1
www.civilserviceindia.com
Arts and Culture
Ladakh:
Ladakh (meaning "land of high mountain
passes") is a mountainous region in North
India. It is a region administered by India
as a union territory, and constituting a part
of the larger Kashmir region, which has
been the subject of dispute between India,
Pakistan, and China since 1947. Ladakh is
known for remote mountain beauty,
studded with monasteries and stupas.
Ladakh is often referred as "Little Tibet"
due to its geographical proximity and
strong links to Tibetan culture.
Recently, Centre has decided to form a
committee to protect the language, culture
and land of Ladakh and ensuring citizen's
participation in the Union Territory's
development.
The announcement was made on 6 January
2021 by the Ministry of Home Affairs
announced that a panel has been set up
under the chairmanship of Kishan Reddy to
find solutions on the issues related to
language, culture and conservation of land
in the union territory of Ladakh due to
developmental activities.
The decision to form the Committee came
after Union Home Minister Amit Shah met
a 10-member delegation from Ladakh who
expressed their views about the need to
protect Ladakh's unique cultural identity.
The Committee will be headed by the
Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy
and will include elected representatives
from Ladakh, Ladakh Autonomous Hill
Development Council, central government,
and the Ladakh administration.
26th KIFF:
It refers to the 26th Kolkata International
Film Festival. The festival was virtually
inaugurated by the West Bengal Chief
Minister Mamata Banerjee on January 8,
2021.
The inaugural ceremony was also virtually
attended by Bollywood superstar and West
Bengal's brand ambassador Shah Rukh
Khan from Mumbai.
The festival will screen 131 movies from 45
countries till January 13. Legendary
filmmaker Satyajit Ray's classic 'Apur
Sansar' will be the inaugural film of the
festival.
The Chief Minister has also raised the
occupancy limit of theatres from 50
percent to 100 percent in the state with
adherence to COVID safety protocols.
Cherry Blossom Mao Festival:
2
www.civilserviceindia.com
The fesival was recently held on the 9th
January 2021 at Senapati district of Manipur
marking the beginning of pink season in
the district.
The Mao area of Senapati district in
Manipur is known for Cherry Blossom, a
plant which is popularly known as Sakura
in Japan.
The festival is being organized by the
Manipur government every year since 2017
onward.
The festival features the picturesque
landscape of Mao town adorned with
beautiful Cherry Blossom flowers.
Note: cherry blossom is a flower of many
trees of genus Prunus. Prunus cerasoides is
called wild Himalayan cherry or the Indian
wild cherry, and sour cherry. In Hindi it is
known as padam, pajja, or padmakashtha.
Mannathu Padmanabhan Ji:
Mannathu Padmanabhan (1878 – 1970) was
an Indian social reformer and freedom
fighter from Kerala. He is recognized as the
founder of the Nair Service Society (NSS).
He created an organization for the welfare
of the Nair community that is found
primarily in Kerala. He revived and
reshaped the old concept of village
societies, the Karayogams, which
practically set the tenor of family and
village life.
He took part in the Vaikom (1924) and
Guruvayoor(1931) temple-entry
Satyagrahas.
In 1959, he along with Christian Churches
led a united opposition against the State
Communist Ministry, which became
known as the Vimochana Samaram
(liberation struggle).
He was honoured with the title Bharata
Kesari by the President of India. He also
received Padma Bhushan in 1966.
Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi
paid tribute to Sri Mannathu
Padmanabhan Ji on his jayanti and
remembered him for his pioneering
contribution towards community service,
social justice and cultural regeneration.
World Hindi Day:
The World Hindi day is celebrated every
year on January 10 in order to promote the
language world-wide.
World Hindi Day (Diwas) was first
celebrated on 10 January, 2006. It was
chosen to mark the anniversary of first
World Hindi Conference organized in 1975
which was inaugurated by the then Prime
Minister of India, Indira Gandhi in Nagpur.
The first conference was attended by 122
3
www.civilserviceindia.com
Defence
National
50 New Kendriya
Vidyalaya to be setup
through the country
The Union Cabinet,
chaired by the Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
has approved the setting
up of 50 new
delegates from 30 countries where then
Mauritius Prime Minister Seewoosagur
Ramgoolam was the chief guest.
Hindi is the fourth most spoken language
of the world. It is mother tongue of around
258 million people across the world. It is
spoken in Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, UK,
USA, New Zealand, Germany, Uganda,
UAE, Guyana, Trinidad, Suriname, South
Africa and Mauritius. The language is
spoken by more than 43 core people in the
world.
The Pacific island country, Fiji also has
adopted Hindi as an official language.
However, World Hindi Day and National
Hindi Diwas are completely different.
National Hindi Diwas is celebrated every
year on September 14. On that day in 1949,
the constituent assembly adopted Hindi,
written in Devanagari script, as the official
language of the Union.
Origin of Hindi: The word was transferred
from the Sanskrit language “Sindhu”. The
word “Sindhu” became “Hindu” after
Iranians entered India.
Indian Navy:
The Indian Navy is the naval branch of the
Indian Armed Forces. The President of
India is the Supreme Commander of the
Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a
four-star admiral, commands the navy.
Indian Navy was founded on 26 January
1950. The current Chief of Navy Staff (CNS)
is Karambir singh.
Recently, in a major push to Make-in-India
initiative, the Indian Navy signed a
contract with the Bharat Electronics
Limited (BEL), to procure Light
Amplification by Stimulated Emission of
Radiation Dazzlers (Laser Dazzlers). The
initial agreement has been signed for 20
Laser Dazlers.
The Laser dazzler technology has been
developed by DRDO (Defence Research
and Development Organisation) and would
be manufactured by BEL, Pune plant.
It is the first time that this unique product
is indigenously designed and developed for
the Armed Forces.
Laser Dazzler:
It is a non-lethal weapon for warning and
stopping suspicious
vehicles/boats/aircraft/UAVs/pirates etc.
from approaching secured areas during
both night and day.
It is capable of dazzle and thereby suppress
the person’s/optical sensor’s action with
disability glare in case of non-compliance
to orders.
This technology can not only disorient/
confuse/ blind a person temporarily but it
can also dazzle and distract aircraft/UAVs.
