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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 17 May 2022

::NATIONAL::

NITI Aayog launched the National Data & Analytics Platform (NDAP) for open public use.

About:

The platform aims to democratize access to public government data by making data accessible, interoperable, interactive, and available on a user-friendly platform.
It hosts foundational datasets from various government agencies, presents them coherently, and provides tools for analytics and visualization.
This public launch follows a beta release of the platform in August 2021 that had provided access to a limited number of users for testing and feedback.
NDAP follows a use-case based approach to ensure that the datasets hosted on the platform are tailored to the needs of data users from government, academia, journalism, civil society, and the private sector.
All datasets are standardized to a common schema, which makes it easy to merge datasets and do cross-sectoral analysis.

Structure:

A high powered inter-ministerial steering committee under the chairmanship of Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog to provide directionand oversee progress.
A Technical Advisory Group to provide expert consultation.
Project Management Unit to coordinate with different stakeholders.

The Union Minister for Tourism, Culture aDoNER) Shri G Kishan Reddy, inaugurated the Kanheri Caves on the occasion of Buddha Purnima.

About:

The Kanheri Caves are a group of caves and rock-cut monuments cut into a massive basalt outcrop in the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, on the former island of Salsette in the western outskirts of Mumbai, India.
The Kanheri caves comprise more than 110 different rock-cut monolithic excavations and is one of the largest single excavations in the country.
These excavations were primarily undertaken during the Hinayana phase of Buddhism but also has several examples of the Mahayana stylistic architecture as well as few printings of the Vajrayana order.
The name Kanheri is derived from ‘Kanhagiri’ in Prakrit and occurs in the Nasik inscription of the Satavahana ruler VasisthiputraPulumavi.
They contain Buddhist sculptures and relief carvings, paintings and inscriptions, dating from the 1st century CE to the 10th century CE.
Kanheri comes from the Sanskrit Krishnagiri, which means black mountain.

Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan will lead the Indian delegation for the First International Migration Review Forum.

About:

The International Migration Review Forum will serve as the primary inter-governmental global platform to discuss and share progress on the implementation of all aspects pertaining to migration and its intersection with the Sustainable Development Goals.
It will consist of four interactive multi-stakeholder round tables, a policy dialogue and a plenary. It will result in adoption of a Progress Declaration.
The quadrennial International Migration Review Forum (17-20 May 2022) will be hosted by the President of the UN General Assembly.
It consists of four interactive multi-stakeholder round tables, a policy dialogue, and a plenary. It will result in an inter-governmentally agreed Progress Declaration.
An informal interactive multi-stakeholder hearing, hosted by the PGA, will take place on the day immediately preceding the Forum (16 May).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with his Nepalese counterpart Sher Bahadur Deuba Monday laid the foundation stone for the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage in the Lumbini Monastic Zone here.

About:

It is known for birthplace of Lord Buddha,Siddhartha Gautama, born in 623 B.C.
It is located in Terai plains of southern Nepal orRupandehi district of Nepal, 125 kms fromGorakhpur in Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
It is testified by inscription on pillar erected by Mauryan Emperor Asoka in 249 BC.
Site is now being developed as a Buddhist pilgrimage centre.
Protected by Ancient Monument Preservation Act 1956.

The Wholesale Price Index-based inflation rate surged to a record high of 15.1 per cent in April, with rise in prices of vegetables, fruits, milk and fuel, government data released showed.

Key highlights:

WPI inflation has been in double digits for the thirteenth months in a row now.
According to the data released last week, retail inflation had also surged to an 8-year high of 7.79 per cent in April.
As such, another round of repo rate hike is expected in June, with its quantum being as high as 40 basis points.

Causes:

The heatwave led to a spike in prices of perishables such as fruits, vegetables and milk, which, along with a spike in tea prices, pushed up primary food inflation.
The core-WPI inflation rose to a four-month high of 11.1% in April, with producers forced to pass on the input price pressures. Fuel inflation rose to 38.66 per cent, while inflation for manufactured products rose to 10.85 per cent.
Much of the inflation spike is being seen as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with the contribution in retail inflation being seen at three-fourths of the index.

Astronomers believe nearly all galaxies, including our own, have these giant black holes at their centre, where light and matter cannot escape, making it extremely hard to get images of them.

Key highlights:

The colorised image unveiled Thursday is from the international consortium behind the Event Horizon Telescope, a collection of eight synchronised radio telescopes around the world.
The Milky Way black hole is called Sagittarius A(asterisk), near the border of Sagittarius and Scorpius constellations. It is 4 million times more massive than our sun.
This is not the first black hole image. The same group released the first one in 2019 and it was from a galaxy 53 million light-years away.
The Milky Way black hole is much closer, about 27,000 light-years away. A light year is 5.9 trillion miles (9.5 trillion kilometres).

Black hole: