Current Affairs Quiz - July, 2024

Notes:
Researchers from the Botanical Survey of India discovered a new plant species, Phlogacanthus sudhansusekharii, in Itanagar Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh. This species, part of the Acanthaceae family and Phlogacanthus genus, honors Dr. Sudhansu Sekhar Dash for his contributions to plant research. The Phlogacanthus genus has 13 species in India, primarily in northeastern and eastern Himalayan states.

Notes:
Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has launched the Rajiv Gandhi Civil Abhaya Hastham Scheme 2024. This scheme provides Rs 1 lakh financial assistance to economically weaker students (EWS/BC/SC/ST) who have passed the UPSC preliminary exam to help them prepare for the mains. The scheme aims to increase the number of civil employees in the state. Eligible students must apply online once the official website is released.

Notes:
The tea industry seeks higher rates under the RoDTEP scheme to boost export competitiveness. RoDTEP, a flagship export promotion scheme by India’s Commerce Ministry, refunds unrebated central, state, and local duties on inputs. Announced in September 2019, it replaced the MEIS scheme following a WTO ruling. Effective January 1, 2021, RoDTEP supports crucial export sectors to enhance competitiveness, create jobs, and promote economic growth, aiming for Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

Notes:
The European Space Agency’s Ramses spacecraft will accompany the asteroid Apophis during its close pass of Earth in 2029. The Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety (RAMSES) aims to intercept Apophis, which will pass within 32,000 km of Earth on April 13, 2029. Visible to 2 billion people, this rare event allows researchers to study Apophis’s altered characteristics due to Earth’s gravity, enhancing planetary defense capabilities.

Notes:
National Broadcasting Day is celebrated in India every July 23, marking the start of radio broadcasting on this day in 1927 by the Indian Broadcasting Company from Bombay. Renamed All India Radio (AIR) in 1936, it grew into one of the world’s largest networks. Radio has been vital in connecting India, offering news, music, and stories, and playing a key role in historical events like the freedom struggle.

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The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) is constructing a new ocean research vessel for India’s Deep Ocean Mission to explore rare minerals in the Indian Ocean. Established in 1998, NCPOR is India’s leading R&D institution for Polar and Southern Ocean research. It coordinates polar expeditions and scientific research in Antarctica, the Arctic, the Himalayas, and the Southern Ocean, and is located in Vasco da Gama, Goa, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

Notes:
Bibhuti Bhusan Nayak has been unanimously elected as the new President of the Institute of Cost Accountants of India (ICMAI) for 2024-25, succeeding Ashwin Dalwadi. The election took place on July 22, 2024, in New Delhi. TCA Srinivasa Prasad has been elected as Vice President. Established as a statutory body on May 28, 1959, ICMAI operates under the Cost and Works Accountants Act, 1959.

Notes:
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced village-level camps to enroll women in the ‘Mukhya Mantri Bahan Beti Maiqui Swabalamban Protsahan Yojana,’ providing Rs 1,000 per month to women aged 21-49. At a Sahibganj district event, he unveiled projects worth Rs 88 crore. The scheme, approved on June 28, will benefit 45 lakh women and cost the state Rs 5,500 crore annually, aiming to empower and make women self-reliant.

Notes:
ISRO successfully conducted the second experimental flight for Air Breathing Propulsion Technology, which uses atmospheric oxygen as an oxidizer instead of carrying one onboard. This makes rockets lighter and more efficient. However, the technology is applicable only within the denser layers of Earth’s atmosphere (up to 70 kilometers altitude). Beyond this, rockets must switch to a stage with both fuel and an onboard oxidizer.

Notes:
The Union government has stated that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has reduced the tax burden on common people. Tax incidence refers to how a tax burden is divided between stakeholders such as buyers and sellers. There are two forms: statutory incidence, which determines who is legally responsible for paying the tax, and economic incidence, which reflects the final burden on economic welfare.