It is a portable, shoulder operated and
ruggedized for military use in adverse
environmental conditions and it is for the
first time that this product has been
designed and developed indigenously for
the Indian Armed Force.
4
www.civilserviceindia.com
Economics
ironment
BEL: It refers to the Bharat Electronics
Limited. BEL was founded in 1954 and is
headquartered in Bengaluru. Its current
Chairman & Managing Director is M V
Gowtama.
GRSE:
It refers to the Garden Reach Shipbuilders
and Engineers which is based in Kolkata,
West Bengal. The current GRSE Chairman
& Managing Director is Rear Admiral V K
Saxena
Recently, GRSE delivered the Landing Craft
Utility (LCU) MK IV class vessel ‘IN LCU L-
58’ (Yard 2099) to the Indian Navy.
The amphibious ships are to be based in
the strategic location of Andaman and
Nicobar Islands, which are close to various
routes leading to the South China Sea.
LCU L-58 is the final ship in the series of 8
LCUs being manufactured by GRSE for the
Indian Navy.
LCU Ship: The LCU ships are equipped
with state-of-the-art technology. They were
developed in-house with 90% of its parts
indigenously manufactured.
These ships are very unique in their design
and class in the world. Apart from troops,
each ship can accommodate main battle
tanks, personnel carriers and other Army
vehicles, which can be launched on the
beaches.
The ships are designed to have two
indigenous CRN 91 guns to provide artillery
fire support during landing operations.
Subodh Kumar Jaiswal:
He was recently appointed as new chief of
the Central Industrial Security Force
(CISF). He took over as the new Director
General of the force on January 8, 2021.
Prior to CISF, Jaiswal was serving as
Director General of Police of Maharashtra.
CISF: It stands for Central Industrial
security force. CISF, an armed force of the
Union established in its present form on 15
June 1983 is a Central Armed Police Force
in India. It was set up under an Act of the
Parliament of India on 10 March 1969 with
a strength of 2,800. CISF was subsequently
made an armed force of India by another
Act of Parliament passed on 15 June 1983.
CISF is mandated to provide security to the
premises staff along with the security of
property and establishments. It is governed
by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and
is headquartered in New Delhi. It is the
only force with a customized and dedicated
fire wing.
5
www.civilserviceindia.com
Freight Business Development Portal:
It is the first-of- its-kind Indian Railways
dedicated Freight portal. The portal is one
stop solution for all the needs of freight
customers. It was launched recently by the
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal.
The portal will replace physical processes
with online ones to minimize the need of
human-to-human interaction. It will also
bring more transparency and provide
professional support.
The personalized dashboard of freight
business portal provides customers a view
with their business in railways, outstanding
indents, on-run consignments, status of
various interactions and facility to apply for
various services and raising concerns.
Customers also get to know about discount
schemes, demurrage, diversion, rebooking
and wharfage waivers, stacking
permissions.
Toycathon-2021:
The Union Education Minister Ramesh
Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ and Union Minister
Women and Child Development and
Textiles Smt. Smriti Zubin Irani jointly
launched Toycathon-2021 and the
Toycathon Portal.
Toycathon is being organized with an
objective to develop India as the global Toy
manufacturing hub.
Toycathon aims to provide a platform to
conceptualize innovative toys based on the
Indian value system which will inculcate
the positive behavior and good value
among the children. Here the students and
teachers from schools and colleges, design
experts, toy experts and startups will get
together to crowd source ideas for
developing toys and games that are based
on Indian culture & ethos and local folklore
& heroes.
These will not only help India develop into
a global hub for toys and games, but it will
also help the children to understand the
ethos and values of Indian culture as
envisaged in the National Education Policy
2020.
The Toycathon is based on nine themes:
1. Indian Culture
2. History
3. Knowledge of India and Ethos
4. Learning, Education and Schooling
5. Occupations & specific fields
6. Social and human values
7. Environment
8. Divyang
9. Fitness and sport
LEI:
6
www.civilserviceindia.com
It refers to the Legal Entity Identifier: The
RBI (Reserve Bank of India) has recently
introduced LEI for for payment
transactions above Rs 50 crore including
Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) and
National Electronic Funds Transfer
(NEFT).
This will come into effect from April 01,
2021.
The Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) is a 20-
digit number used to uniquely identify
parties to financial transactions worldwide.
RBI: It refers to the Reserve Bank of India.
The RBI is India's central bank, which
controls the issue and supply of the Indian
rupee. It carries out India's monetary policy
and exercises supervision and control over
banks and non-banking finance companies
in India. RBI was set up in 1935 under the
Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. It is
headquartered in Mumbai. RBI plays an
important part in the Development
Strategy of the Government of India. The
current Governor of RBI is Shaktikanta
Das.
Bird Flu:
The bird flu or the Avian Influenza is a
contagious viral disease caused by
Influenza Type A virus. It usually affects
poultry birds such as chickens and turkeys.
There are several types of Influenza Type A
virus. Some of the virus may cause low egg
production and others result in early
cracking of egg shells, while others are
severe and lethal.
Wild aquatic birds such as geese and ducks
are the natural reservoir of Influenza A
viruses and the central players in the
ecology of these viruses.
Recently, thousands of ducks have died
due to birt flu in Kerala (mostly poultry),
wild Geese (migratory birds) in Himachal
Pradesh, and crows in Rajasthan and
Madhya Pradesh. In Haryana, around one
lakh poultry birds have died mysteriously
in the last few days.
Authorities have issued advisories to
contain the spread of avian influenza. or
bird flu, They have asked all states to keep
a close vigil to detect any unusual bird
death as the Centre confirmed the
outbreak has been reported from at least
four states.
History of bird flu infecting humans: The
humans were first known to have
contracted with bird flu in 1997. The H5N1
strain was the first Influenza virus to infect
humans. It occurred following an outbreak
in a live bird market in Hong Kong.
Subsequently, several other strains of the
Environment
7
www.civilserviceindia.com
virus such as H5N2 and H9N2 spread from
animals to humans, thus becoming a global
public health concern.
