosmetic industry.

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The renowned Khasi Mandarin of Meghalaya has a tight and smooth skin. It has been recently issued GI certificate. 

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Section 8B of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 empowers the Central Government to impose Safeguard Duly on goods which enter in increased quantities and cause or threaten to cause serious injury to domestic industry producing like or directly competitive goods.

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Kandhamal Haladi is a golden yellow spice, named after the Kandhamal district in Odisha where it is produced. It is being cultivated there from time immemorial and is known for its medicinal value.

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The recently found exoplanet, named LHS 1140b, is about 1.43 times larger than the Earth. It has a diameter of 11,322 miles (18,221 km), compared to the Earth’s diameter of 7,918 miles (12,742 km).

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Recently, scientists have discovered the first live specimen of a bizarre, giant worm-like animal in the Philippines that plants itself into mud like carrots and feeds on noxious fumes of sulphur. Its tusk like shells, measuring three to five feet long, were first documented in the 18th century.