Current Affairs One - Liner : 3rd February 2024

• National:
• The 4th National Chilika Bird Festival was indeed inaugurated by Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The festival, which took place from 27th to 29th January 2024, celebrates the arrival of around 10 lakh winged visitors of 200 species that visit Mangalajodi during the winter. Mangalajodi, situated in the North Eastern Part of Chilika, the largest brackish water lake of Asia, is known as the “Birds Paradise of Asia”.

• Tamil actor Vijay, who is now the most popular and highest-paid actor in Kollywood, announced his entry into politics on February 2, 2024. He named his political party Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam. Vijay stated that the party would contest the 2026 State Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.
• The Karnataka government, in partnership with the All India Game Developers Forum (AIGDF), launched a ‘Digital Detox’ initiative on February 2, 2024. The program aims to raise awareness about the negative impacts of excessive digital use and promote healthier digital habits.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi did indeed lay the foundation stone for the Talabira Thermal Power Project of NLC India Limited in Odisha on February 3rd, 2024. This is a significant project with an estimated investment of over ₹27,000 crore and a planned capacity of 2,400 MW in its initial phase, with the potential for an additional 800 MW in the second phase.
• Banking:
• The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Digital Payments Index (DPI) indeed shows an increase from 395.57 in March 2023 to 417.77 in September 2023. This indicates a growth in digital transactions during this period. The DPI is a measure of the extent of digitization of payments across the country. It reflects the penetration and deepening of various digital payment modes. The higher the DPI, the greater the adoption of digital payments.
• The Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) has achieved the highest growth in deposit mobilisation among public sector banks in the third quarter, with a growth rate of 17.89%. It also leads in terms of low-cost CASA deposits, holding 50.19% of the market. In terms of asset quality, BoM and SBI have the lowest gross Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) at 2.04% and 2.42% respectively.
• Science & Technology:
• The Green Propulsion System, developed under DRDO’s Technology Development Fund, demonstrated in-orbit functionality on February 1, 2024. The project was carried out by a Bengaluru-based start-up, Bellatrix Aerospace Pvt Ltd. The system is non-toxic and environment-friendly, ideal for space missions with high thrust requirements.
• The ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (ICAR-NBFGR) has indeed discovered two new species of Congrid eels. These eels belong to the genus Ariosoma. The species collected from the Gulf of Mannar, Tamil Nadu, has been named Ariosoma “kannani”, and the species from the Kochi coast, Kerala, has been named Ariosoma "gracile". The holotype specimens of both new species are registered at the National Fish Museum-cum-Repository of the ICAR-NBFGR, Lucknow.
• Defence:
• The Indian Navy has indeed declared 2024 as the ‘Year of Naval Civilians’. This initiative aims to improve the administration, efficiency, and well-being of Naval Civilians by addressing all facets of Civilian HR Management in a time-bound manner. Major focus areas have been identified for implementation in 2024, including maximizing administrative efficiency, implementing digital initiatives, conducting generic and specific training programs, and carrying out welfare activities.
• Sports:
• Abhinav Bindra, India’s first Olympic gold medallist, was selected as a torchbearer for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on February 2, 2024. He will be part of the Olympic torch relay from April 16 to July 26, 2024.
• Important Days:
• National Golden Retriever Day is celebrated on February 3rd every year. This day is dedicated to the Golden Retriever breed, one of the most popular dog breeds in the US. The day is celebrated to recognize the contributions of the Golden Retriever to the family and to encourage people to adopt the breed
• Awards & Honours:
• Nikhil Mukund Wagh, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) at Goa Shipyard Limited, was honored with the prestigious ‘Maha Gaurav 2024’ award. This award was presented by Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister, Shri Ajit Pawar, in recognition of wagh's remarkable contributions to the field of public relations
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on February 3, 2024, that veteran leader Shri Lal Krishna Advani will be conferred with the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award in the nation. The Prime Minister praised Advani’s monumental contribution to India’s development, citing his journey from grassroots work to serving as Deputy Prime Minister.
• Appointments:
• On 1st February 2024, Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh became the brand ambassador for boAt, a leading audio wearable brand. In addition to this, he has also invested an undisclosed amount in the company, thus becoming a key stakeholder. This collaboration is part of boAt’s new campaign called "Lost in Nirvana".
• Shri Pawan Kumar, an officer of the Indian Cost Accounts Service (ICoAS) from the 1992 batch, has assumed charge as Chief Adviser (Cost) in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved this appointment, and he assumed his new role on February 1, 2024.
• Champai Soren took oath as the new Chief Minister of Jharkhand on 2nd February 2024. His appointment was finalized by Governor C P Radhakrishnan. This happened after the resignation and arrest of the former Chief Minister, Hemant Soren.

Questions:

Q.1 Who has assumed charge as Chief Adviser (Cost) in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance?
a. Shri Pawan Kumar
b. Shri Ramesh Kumar
c. Shri Suresh Kumar
d. Shri Mahesh Kumar
Q.2 Who laid the foundation stone for the Talabira Thermal Power Project of NLC India Limited in Odisha?
a. President Ram Nath Kovind
b. Prime Minister Narendra Modi
c. Chief Minister of Odisha
d. Minister of Power