However, according to WHO (World
Health Organization) the H5N1 does not
spread from person to person and there are
no evidences that the virus can spread
through properly cooked poultry. The virus
is highly sensitive to heat and dies in
cooking temperature.
NCAVES:
It refers to the Natural Capital Accounting
and Valuation of the Ecosystem Services.
The NCAVES India Forum-2021 is being
organized by the Ministry of Statistics and
Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
The NCAVES Project is funded by EU. It
has been jointly implemented by the
United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD),
the United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) and the Secretariat of
the Convention of Biological Diversity
(CBD).
India along with Brazil, China, South Africa
and Mexico is taking part in this project.
In India, the NCAVES project is being
implemented by the MoSPI in close
collaboration with the Ministry of
Environment, Forest and Climate Change
(MoEF&CC) and the National Remote
Sensing Centre (NRSC).
The participation in the project has helped
MOSPI commence the compilation of the
Environment Accounts as per the UN-
SEEA framework.
MOSPI has also released environmental
accounts in its publication “EnviStats
India” on an annual basis since 2018.
Under the NCAVES project the India-EVL
Tool has been developed which is
essentially a look-up tool giving a snapshot
of the values of various ecosystem services
in the different States of the country. It will
be based on about 80 studies conducted
across the country.
An additional benefit of this tool is that it
provides a critical view on the literature
that is available and the applicability of
estimates spatially across India according
to bio-geographical areas.
NCAVES Project: Natural Capital
Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem
Services (NCAVES) is a European Union
funded project. The project has been
launched by the United Nations Statistics
Division (UNSD), the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP), the
Secretariat of the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD) and the European Union
(EU).
Its aim is to assist the f5 participating
partner countries, namely India, Brazil,
China, Mexico and South Africa, to
advance the knowledge agenda on
environmental-economic accounting, in
particular ecosystem accounting.
SC-NBWL:
8
www.civilserviceindia.com
It refers to the Standing Committee of
National Board of Wildlife. The SC-NBWL
has recently approved the advisory for
management of Human-Wildlife Conflict
(HWC) in the country.
The approval was given in its 60th meeting.
The key measures approved by the advisory
are as follows:
❖ Empowering gram panchayats in
dealing with the problematic wild
animals as per the section 11 (1) (b)
of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
❖ Utilizing add-on coverage under
the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima
Yojna for crop compensation
against crop damage due to HWC.
❖ Augmenting fodder and water
sources within the forest areas.
❖ Payment of a portion of ex-gratia as
interim relief within 24 hours of the
incident to the victim/family.
❖ Prescribing inter-departmental
committees at local/state level.
❖ Adoption of early warning systems
❖ Creation of barriers
❖ Dedicated circle wise Control
Rooms with toll free hotline num-
bers which could be operated on
24X7 basis.
❖ Identification of hotspots and for-
mulation and implementation of
special plans for improved stall-fed
farm animals etc.
❖ Inclusion of Caracal, a medium size
wild cat found in some parts of Ra-
jasthan and Gujarat, into the list of
critically endangered species
Now, there are 22 wildlife species under
recovery programme for critically
endangered species.
Caracal: It is a medium-sized wild cat
native to India, Africa, the Middle East and
Central Asia. It is typically nocturnal and is
highly secretive and difficult to observe. It
is a carnivore and mainly lives alone or in
pairs. It is characterized by a robust build,
long legs, a short face, long tufted ears and
long canine teeth.
The Caracals were tamed and used for
hunting in ancient Egypt. In India, the
caracal occurs in Sariska Tiger Reserve and
Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve.
NBWL: It refers to the National Board for
Wildlife. NBWL is a “Statutory
Organization” constituted under the
Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. It was
constituted in 2003. The board is advisory
in nature and advises the Central
Government on framing policies and
measures for conservation of wildlife in the
country. It is a very important body
because it serves as apex body to review all
wildlife-related matters and approve
projects in and around national parks and
sanctuaries. No alternation of boundaries
in national parks and wildlife sanctuaries
can be done without approval of the
NBWL. The NBWL is chaired by the Prime
Minister and is responsible for promotion
of conservation and development of
wildlife and forests. The standing
committee of NBWL is chaired by the
Minister of Environment Forest and
Climate Change.
9
www.civilserviceindia.com
India-France:
The annual India-France strategic dialogue
was held on the 7th of January 2021.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval will
lead the Indian delegation while the French
delegation was led by Mr. Emmanuel
Bonne, Diplomatic Advisor to the French
President.
The two sides held discussions on wide-
ranging bilateral and global issues.
The main focus of discussions were
COVID-19 vaccine, nuclear, space, Indo-
Pacific area, maritime safety, environment,
digital economy, cybersecurity, counter-
terrorism and defence sectors.
Note: The India-France strategic dialogue
is held annually with the two countries
alternating as hosts. The last edition of the
annual Strategic Dialogue was held in Paris
in February 2020.
India and Japan:
India and Japan have had a long and
fruitful history of bilateral development
cooperation since 1958. In the last few
years, the economic cooperation between
both the countries has strengthened and
grown into a strategic partnership. The
people of India and Japan are guided by
common cultural traditions including the
heritage of Buddhism and share a strong
commitment to the ideals of democracy,
tolerance, pluralism and open societies.
Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently
approved the signing of an agreement to
institutionalize a mechanism for
cooperation between India and Japan in
sending and accepting skilled Indian
workers, who have qualified the skill and
Japanese language test.
Under the MoC (Memorandum of
Cooperation):
Skilled labour will be sent to Japan by
India. These Indian workers would be
granted a new status of residence of
'Specified Skilled Worker' by the
Government of Japan.
These skilled Indian workers can work in
fourteen specified sectors in Japan.
The 14 sectors are:
1. Industrial machinery
2. Building cleaning
3. Nursing care
4. Material processing industry
5. Electric and electronic information
related industry Industrial machin-
ery manufacturing industry
6. Shipbuilding and ship-related in-
dustry
7. Construction
8. Automobile maintenance
National
10
www.civilserviceindia.com
9. Aviation
10. Lodging
11. Fisheries
12. Agriculture
13. Food and beverages manufacturing
industries,
14. Food service industry
A joint working group will be set up under
the memorandum of cooperation to follow
up its implementation.
