Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 14 August 2024 | Download PDF

• Recently, the Union Minister for Education released the India Rankings 2024, which are based on the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). 
• The NIRF was established by the Ministry of Education in 2015 to assess and rank educational institutions across India.

Key points:

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras:
  • Retains 1st position in the Overall Category for the sixth consecutive year (2019-2024).
  • Tops in Engineering for the ninth consecutive year (2016-2024).
• Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru:
  • Ranks 1st in the Universities Category for the ninth consecutive year (2016-2024).
  • Tops the Research Institutions Category for the fourth consecutive year (2021-2024).
• Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad: Maintains 1st position in Management subjects for the fifth consecutive year (2020-2024).
• All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi: Occupies the top slot in Medical for the seventh consecutive year (2018-2024).
• Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi: Tops the ranking in Pharmacy for 2024.
• National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru: Retains 1st position in Law.

• The NCERT evaluation of 254 Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) identified several challenges, including a lack of transparency in fund utilization, weak infrastructure, a shortage of teachers, low salaries, and concerns over student safety.

About KGBVs:

• Launch and Purpose:
  • Launched by the Government of India in August 2004.
  • Aims to set up residential schools at the upper primary level for girls from disadvantaged groups such as SC, ST, OBC, and Minority Communities in difficult areas.
• Target areas include:
  • Concentration of tribal populations.
  • Low female literacy and/or large numbers of girls out of school.
  • Concentration of SC, OBC, and minority populations.
  • Areas with small, scattered habitations that do not qualify for a school.
• Reservation and Priority:
  • 75% of seats reserved for girls belonging to SC, ST, OBC, or minority communities.
  • Remaining 25% prioritized for girls from families below the poverty line.
• Integration and Upgradation:
  • Merged with Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) during the 12th Plan (effective from April 1, 2007).
  • SSA has been absorbed into the Integrated Scheme of School Education – Samagra Shiksha (effective from 2018-19).
  • KGBVs are upgraded to include senior secondary level education with a capacity of 150-250 girls, in convergence with the Girls Hostel Scheme.

• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy recently notified the Scheme Guidelines for implementing the ‘Model Solar Village‘ under the PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana.

About Model Solar Village:

• Objective: Create one Model Solar Village per district across India to promote solar energy adoption and enable village communities to become self-reliant in meeting their energy needs.
• Eligibility Criteria:
  • Village must be a revenue village.
  • Population size requirement: Above 5,000 (or 2,000 for special category states).
• Implementation:
  • Carried out by the State/UT Renewable Energy Development Agency.
  • Supervised by the District Level Committee (DLC).

• Elon Musk reported a “massive DDOS attack” on X, which disrupted the airing of his interview with former US President Donald Trump.

About DDoS Attack:

• A DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted server, service, or network by overwhelming it with a flood of Internet traffic.
• Objective: The primary goal is to prevent legitimate users from accessing connected online services and sites.
• Methodology:
  • DDoS attacks achieve their effectiveness by utilizing multiple compromised computer systems, including IoT devices, as sources of attack traffic.
  • Unlike other cyberattacks, DDoS assaults don’t aim to breach the security perimeter but to make websites and servers unavailable to legitimate users.

• India is preparing to commission its second nuclear-powered submarine, INS Arighat, which will be equipped with nuclear missiles for strategic deterrence.

About INS Arighat:

• Second Indigenously Built SSBN: It is India’s second indigenously built nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN), following INS Arihant, which was commissioned in 2018.
• Construction Site: The submarine was constructed at the Indian Navy’s Ship Building Centre (SBC) in Visakhapatnam.
• Role in Nuclear Triad: It represents a critical component of India’s nuclear triad, providing the capability to launch nuclear missiles from land, air, and sea.

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