Current Affairs for IAS Exams -25 January 2023


Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 25 January 2023

::NATIONAL::

13th National Voters’ Day

  • Election Commission of India is celebrating 13th National Voters’ Day on 25th January 2023.

About:

  • The theme for this year’s NVD, ‘Nothing Like Voting, I Vote for Sure’ is dedicated to voters which conveys individual’s feeling and aspiration towards participation in the electoral process through power of their vote. 
  • The logo is designed to showcase festivity and inclusivity of the electoral process. 
  • Ashoka Chakra in the background represents the largest democracy of the world, whereas the inked finger represents participation of each and every voter of the country. 
  • The tick mark in the logo stands for informed decision making by the voter.

Background:

  • Since 2011, National Voters’ Day has been celebrated on January 25 every year, all across the country to mark the foundation day of the Election Commission of India, i.e. 25th January 1950. 
  • The main purpose of the NVD celebration is to create electoral awareness amongst citizens and encourage them to participate in the electoral process. 
  • Dedicated to the voters of the country, the National Voters’ Day is also used to facilitate enrolment of voters, specially the newly eligible young voters. New voters are felicitated and handed over their Elector Photo Identity Card (EPIC) in the NVD functions held across the country.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL CURRENT AFFAIRS (Only for Course Members)

Assam’s Charaideo Moidams

  • Assam Chief Minister recently announced that the central government has decided to put forth the name of Assam’s Charaideomoidams burial sites for addition to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites list. 

About:

  • Presently, there are 40 UNESCOWHS in India: 32 cultural (none inthe northeast), 7 natural, and 1mixed type.
  • Maidams are the burial mounds ofAhom kings, queens and nobles.
  • Though Maidams are found in alldistricts of Upper Assam,Charaideo, first capital of Ahomswas necropolis of almost allAhom Royals.
  • Maidam consists of three majorfeatures:

1.    A vault or chamber (to keepmortal remains).
2.    A hemispherical earthenmound covering the chamberwith a brick structurefor annual offeringover it.
3.    An octagonal boundary wallhaving an arched gateway on itswest.

  • Their sizes vary from a modestmound to a hillock, dependingupon the power, status and resources of the person buried.

JOIN Full Online Course for UPSC PRE Exam

UPSC IAS Exam Complete Study Materials

::INTERNATIONAL::

Groningen gas field

  • The Netherlands remains convinced of the need to close production at Groningen, once one of Europe’s largest gas fields, by October following earthquake risks which made it dangerous to keep operating. 

About:

  • The Groningen gas field is natural in Groningen province in the northeastern part of the Netherlands.
  • It is the largest natural gas field in Europe.
  • This region of Groningen in the Netherlands has a gas field that began operations in 1963.
  • During the 1980s, the area saw numerous earthquakes - minor enough to avoid large damage but big enough for local buildings to develop cracks.
  • Following these quakes, the Dutch government had earlier said that it would shutter the field in response to local protests.
  • In Groningen, the ground subsiding has been caused by extraction alone over several years.
  • Such extraction causes rocks to contract - as the pores get to hold fewer and fewer hydrocarbons over time.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL CURRENT AFFAIRS (Only for Course Members)

Switzerland First to Adopt WTO Fisheries Deal

  • Switzerland is first WTO member to formally accept new Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.

About:

  • It is the first WTO agreement to focus on environment and only secondagreement reached at WTO since its inception.
  • It was adopted at WTO’s 12th Ministerial Conference held in Geneva.
  • Acceptances from two-thirds of WTO members are needed for Agreement tocome into effect.

Key features of this agreement:

  • Prohibits subsidies to illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing,and bans subsidies for fishing overfished stocks and for fishing on unregulatedhigh seas.
  • Recognizes needs of developing and least-developed countries (LDCs) andestablishes a Fund to provide technical assistance and capacity building tohelp them implement the Agreement.
  • No prohibition on a WTO Member regarding subsidy to its vessel or operator as long as it is not carrying out IUU.
  • No prohibition on subsidies that are implemented to rebuild stock to a biologically sustainable level.

::Economy::

Derivatives Trading in Commodities

  • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regulator suspended futures trading of the seven agricultural commodities recently.

About:

  • On December 20, 2021 the capital markets regulator suspended futures trading in seven commodities, viz., wheat, paddy (non basmati), moong, chana, soyabean and its derivatives, mustard seed and its derivatives, and palm oil and its derivatives on the exchanges. 
  • The SEBI order allowed the squaring of contracts but said no new contract would be allowed in these commodities.
  • Of the seven commodities, chana and mustard seed were already banned at the time. The trading was initially suspended for a year, but in December 2022, the ban was extended for another year, i.e., until December 20, 2023.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL CURRENT AFFAIRS (Only for Course Members)

About Derivatives Trading:

  • The derivatives are short-term financial contracts that are bought and sold in the market.
  • Profits are made in the derivatives trade by predicting the price movements of the asset that underlies the contract.
  • The derivatives trade can be in futures and options. In a futures contract, a supplier pledges to sell a certain quantity at a fixed price at a future date. An option is a derivative contract which gives the buyer (the owner or holder of the option) the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell an underlying asset.
  • Farmers can put fixed amounts of their products, which fit the quality standards of the exchange, to be sold at a fixed price — almost like price insurance.
  • These contracts can be exited by either the producer or the trader by paying a margin price to the exchange.

::SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY::

BharOS software 

  • The new mobile operating system called BharOS was developed by the IIT Madras-incubated company JandK Operations Private Limited launched recently. 
  • Funded by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), the indigenous mobile operating system wants to cater to the approximately 100 crore mobile phone users in India.

About:

  • BharOS is a mobile operating system similar to Android or iOS; it is based on an AOSP (Android Open Source Project) operating system and does not use any Google apps or services.
  • It would support Native Over The Air (NOTA) updates as well as No Default Apps (NDA).
  • It has a minimalistic home screen with the Indian flag, a list of app categories, and a selection of apps that have passed the OS’s trust and security standards.
  • It will employ the Private App Store Services (PASS) system to examine and curate apps that are safe for users.
  • These systems enable smartphone users to interact with their devices and access their features while also ensuring their safety.
  • Current status: The current version of BharOS includes third-party apps such as DuckDuckGo and Signal by default.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL CURRENT AFFAIRS (Only for Course Members)

Click Here For All Current Affairs

Click  Here for MCQ's Archive

This is a Part of Online Coaching Programme for UPSC Exam

DOWNLOAD UPSC Monthly Current Affairs PDF

Study Notes for UPSC IAS Exam