On a basic framework for partnership
pertaining to "Specified Skilled Worker"
between India and Japan will enhance
people-to-people contacts, foster mobility
of workers and skilled professionals.
SAGE:
It is a high-level group, named the South
Asia Group for Energy (SAGE). SAGE was
recently constituted by the Government of
India (GoI) to build a South Asia-focused
energy security architecture.
The high level group will be headed by
former Union Power Secretary Ram Vinay
Shahi.
SAGE has been set up under the Ministry
of External Affairs (MEA)-run think tank
Research and Information System for
Developing Countries (RIS).
The main objective of setting of Sage is to
achieve a balanced and optimal
development of energy infrastructure
through mutual understanding and
cooperation, by promoting, initiating and
facilitating effective policy dialogue and
capacity building on a bilateral, sub-
regional and regional basis for energy and
related issues, among South Asian
countries.
The other members of SAGE are:
• Amar Sinha, former economic rela-
tions secretary in the MEA and In-
dia’s former ambassador to Afghan-
istan
• Preeti Saran, former secretary east
in MEA
• Chandan Kumar Mondol, director
commercial at NTPC Ltd, India’s
largest power generation utility
• Rakesh Nath, former Chairman of
Central Electricity Authority, the
apex power sector planning body
• Anil Sardana, Managing Director,
Adani Power
• Deepak Amitabh, Chairman and
managing director, PTC India Ltd,
the country’s largest electricity
trader.
International Akhand Conference
‘EDUCON-2020’:
The Union Education Minister Ramesh
Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ recently inaugurated
the two-day Virtual International Akhand
Conference ‘EDUCON 2020’ through video
conferencing.
11
www.civilserviceindia.com
The two-day International Conference was
organized by the Central University of
Punjab, Bathinda (CUPB) in collaboration
with the Global Educational Research
Association (GERA).
The focal theme of EDUCON-2020 is
Envisioning Education for Transforming
Youth to Restore Global Peace.
This 31-long marthon International
Conference was the first of its kind in India
where scholars across the world would be
continuously explored the possibilities of
the use of ICT (Information and
communications technology) in the higher
education to promote the equitable quality
education in India.
In addition, the conference acted as a
platform for discussions on emerging
trends in education viz., likely scenario of
higher education and school education by
2050, developing disruptive technologies
for STEAM (Science, Technology,
Engineering, Arts and Mathematics)
Education, training youth for strategic
future jobs in Universities, the skill training
programme for future graduates and
relevance of ancient education system in
21st century.
The deliberations made during
EDUCON2020 by internationally-
acclaimed speakers & young researchers
seeks to prove to be significant in
preparing a roadmap for effective
implementation of NEP-2020 and
developing necessary skill-set among
youngsters to enable them to contribute
towards building an AtmaNirbhar Bharat.
National Metrology Conclave 2021:
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi
recently addressed the National Metrology
Conclave, via video conferencing. It was
organized on January 04, 2021 by the
Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research-National Physical Laboratory
(CSIR-NPL), New Delhi, to mark its 75th
year of inception.
The theme for 2021 was ‘Metrology for the
Inclusive Growth of the Nation’.
PM Modi, as a part of this conclave, also
dedicated ‘National Atomic Timescale’, and
‘Bhartiya Nirdeshak Dravya’ to the nation,
and laid the foundation stone of the
‘National Environmental Standards
Laboratory’.
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas:
The day is also called NRI Day. It is
celebrated every year on January 9th to
mark the contribution of the overseas
Indian community in the development of
India.
The main aim of celebrating the day is to
provide a platform for NRI to express their
perceptions about India and thereby
involve them in Indian developmental
activities.
12
www.civilserviceindia.com
International
The theme of 16th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas
Convention 2021 is “Contributing to
Aatmanirbhar Bharat”.
History of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas: The
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is celebrated on the
9th of January as Mahatma Gandhi
returned from South Africa on this day in
1915. In 2015, the day was declared biennial.
In 2018, the day was widely celebrated in
Singapore. In 2019, the event was
celebrated in Varanasi.
Gibraltar:
Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory
which means it is under the jurisdiction of
the United Kingdom but is not technically
a part of it. (There are 14 British Overseas
Territories in the world including Bermuda
and the Falkland Islands.) It is a heavily
fortified British air and naval base that
guards the Strait of Gibraltar, which is the
only entrance to the Mediterranean Sea
from the Atlantic Ocean. Since the 18th
century, Gibraltar has been a symbol of
British naval strength, and it is commonly
known in that context as “the Rock.”
Recently, hours before the Brexit transition
period ended on New Year’s Eve, Spain
announced it had struck a deal with the UK
to maintain free movement to and from
Gibraltar.
Spain and the U.K. struck a last-minute
deal over Gibraltar that eases access to the
territory and removes the threat of fresh
restrictions at the border with the
European Union once Britain leaves the
bloc on 1st January.
Madrid and London were engaged for
months in diplomatic negotiations over the
post-Brexit future of Gibraltar. Now this
deal ensures that Gibraltar is not separated
from Europe from a hard border.
Brexit left Gibraltar with a hard border
situation with the EU. With the UK-Spain
Deal, officially remaining a British
Overseas Territory, Gibraltar will now be
part of the Schengen zone and follow EU
rules, thus ensuring that a hard border
does not separate it from the rest of
Europe.
Note: The name Gibraltar is derived from
Arabic word Jabal Tariq translated as
Mount of Tariq. Gibraltar is most famous
for The Rock of Gibraltar, a 426 meter high
limestone rock rising out of the sea. The
rock can be seen for many miles. It is home
to the Barbary Apes, a type of tail-less
macaque which are the only wild monkeys
in Europe.
Central African Republic:
The Central African Republic is a
landlocked country in Central Africa. It is
bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to
the northeast, South Sudan to the
13
www.civilserviceindia.com
southeast, the Democratic Republic of the
Congo to the south, the Republic of the
Congo to the southwest and Cameroon to
the west. The Central African Republic is a
landlocked country in Central Africa. It is
bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to
the northeast, South Sudan to the
southeast, the Democratic Republic of the
Congo to the south, the Republic of the
Congo to the southwest and Cameroon to
the west.
Recently, Faustin-Archange Touadera was
re-elected as the president of the Central
African Republic with more than 53%
votes.
The 63-year-old president has been in
power since 2016 but has struggled to seize
control of vast parts of the nation from
armed militias.
Note: The Central African Republic, a
producer of gold and diamonds, has a
population of 4.7 million.
World Braille Day:
World Braille Day is observed on 4th
January across the world since 2019. The
day is celebrated to raise awareness of the
importance of Braille as a means of
communication in the full realization of
the human rights for blind and partially
sighted people.
The Braille language was first meant to be
used for military purposes, and was
developed by Charles Barbier. However, it
had two significant drawbacks, which were
identified by Louis Braille. Instead of using
the 12-dot symbol, Braille advised using 6-
dot symbol code. After a few modifications
and additions, the expanded English
system, named Grade-2 Braille, was
completed in 1905.
In 1918, the United Nations (UN)
conceptualized the idea of observing
January 4 as World Braille Day and marks
the birthday of Louis Braille, the inventor
of Braille – for people with visual
disabilities. Hence, the first observance of
World Braille Day took place in 2019.
Louis Braille: Louis Braille was born on 4th
January 1809 in the town of Coupvray in
northern France. At the age of just 3, he
lost his both eyes in an accident. This
resulted into the invention of the of 6 dots-
which is popularly known as braille.
Braille: Braille is a tactile representation of
alphabetic and numerical symbols using six
dots to represent each letter and number,
and even musical, mathematical and
scientific symbols. Braille (named after its
inventor in 19th century France, Louis
Braille) is used by blind and partially
sighted people to read the same books and
periodicals as those printed in a visual font.
Braille is essential in the context of
education, freedom of expression and
opinion, as well as social inclusion, as
reflected in article 2 of the Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
UN Security Council:
14
www.civilserviceindia.com
The Permanent Representative of India to
the UN, T S Tirumurti recently announced
that India has been asked to chair 3
important committees of the UN Security
Council (UNSC), during its tenure as a
non-permanent member of the powerful
15-nation UN body.
The 3 committees are:
1. Taliban Sanctions Committee
2. Counter-Terrorism Committee
3. Libyan Sanctions Committee
Among these, India will chair the Counter-
Terrorism Committee of UNSC in 2022,
which coincides with the 75th anniversary
of India’s independence.
India began its two-year term at UNSC
from January 01, 2021. It is the eighth time
that the country has joined UNSC as the
non-permanent member.
In 2021, along with India, Norway, Kenya,
Ireland and Mexico joined as non-
permanent members in the Council.
Bagasara Prant:
The Chief Minister Of Gujarat Vijay Rupani
has decided to create a new Bagasara Prant
in Amreli district. This will take the state’s
revenue services nearer to the people and
provide services faster.
The newly created Bagasara Prant would
come into effect on 26th January, which
includes Bagasara and Vadiya talukas in it.
Since the districts with larger geographical
areas cause inconvenience to the people,
the state government has been
reorganizing smaller districts and talukas
for administrative convenience, faster
development, reducing workload as well as
saving the people's time.
Now, the state government has taken up
the reorganization of Prants.
Prants: Prants are traditional names for
parts of historical regions, such as the
original ten regions of Kathiawad on
Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat.
Gujarat: Gujarat is a state on the western
coast of India most of which lies on the
Kathiawar peninsula. The state is bordered
by Rajasthan to the northeast, Dadra and
Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu to the
south, Maharashtra to the southeast,
Madhya Pradesh to the east, and the
Arabian Sea and the Pakistani province of
Sindh to the west. Its capital city is
Gandhinagar. The Governor and Chief
Minister of Gujarat are Acharya Devvrat
and Vijay Rupani respectively.
Justice Vineet Kothari:
India Polity
15
www.civilserviceindia.com
Justice Vineet Kothari recently took oath
as a Judge in Gujarat High Court. He was
previously an Acting Chief Justice in
Madras High Court.
He was transferred to Gujarat High Court
on recommendation of a five Judge
collegium led by the Chief Justice of India.
He was elevated as a judge of the Rajasthan
High Court in 2005 and was transferred to
Karnataka in 2016.
He had assumed charge as the senior-most
judge of the Madras High Court on 23rd
November, 2018 and had served as its
Additional Chief Justice immediately after
former Chief Justice Vijaya Kamlesh
Tahilramani resigned in September 2019
and once again after the retirement of
Chief Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi.
US President-elect Joe Biden:
US President-elect Joe Biden recently
appointed two Indian-Americans to the
National Security Council of the White
House.
He named Indian-American Sumona Guha
as senior director for South Asia and Tarun
Chhabra as senior director for Technology
and National Security.
Sumona Guha: She is a graduate of Johns
Hopkins and Georgetown University. She is
currently serving as senior vice president at
Albright Stonebridge Group. She was co-
chair of the South Asia foreign policy
working group during the Biden-Harris
campaign. During the Obama-Biden
administration, she was special advisor for
national security affairs to the then Vice
President Biden.
Tarun Chhabra: He is an alumnus of
Stanford University, Oxford University and
Harvard Law School. He is a senior fellow
at the Centre for Security and Emerging
Technology at Georgetown University. He
had also served on the National Security
Council staff as director for Strategic
Planning and director for Human Rights
and National Security Issues during the
Obama-Biden Administration.
Zoya Aggarwal:
She is the captain of the all-women flight
crew who created a historic moment for
aviation and historic moment for India.
The first non-stop flight from San
Francisco to Bengaluru landed at
Kempegowda International airport in
Bengaluru at 3.07 am on 11th January 2021.
The inaugural flight AI176 flew over the
North Pole and covering a distance of
Persons in News
16
www.civilserviceindia.com
about 16,000 kilometers which was the
longest aerial distance between San
Francisco and Bengaluru.
The flight operated by an all-women
cockpit crew of Captain Zoya Aggarwal,
Captain Papagari Thanmai, Captain
Akansha Sonaware and Captain Shivani
Manhas flew the longest commercial flight
in the world..
Joyshree Das Verma:
She has recently been appointed by the
Embassy of Israel in India as Honorary
Consul in the North East with jurisdiction
over the States of Assam, Arunachal
Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram,
Meghalaya, Tripura and Sikkim.
She will be based in Assam. The
appointment was announced by
Ambassador of Israel in India Ron Malka.
Malala Yousafzai:
She is a Pakistani activist for female
education. Malala is also the Youngest
Nobel Prize Laureate and she fought
against the Taliban for women education.
The Taliban had banned girls from
attending schools. She was shot by
Pakistani Taliban Gunman on October by
2012, in retaliation for her activism. She
was hit in the head with bullet and remind
unconscious. She was later transferred to
Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham in
the United Kingdom.
Recently, The US (United States) Congress
passed the Malala Yousafzai Scholarship
Act for Pakistani Women. The bill was
passed by the United States Senate by a
voice vote on January 1. The bill now heads
to the White House for US President
Donald Trump to sign into law.
Highlights of Act:
▪ The Act requires the US Agency for
International Development to
award at least 50% of scholarship
under a Pakistan-based higher edu-
cation scholarship programme to
Pakistani women between 2020 and
2022, across a range of academic
disciplines and in accordance with
existing eligibility criteria.
▪ The Malala Yousafzai Scholarship
Act makes it mandatory for the
USAID to brief the US Congress
about the number of scholarships
provided under the programme.
This includes percentage of recipi-
ents who are involuntarily pushed
out of the programme for their fail-
ure to meet programme require-
ments as well.
▪ It also requires the USAID (United
States Agency for International De-
velopment) to consult with and lev-
erage investments by Pakistani pri-
vate sector in the United States of
America.
This is being done to improve and expand
access to education programs in entire
Pakistan.
17
www.civilserviceindia.com
Since 2010, the USAID has awarded more
than 6,000 scholarships for young women
to receive higher education in Pakistan.
Note: On October 10, 2014, Malala shared
the Nobel Peace Prize with Indian
children's rights activist Kailash Satyarthi
for her "struggle against the suppression of
children and young people and for the
right of all children to education".
Karnataka:
It is a state in the south western region of
India. It was formed on 1 November 1956,
with the passage of the States
Reorganization Act. Originally known as
the State of Mysore, it was renamed
Karnataka in 1973. Its capital city is
Bangalore. The current Chief Minister and
Governor of Karnataka are B. S.
Yediyurappa and Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala
respectively.
Recently, the Chief Minister of Karnataka,
B.S. Yediyurappa flagged off 40 Krishi
Sanjeevani vans in Bengaluru.
These vans have been launched by the state
Agriculture Department with Central
assistance under National Krishi Vikas
Yojana to take up this novel programme.
The main objective of the initiative is to
take labs to the agriculture fields to study
the conditions and address the needs of the
farmers about the fertility of the soil, pest
control, weeds and suitable crops in the
existing conditions so that farmers get
support for their farming techniques.
The Agriculture Department personnel will
also be able to suggest remedies,
depending on the soil, water and pests
inflicting the crops.
Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana: It is a State
Plan Scheme launched by the Government
of India (GoI) in August 2007 as part of the
11th Five Year Plan. The yojana launched
under the aegis of the National
Developmental Council aims at achieving
4% annual growth in agriculture as well as
its allied sectors.
Journalist Day:
The Journalist Day is observed by
Maharashtra state government on 6th
January every year. This day celebrated in
the memory of late journalist Balshastri
Jambhekar.
The first newspaper in the Marathi
language named ‘Darpan’, was published
on January 6, 1832, the date which also
marks the birth anniversary of Balshastri
Jambhekar.
Balshastri Jambhekar: Balshastri
Jambhekar, born on 6 January 1812, is also
known as ‘The Father of Marathi
Journalism’, for his efforts in starting
journalism in Marathi language, in the
Places in news
18
www.civilserviceindia.com
form of first Marathi newspaper and first
Marathi monthly.
Maharashtra: Maharashtra is a state in the
western peninsular region of India
occupying a substantial portion of the
Deccan Plateau. It was formed on 1 May
1960 by merging the western and south-
western parts of the Bombay State, Berar
and Vidarbha, and the north-western parts
of the Hyderabad State and splitting
Saurashtra (in present-day Gujarat) by the
States Reorganisation Act. Its capital is
Mumbai. The Chief Minister and the
Governor of Maharashtra are Uddhav
Thackeray and Bhagat Singh Koshyari
respectively.
Madhya Pradesh:
Madhya Pradesh (MP) is the second
largest Indian state by area. It borders the
states of Uttar Pradesh to the northeast,
Chhattisgarh to the southeast, Maharashtra
to the south, Gujarat to the west, and
Rajasthan to the northwest. Its capital is
Bhopal. The current Chief Minister and
Governor of Madhya Pradesh is Shivraj
Singh Chouhan and Lal Ji Tandon
respectively.
Recently, the MP Government launched a
‘Launch Pad Scheme’ for the boys and girls
coming out of child care institutions and
having completed 18 years of age.
This scheme has been launched by the
Women and Child Development
Department of the state with an aim to
provide a platform to these youth, through
which they will be able to become self-
reliant by continuing their education and
training.
Key Highlights of the scheme:
❖ The District Administration will
provide space to these youths for
the opening of stationery, photo-
copying, computer typing, coffee
shops and DTP work.
❖ All the fifty two districts of the state
have been divided into five clusters
with headquarters at Indore, Sagar,
Bhopal, Gwalior and Jabalpur.
❖ An amount of Rs 6 lakh will be pro-
vided by the Women and Child De-
velopment Department for the in-
stallation of each launch pad.
❖ These launch pads will be operated
through non-governmental organi-
zations.
NIXI:
It refers to the National Internet Exchange
of India. NIXI recently announced its
decision to offer free Internationalized
Domain Name (IDN) in any of the 22
India Policy
19
www.civilserviceindia.com
official Indian languages with every IN
domain booked by the registrant.
The offer will be valid for new in. users who
register up to January 31, 2021. The
applicant will also get a free email in the
local language. This offer is valid for new
.in users who register up to 31st of January.
