26th December, 2023 Current Affairs

NATIONAL
India to acquire five lithium blocks in Argentina

• In a significant development, India is poised to secure exploration and development rights for five lithium blocks in Argentina, marking its second international foray into critical minerals after a partnership with Australia in 2022. The deal is on the verge of finalization between Khanij Bidesh India Ltd. (KABIL) and Catamarca Minera Y Energética Sociedad Del Estado (CAMYEN), an Argentine state-owned mining and energy company.
• The Indian government plans to invest around Rs 200 crore over the next five years for exploration, signaling a strategic commitment to securing a domestic supply of critical minerals. The proposal is awaiting approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.

French President Emmanuel Macron to Grace India’s Republic Day

• In a testament to the enduring friendship between India and France, President Emmanuel Macron is set to be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi. This marks the sixth instance of a French leader gracing this prestigious occasion, highlighting the significance of the bilateral relationship.
• President Macron follows in the footsteps of his predecessors, with former French Prime Minister Jacques Chirac having been the Chief Guest in 1976 and 1998. Additionally, former Presidents Valery Giscard d’Estaing, Nicolas Sarkozy, and Francois Hollande have all contributed to this tradition in the years 1980, 2008, and 2016, respectively.

INTERNATIONAL
United Nations Declares 2024 as the International Year of Camelids

• The United Nations has declared 2024 as the International Year of Camelids. This decision aims to spotlight the diverse contributions of camelids, including alpacas, Bactrian camels, dromedaries, guanacos, llamas, and vicuñas, in promoting food security, nutrition, and economic growth, particularly for Indigenous Peoples and local communities.
• According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), camelids impact the lives of millions of households in over 90 countries. Their diverse roles extend beyond being mere animals; they are integral to the fabric of societies globally.

India-ASEAN Trade Pact Undergoes Review for Modernization in February

• India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are poised to commence negotiations in February aimed at modernizing their existing free trade agreement (FTA) and addressing the prevailing trade deficit, currently standing at $43.57 billion. The initiative seeks to revamp the ASEAN India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITGA) by 2025.
• The negotiations will primarily concentrate on the introduction of product-specific rules and trade remedies, with the overarching goal of enhancing the efficiency of the FTA. Recognizing the need for a comprehensive overhaul, the discussions will delve into critical aspects such as the Rules of Origin (ROO) and the integration of a dedicated chapter on trade remedies to safeguard domestic industries.

EU Expresses Disappointment as India Rejects Interim Arbitration in WTO Dispute

• The European Union (EU) has conveyed disappointment at India’s refusal to engage in interim arbitration for resolving the ongoing dispute concerning import duties on specific Information and Communications Technology (ICT) products, such as smartphones and components. India defends its stance, asserting that interim agreements undermine the right to appeal to a permanent standing body and emphasizes the need to restore the functioning of the WTO appellate body.

Interim Arbitration Rejected by India

• India defends its decision at the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement body meeting.
• Longstanding position: Interim agreements suggested by the EU undermine countries’ right to appeal to a permanent standing body.
• Importance of appellate body: India stresses the significance of restoring the functioning of the appellate body promptly.

Also Read: Weekly Current Affairs (Important Dates) 18-24 November 2023 Bitbank: On which date International Men's Day was observed in 2023?

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SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Indian Naval Ship Imphal inducted into Indian Navy

• Indian Navy commissioned its latest stealth guided missile destroyer INS Imphal in Mumbai today. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh graced the ceremony. Speaking on the occasion, the defence minister said
• The ship was delivered to the Indian Navy in October this year after a rigorous and comprehensive trial both in the harbour and at sea. Imphal is the first warship to have been named after a city from the North East. This is a befitting tribute to Manipur’s sacrifices and contributions in India’s freedom struggle.

India will have its own 'Bharat Space Station' during Amrit Kal: ISRO

• ISRO Chairman S Somnath said that India will have its own 'Bharat Space Station' during the Amrit Kal.
• Indian scientists will land on the moon in the next 25 years. He called upon the student scientists to contribute towards building a developed India by using their knowledge and potential.
• Coordination and exchange between academic institutions and industry is essential to ensure that research is used for the welfare of society. He also said that the role of technology is very important in achieving the goal of a developed and self-reliant India. Leading scientists, students, and researchers of the country are participating in this conference which is being held from the 21st to the 24th of December.

NASA and IBM announced that an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool

• At the recent COP28, NASA and IBM announced that an Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool called watsonx.ai would be available on the open-source AI platform Hugging Space.

About watsonx.ai

• It is an Artificial Intelligence tool jointly built by IBM and NASA.
• It will help users monitor the Earth from space, measuring environmental changes that have already happened while also making predictions about the future.
• The model is also designed to be extremely simple to use. A user would merely need to select a location and a date, and the model will highlight changes in floodwater, reforestation efforts and other relevant factors.

Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati) recently developed an indigenous river model, BRAHMA-2D

• BRAHMA-2D (Braided River Aid: Hydro-Morphological Analyzer) is a mathematical model to gauge the flow of large braided rivers like the Brahmaputra.
• It is a quasi-3D river flow model which helps to understand how fast the water moves at different depths inside a river and its circulation around a structure like a spur installed to prevent river bank erosion.
• It can help engineers in the design of sustainable hydraulic structures like spurs, reverent, and other river bank protection measures in order to check river bank erosion.
• It was developed by the researchers at IIT Guwahati in collaboration with the Brahmaputra Board under the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti.
• It was successfully validated on the Brahmaputra River near Majuli Island, the second largest freshwater River Island in the world, in Assam, which is prone to river bank erosion.
• It integrates a two-dimensional model of water movement with a theory about entropy, a measure of disorder or randomness.
• Specifically, it observes a dip phenomenon near spurs where the flow of water underneath increases, a phenomenon absent at points away from these structures.
• It has also been applied to understand the habitat suitability of aquatic species, especially endangered species, based on the availability of the required depth and flow velocity.

SPORTS
Anmol Kharb wins women’s singles title at National Badminton Championships in Guwahati

• In Badminton, Anmol Kharb has won the women’s singles title at the National Badminton Championships 2023 in Guwahati. The teenager lost the first game of the final to Tanvi Sharma but fought back to level the score.
• The men’s singles title clash saw an upset as the unseeded Chirag Sen secured the national title after defeating fourth-seed Tharun M.
• In the mixed doubles summit clash, Dhruv Kapila and Tanisha Crasto defeated the sixth-seeded duo of Nitin Kumar-Navdha Manglam 21-13, 21-8 to claim their maiden national title.
• Priya Devi Konjengbam and Shruti Mishra lifted the women’s doubles title with a win over Ritika Thaker-Simran Singh. The men’s doubles final was an edge-of-the-seat thriller where K Pruthvi Roy-Suraj Goala caused an upset by defeating Krishna Prasad Garaga-Vishnuvardhan Goud Panjala.

Published date : 27 Dec 2023 11:00AM