Daily GK Update- 2nd Dec, 2023

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Bengaluru To Get India’s Largest Circular Railway, Spanning 287 Kilometers.: A new circular railway expanding 287 kilometers around Bengaluru and connecting major nearby towns, is set to become India’s largest network, as mentioned by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The goal of this project is to reduce traffic congestion and enhance connectivity in the region. The government has allocated Rs 7 crore for alignment study of this circular railway, aiming to improve local train services alleviating congestion on existing rail networks, and complement the Bengaluru Suburban Rail Project and Namma Metro initiatives.

 

2. Cyclone Michaung is going to landfall on coastal Andhra.: Cyclone ‘Michaung’ is expected to strike the eastern coast of the country. The IMD has given an update on the current situation of the cyclone. The name Michaung is given by Myanmar. According to MD Sunanda from the Visakhapatnam Cyclone Warning Centre,It is expected to get stronger, turning into a deep depression and eventually a cyclonic storm within the next 48 hours. The Cyclone Warning Centre also forecasts increased winds and rainfall along the North Tamil Nadu coast and South Andhra coast starting from December 3.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. The United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting is scheduled to be held in Accra Ghana.: Minister of state for Defense Ministry, Ajay Bhatt is going to visit Accra, Ghana on December 5-6, 2023, for an official visit. He will be there for a United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting. The UN Peacekeeping Ministerial meeting plans to talk about the problems UN peacekeepers are dealing with. India consistently leads by sending the most troops and equipment to these missions. Further the Defense Minister will have one-on-one talks with other Ministers, discussing defense collaboration to enhance partnerships. He will also connect with the Indian community in Accra during his visit.

 

2. The 91st edition of Interpol General Assembly is held in Vienna, Austria.: The INTERPOL General Assembly started its 91st meeting in Vienna a hundred years after the organization began in the capital of Austria. Karl Nehammer, who is the Federal Chancellor of Austria, officially opened the conference. This year, over 1,000 police and law enforcement leaders from more than 160 countries have come together to talk about making international police cooperation stronger. They aim to address the increasing transnational crime happening worldwide. The General Assembly is the governing body of INTERPOL, making decisions on what the organization will do and how it will spend money in the next year. It will talk about stopping environmental crimes, preventing child sexual abuse, and catching people involved in financial crimes, with detailed reports on each.

 

3. ALTERRA Fund for climate investment is launched by the UAE.: The United Arab Emirates announced its commitment to contribute $30 billion to a new fund focused on addressing climate issues. This fund, called Alterra, has influential partners like BlackRock, Brookfield, and TPG joining in as initial supporters. Alterra aims to attract $250 billion in investments by 2030. Its main focus is to enhance access to funding, particularly for developing nations in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania, collectively known as the Global South. The fund also aims to guide private markets towards investments that tackle climate challenges. It will be actively involved in areas such as transitioning to cleaner energy, reducing industrial carbon emissions and advancing climate technology. The COP, a yearly meeting that brings together leaders, scientists, environmentalists, activists, business figures, and others, is taking place in the Emirates this year from November 30 to December 12.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

DEFENCE

 

1. India-Sri Lanka Joint Military Exercise Culminates At Southern Command In Pune.: The Mitra Shakti 2023 joint military exercise, involving the Indian and Sri Lankan Armies, finished at Pune’s southern command foreign training node. The 12-day exercise aimed to help both armies understand each other’s strategies and tactics better. The exercise had troops from both the Indian Army and Air Force, demonstrating a strong teamwork involving different parts of the military.

 

2. Amritsar To Host Military Literature Festival Next Year.: The Military Literature Festival is coming back for its second district-level edition in Amritsar. This event is organized by the Military Literature Festival Association and led by Lt. Gen TS Shergill (retd.).It aims to raise awareness about the important role of the armed forces and inspire the youth. The festival is planned for early 2024, considering student’s exam schedules and other logistical factors. The next edition, set to start in Chandigarh on December 2 with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann inaugurating. This edition focuses a lot on Punjab and its history. It looks at the military history of the region discussing Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s strategy and how he added places like Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir, Baltistan, and Ladakh to India through conquest.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. The total GST revenue 1.68 lakh crore in the month of November 2023.: As of December 1, the Ministry of Finance reported a 15% increase in the government’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections for November, totaling Rs 1.68 lakh crore. However, this figure shows a 2% drop from October’s GST collection of Rs 1.72 lakh crore. Despite the slight decrease the monthly GST collection has remained above Rs 1.5 lakh crore for nine months in a row. Although November’s total GST collections decreased slightly from October, the year-on-year growth exceeded 15%, making it the highest in 2023 to 2024.

2. SEBI is announced to extend the timeline of implementation for SCORES platforms.: SEBI, the market regulator, has extended the deadline for linking the SEBI Complaint Redressal (SCORES) platform with the online dispute resolution platform. Initially set for December 4, the new deadline is now April 1, 2024. In a notice dated September 20, 2023, SEBI stated that market entities should request SCORES authentication and Application Programming Interface (API) integration by December 4, the original deadline, to comply with the circular. The deadline for applying for SCORES authentication has now been extended to April 1, 2024.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. SKOCH Gold Award 2023 was given to PGCIL: The Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) has been honored with the prestigious SKOCH Gold Award 2023 in recognition of the revolutionary Pugalur Thrissur 2000 MW Voltage Source Converter High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) System that it developed. PGCIL is a Maharatna Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU) under the Ministry of Power. This award is a notable recognition of the company’s achievement in the power sector.

 

2. Abdullahi Mire Wins 2023 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award.: Somali refugee Abdullahi Mire is getting the 2023 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award Global Laureate for helping displaced kids get education. He grew up in Kenya’s Dadaab camps and gave over 100,000 books to children and youth there. The award ceremony is on December 13, 2023, in Geneva, Switzerland.