The offer will also stand for the existing in
users who renew their domain in January
2021.
This offer has been created to stimulate the
adoption of भारत IDN domain name and proliferation of local language content.
About: NIXI is a not for profit Organization
established under section 8 of the
Companies Act 2013 in 2003. It was set up
for spreading the internet technology to
the citizens of India through the following
activities:
▪ Internet Exchanges through which
the internet data is exchanged
amongst ISPs and between ISPs and
CDNs.
▪ IN Registry managing and opera-
tion of IN country code domain and
भारत IDN domain for India. ▪ Indian Registry for Internet Names
and Numbers (IRINN).
▪ Managing and operating Internet
protocol IPv4 or IPv6.
Draft Arctic policy:
The Government of India (GoI) recently
released a draft Arctic Policy.
The Draft Arctic Policy document ensures
that the Arctic resources become more
accessible and are explored and used
sustainably. Under its policy, India will
make sure that it abides by rules and
regulations of Arctic Council.
India became the observer of Arctic
Council in 2013 and its membership as an
observer was renewed in 2018 for another
five years.
India also seeks to play a constructive role
in the Arctic by leveraging its vast scientific
pool and expertise in Himalayan and Polar
research.
The draft document outlines five pillars of
India’s Arctic policy. They are as follows:
1. Science and Research
2. Transportation and Connectivity
3. National Capacity building
4. Economic and Human Develop-
ment
5. Governance and International Co-
operation
The National Centre for Polar and Ocean
Research (NCPOR) that operates under the
Ministry of Earth Sciences will serve as the
nodal agency in implementing the Arctic
Policy.
The policy envisages connecting the Arctic
residents, especially the indigenous
communities with those living in the
Himalayan regions.
The main aim of the policy is to create
opportunities where the Indian enterprises
can be involved to become part of the
international commerce businesses and
promote traditional indigenous knowledge.
The Arctic Policy seeks to help India
achieve its SDGs as Policy has been
20
www.civilserviceindia.com
synchronised and adapted to the Goal 11 of
Sustainable Development Goals. The Goal
11 of SDG is “Sustainable cities and
Communities”.
India & Arctic Research: India under
British rule had signed the Svalbard Treaty
in 1920 in Paris. This treaty allowed free
access to the Arctic region along with the
commitment of not militarizing it.
Independent India launched its first
scientific expedition to Arctic in 2007.
In 2008, India established a research base
called Himadri at Ny Alesund, Svalbard,
Norway.
In 2014, India deployed IndArc. It is a
multisensory observatory in Kongsfjorden.
In 2016, India set up Gruvebadet
Atmospheric Laboratry at Ny Alesund,
Svalbard.
Arctic Council: The Arctic Council is a
high-level intergovernmental forum
promoting cooperation, coordination and
interaction among the Arctic States, Arctic
Indigenous peoples and other Arctic
inhabitants on common Arctic issues, in
particular on issues of sustainable
development and environmental
protection in the Arctic.
The first step towards the formation of the
Council occurred in 1991 when the eight
Arctic countries signed the Arctic
Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS).
The council was created in Ottawa in 1996
by the Declaration on the Establishment of
the Arctic Council (the Ottawa
Declaration). The standing Arctic Council
Secretariat formally became operational in
2013 in Tromsø, Norway.
Member states of the council include
Denmark, Canada, Norway, the United
States, Russia, Sweden, Finland, and
Iceland. The council also has a number of
permanent participants drawn from groups
that represent communities and peoples
indigenous to the Arctic. Outside these,
there are some observer states, Indigenous
"permanent participants", and observer
organizations.
The Arctic Council with the involvement of
the Arctic Indigenous communities and
other Arctic inhabitants works as a
consensus-based body to deal with issues
such as the change in biodiversity, melting
sea ice, plastic pollution and black carbon.
As of May 2019, thirteen non-Arctic states
have Observer status.
▪ Germany, 1998
▪ Netherlands, 1998
▪ Poland, 1998
▪ United Kingdom, 1998
▪ France, 2000
▪ Spain, 2006
▪ China, 2013
▪ India, 2013
▪ Italy, 2013
▪ Japan, 2013
▪ South Korea, 2013
▪ Singapore, 2013
▪ Switzerland, 2017
Observer status: This status is open to non-
Arctic states, along with inter-
governmental, inter-parliamentary, global,
regional and non-governmental
organizations that the Council determines
can contribute to its work. It is approved
by the Council at the Ministerial Meetings
that occur once every two years.
School Bag Policy:
21
www.civilserviceindia.com
Science and Technology
Delhi Government recently directed
schools in the national capital to
implement the New School Bag Policy 2020
in Schools.
In line with the School Bag Policy 2020, the
state government has prescribed weight
limits for school bags for students of
different classes.
The Union Human Resource Development
Ministry had formed the guidelines in 2016
to ensure students do not get bogged down
with the burden of carrying heavy bags to
schools.
School Bag Policy that has been designed
by an expert committee, recommends that
the weight of school bags for students
between Class 1 and Class 10 should not be
more than 10 per cent of their body weight.
The guidelines were framed after it was
observed that the load of school bag is
increased by bringing textbooks, guides,
homework and class work notebooks,
rough work notebooks, water bottles,
lunch box, and sometimes heavy school
bags also.
As per the guidelines schools are required
to follow the textbooks prescribed by the
SCERT, NCERT and CBSE.
Considering the serious threat to health
posed by heavy school bags, the Delhi
Government has decided to implement the
policy in the state.
QRNG:
It refers to Quantum Random Number
Generator. The DRDO Young Scientist
Laboratory for Quantum Technologies
(DYSL-QT), a DRDO facility based in
Mumbai, has recently developed a QRNG.
It has the ability to detect random
quantum events and convert those into a
stream of binary digits.
The facility has developed a fiber-optic
branch path based QRNG.
The branch path based QRNG is based on
the principle that if a single photon falls on
a balanced beam splitter, it will take either
of the beam-splitter output paths randomly
As the path chosen by photon is random,
the randomness is translated to sequence
of binary digits, also called bits.
