- National:
- To ensure the availability of low-cost funds for Renewable Energy Projects, the Government of India raised Sovereign Green Bonds of Rs. 16,000 crore (approximately) during FY 22-23. Out of the proceeds of Sovereign Green Bonds, Rs. 6,186 crores were dedicated for renewable energy.
- Hanukkah, also known as Chanukah, is a Jewish festival that lasts for eight days and nights. It usually falls in late November to late December. In 2023, it is being celebrated from December 7 to December 15. The festival commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and the miracle of the burning oil. This is why it’s often called the Festival of Lights.
- The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, has issued the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. These guidelines were notified in the Official Gazette on November 30. The guidelines aim to prevent and regulate “dark patterns”, which are deceptive design patterns using UI/UX (user interface/user experience) interactions on any platform.
- A total of 70 projects at total cost of Rs 291.25 crore have been sanctioned to various industries and 16 defence technologies have been successfully developed/realised under the scheme. This information was given by Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Ajay Bhatt in a written reply to Shri Tapir Gao.
- The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) provided free legal services to approximately 7.45 lakh people from April 2023 to September 2023. NALSA has been constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 to provide free Legal Services to the weaker sections of the society and to organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes.
- The Union Minister for Power and New & Renewable Energy Shri R. K. Singh has launched 4E Wave, a student-led National Movement for Energy Conservation. The movement was launched in the presence of Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir Shri Manoj Sinha, when the LG met the Minister in Delhi yesterday, December 7, 2023.
- The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has released “HaritSagar” Green Port Guidelines. Under these guidelines, various green interventions such as ship-to-shore power supply, electrification of Port equipment, usage of alternate fuels such as green Hydrogen/Green Ammonia/Methanol in port crafts, creation of infrastructure at select Ports for storage, bunkering, and refueling of Green hydrogen/Green Ammonia, increase share of Renewable Energy etc.
- International:
- American pop singer Taylor Swift has indeed been named Time Magazine’s 2023 Person of the Year. Swift’s selection was due to her record-breaking year in 2023, which included a global tour and becoming the world’s most-streamed musical artist.
- The Cambridge Dictionary has indeed announced ‘hallucinate’ as its Word of the Year for 2023.
- Banking:
- The Indian Banks' Association and unions have reached an agreement on a 17% wage hike for all public sector banks, totaling Rs 12,449 crore. This decision will benefit around nine lakh employees, including 3.8 lakh officers, of PSU banks, including SBI and some old generation private banks.
- Reports:
- Around 58 lakh crimes were registered in 2022; registration of cases declined by 4.5%. The crime rate registered per lakh population has declined from 445.9 in 2021 to 422.2 in 2022. This (2022) is the 70th edition of Crime in India, the annual report published by NCRB on 8th December.
- According to Mercom Capital Group’s report on the 2021 top global large-scale solar PV developers, Adani Green Energy from India was ranked second. The report covered the period from July 2020 to June 2021. The leading developer was Enel Green Power from Italy, and Engie from France was third.
- Mous:
- On 9th December, The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) on behalf of the River Cities Alliance (RCA), has signed a Memorandum of Common Purpose (MoCP) with the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative (MRCTI), representing 124 cities/towns situated along the banks of the Mississippi River, USA. The signing ceremony took place at the Rotary Hall as part of the ongoing COP28 or the United Nations Climate Change Conference, currently underway in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
- Defence:
- The Non-Lapsable Defence Modernisation Fund (DMF) is under consideration with the Ministry of Defence. This fund will be available for the modernization of Defence Forces and would supplement the regular yearly budgetary allocations by eliminating any uncertainty in the provisioning of adequate funds for various defence capability development and infrastructure projects. The Ministry of Finance is indeed working on a suitable mechanism for operationalizing the fund.
- Science & technology:
- IBM has indeed announced the release of its first-ever 1,000-qubit quantum chip. This chip, named Condor, is the largest transmon-based quantum processor yet released, with 1,121 functioning qubits. IBM’s roadmap also includes the development of smaller chips with a fresh approach to error correction. One of these is based on a combination of three Heron chips, each of which has 133 qubits.
- Appointments:
- Lalbiaktluanga Khiangte, a 1988-batch Jharkhand IAS officer, has been appointed as the new Chief Secretary of Jharkhand on 6th December 2023.
- Anumula Revanth Reddy and Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka were sworn in as the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Telangana, respectively, on Thursday, December 7, 2023.
- Awards & Honors:
- On December 3, 2023, Prashant Agrawal, the President of Narayan Seva Sansthan, was honored with the prestigious National Award for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities by the esteemed President of India, Mrs. Draupadi Murmu.
- The National Award for Innovations and Good Practices in Educational Administration for the academic years 2020-21 & 2021-22 was presented by the Union Minister for Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan.
Questions:
Q.1 When is Hanukkah celebrated in 2023?a. November 25 to December 3
b. December 7 to December 15
c. December 25 to January 2
d. December 1 to December 9
Q.2 What is the name of IBM’s first-ever 1,000-qubit quantum chip?
a. Heron
b. Flamingo
c. Condor
d. Starling
