Current Affairs Quiz - December, 2023

Notes:
India for the first time invited bids for 20 critical mineral blocks, including lithium and graphite. This is not only seen to boost economic development but also a part of the nation’s strategy to ensure adequate domestic resources of essential raw materials for powering the green energy transition.
The auction will be held online, using a transparent two-stage ascending forward auction process. Eligible bidders will be chosen based on the highest percentage of the quoted value of dispatched minerals they offer.

Notes:
Angadvir Singh Bajwa and Ganemat Sekhon won the mixed skeet gold for Punjab in the 66th National shooting championship.
In the women’s 50-metre rifle 3-position event, Asian Games champion Sift Kaur Samra beat Olympian Anjum Moudgil by 1.9 point for the gold.

Notes:
The common term used for tactics like false scarcity claims, confirm-shaming, forced bundling, and subscription traps in online transactions, which were recently addressed by the Indian government, is “dark patterns.” Government of India has notified guidelines banning online platforms from deploying deceptive designs or ‘dark patterns’ tricking users into certain choices benefitting the company. Any commercial entity systematically offering goods or services in India must refrain from such practices numbered in the rules. With e-commerce expanding, curbs became imperative as exploitative mechanisms undermine consumer autonomy and fair competition. Companies could face penalties for violations. As digital adoption rises, informed consent and transparency in interface flows matter. Hence regulations aim safeguarding web-use.

Notes:
Indian activist Safeena Hussain has been awarded the prestigious $500,000 WISE Prize for her work promoting girls’ education across rural India. Her NGO Educate Girls has helped over 1.4 million girls re-enroll in schools in remote villages, drawing global recognition to grassroots education reform. Her interventions that focus on community participation have also boosted learning outcomes. The WISE prize validates the impact of her innovative model that is empowering India’s most marginalized girls to access their right to education.

Notes:
The recently announced roadmap by the National Biofuels Coordination Committee (NBCC) lays out a phased plan for mandating blending of compressed biogas (CBG) into city gas distribution (CGD) networks across India. As per this roadmap, CGD entities will have to start blending CBG with compressed natural gas (CNG) for transportation and piped natural gas (PNG) for households from the financial year 2025-26.
The blending percentage will be 1% of total CNG and PNG consumption in FY26, progressively increasing to 3% in FY27 and 4% in FY28. From financial year 2028-29 onwards, the obligatory CBG blending percentage has been set at 5% of overall CNG and domestic PNG demand.

Notes:
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar recently inaugurated the 5th edition of Global Ayurveda Festival in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. The Global Ayurveda Festival (GAF) 2023 with the theme ‘Emerging Challenges in Healthcare and a Resurgent Ayurveda’ was held from 1 – 5 December.
The conclave witnessed the participation of Kerala Governor, Chief Minister of Kerala, Union Ayush Minister, Union Minister of Animal Husbandry Parshottam Rupala, President of the Republic of Mauritius, Minister of State for Indigenous Medicine of Sri Lanka, among others.

Notes:
The third edition of the IIGF is being conducted under the overarching theme “Moving Forward – Calibrating Bharat’s Digital Agenda”.
The India Internet Governance Forum is an initiative associated with the UN Internet Governance Forum (UN IGF). It is a hybrid event and the event is being held at Bharat Mandapam, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. The event is an effort to focus on issues such as building a secure, trusted and resilient cyberspace for, Enabling Innovation for India’s Developmental Goals etc.

Notes:
Since 1947, Norway has sent an annual gift to Britain, expressing thanks for its support during World War Two.
This year, the symbol of historic gratitude has arrived in Trafalgar Square. At 20 meters tall and approximately 70 years old, this year’s “queen of the forest” was carefully selected from woodlands around Oslo, then ceremonially felled in November.

Notes:
The draft text on the Santiago Network has been adopted by the Parties and sent to the Conference of the Parties and Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement.
The collaborative framework aims to connect vulnerable developing countries with technical support and resources to effectively address and manage loss and damage caused by climate change. The waste sector has seen the launch of LOW Methane, an initiative to drastically amplify global action to reduce methane emissions from the waste. It aims to deliver at least one million tonnes of annual waste sector methane reductions well before 2030.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Indian Art, Architecture & Design Biennale (IAADB) 2023 at Red Fort.
During the programme, the Prime Minister also inaugurated the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design’ at Red Fort and the student Biennale- Samunnati. He also launched a Commemorative Stamp.