QRNG system developed by the laboratory
has passed the global randomness testing
standards including NIST and Die-harder
Statistical Test Suites at the speed of ~150
kbps after post-processing.
With this development India has entered
the club of countries who have the
technology to achieve the generation of
random numbers based on the Quantum
phenomenon.
Random Numbers: Random numbers play
an important role in many fields, such as
22
www.civilserviceindia.com
quantum communication, scientific
simulation, cryptography (key generation,
key packaging, identity verification, etc.),
lotteries and fundamental physics
experiments.
The generation of genuine randomness is
generally considered impossible with
classical means. Quantum mechanics has
the inherent potential to provide real
random numbers, so it has become the first
choice for scientific applications that
require randomness.
DYSL-QT: It is one of the five YSLs (Young
Scientist Laboratories) of the DRDO which
are working on five different technologies.
The other four facilities are:
1. Cognitive Technologies (DYSL-CT)
Chennai
2. Artificial Intelligence (DYSL-AI)
Bengaluru
3. Asymmetric Technologies (DYSL-
AT) Kolkata
4. Smart Materials (DYSL-SM) Hyder-
abad.
These 5 facilities were dedicated to the
nation by Prime Minister in January this
year.
Advanced Biodigester MK-II
Technology:
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU0
was recently inked between Defence
Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO) and Maharashtra Metro Rail
Corporation (MAHA –METRO) through
which DRDO will render technical support
for the implementation of its advanced
biodigester Mk-II technology for the
treatment of human waste (night soil) in
the metro rail network.
The DRDO and MAHA –METRO are
working together to conserve water and
protect the environment by installing
DRDO's eco-friendly biodigester units (a
non-sewered sanitation technology) in its
facilities.
This biodigester by DRDO is an
indigenous, green and cost-effective
technology, with a rare distinction of
having one of the largest numbers of
DRDO-licensees (ToT holders).
Around 2.40 lakh biodigesters have already
been installed by Indian Railways in its
fleet of passenger coaches.
As for now, the technology for MAHA-
METRO has been revamped and further
improved in a bid to save the water and
space.
40th Indian Scientific Expedition to
Antarctica:
India recently launched 40th scientific
expedition to Antarctica.
This Indian expedition which marks four
decades of country’s scientific endeavor to
the southern white continent was flagged
23
www.civilserviceindia.com
Sports
off from Goa on January 5, 2021, with 43
members onboard.
The chartered ice-class vessel MV Vasiliy
Golovnin made this journey and will reach
Antarctica in 30 days. After leaving behind
a team of 40 members, it would return to
India in April 2021.
On return, it will also bring back the winter
team of the preceding trip.
Note: The Indian Antarctic expeditions
began in 1981. The first trip comprised of a
team of 21 scientists and support staff led
by Dr SZ Qasim. The Indian Antarctic
programme has built three permanent
research base stations in Antarctica—
named Dakshin Gangotri, Maitri, and
Bharati.
At present, India has two operational
research stations in Antarctica named
Maitri and Bharati.
The entire Indian Antarctic program is
managed by the National Centre for Polar
and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa.
The main aim of planning this expedition is
to provide support to the ongoing scientific
projects on geology, climate change,
electric and magnetic flux measurements,
ocean observations, environmental
monitoring. This mission will also felicitate
the return journey of winter crew by
resupplying the of fuel and food.
The expedition will strictly follow all the
required protocols for the deployment of
materials and men as per COMNAP.
COMNAP is the abbreviation for Council of
Managers of National Antarctic Program.
Assam Rifles Public School:
Union Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports
Kiren Rijiju recently launched the Assam
Rifles Public School (ARPS) in Shillong as a
Khelo India Sports School on 4th January
2021. It is now recognized as a Khelo India
Sports School and is the first centre in the
northeast under the Khelo India scheme.
This School was designated as a Khelo
India Sports School because of the
following features:
It has a good track record in academics &
sports, adequate boarding & lodging
(hostel) facilities,
It has sufficient space to develop sports
facilities and inclination to develop
Olympic sports under an inter-ministerial
partnership between the Ministry of Youth
Affairs and Sports and the Ministry of
Home Affairs.
The Government proposes to bear the
expenses for Talented Sports Students of
the school in terms of lodging, boarding,
education expenses, competition exposure,
insurance & medical, sports training &
support, salary of coaches & support staff,
sports equipment, and more.
At present, 9 Sports Schools have been
approved across the country, out of which
5 are managed by Defence & Para-military
forces.
24
www.civilserviceindia.com
The objective of a Khelo India Sports
School is to integrate sports with education
and in the process, develop sports in the
country and improve the overall profile
and outlook of athletes. This will also help
in the identification and upliftment of
talent from North-eastern, rural or tribal
areas.
Khelo India Ice Hockey Tournament:
The Khelo India Ice Hockey Tournament
was recently organized at Chiktan in
Kàrgil, Ladakh.
For the first time, alongwith 11 teams from
different villages of Chiktan, two women
team of Chiktan also participated in the
Khelo India Games in Kargil district.
The tournament was inaugurated by SDM
Shakar Chiktan and the Chief Guest of the
event Kacho Asgar Ali khan in the presence
of ZPEO Chiktan Ghulam Rasool along
with in-charge police post-Chiktan.
Claire Polosak:
She is a 32-year-old Australian from New
South Wales who is set to become the first
female match official in a men’s Test match
when she takes up the fourth umpire’s role
in the third Test between India and
Australia.
She has already earned the distinction of
being the first woman on-field umpire in a
men’s ODI match in ICC’s Division 2
league between Namibia and Oman played
at the Windhoek in 2019.
Note: As per ICC rules for Test matches,
the fourth umpire is appointed by the
home cricket board from their nominees to
the International Panel of ICC Umpires and
from the host country.
Fourth Umpire: The duties of a fourth
umpire include bringing on the new ball,
carrying drinks on to the field for the
umpires, checking the batteries in the light
meter, observing the pitch during the
lunch and tea intervals to make sure there
is no interference, and bringing on new
bails.
The fourth umpire can also take over the
third umpire’s position if something
happens to one of the on-field umpires, in
which case the third umpire takes over on-
field duties.