Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 23 September 2023 | Download PDF

• The 78th session of the UN General Assembly session was held recently.

About UN General Assembly (UNGA)

• The UNGA is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN.
• All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly.
• UNGA meets  annually in session where  general debate and discussion is held to  which many heads of state attend and address.
• Decisions on important questions, such as admission of new members and budgetary matters require a two third  majority of the General Assembly.
• Decisions on other questions are by simple majority.
• The President of the General Assembly is elected each year by assembly to serve  a one-year term of office.

Did you know?

• UNGA is the only  body with universal representation.

Constitution Bench decided to examine whether Parliament can use its constituent power to repeatedly amend Article 334 

Key points

• Article 334 of the constitution is related to the reservation of seats for SC/ST in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies to cease after a certain period.
• It was originally provided for ten years but the article has been  amended several times to continue the reservation. 

Did you know? 

• Article 15(4) and Article 16(4) of the Indian Constitution allows the federal government and state governments to reserve seats in government services for members of the SC and ST communities.

The  fossil of dinosaur  found in the Thar desert near the Jaisalmer Basin.

Key points

• Scientists from IIT Roorkee have characterized the  dinosaur fossils from the Middle Jurassic period.
• They discovered that they had uncovered remains of a sauropod dinosaur.
• They are the same as Clade , the long-necked herbivores in Jurassic Park.
• It may be the oldest known fossil of this kind.
• These fossils are the first sauropods of the Dicraeosaurus  family to have been found in India. 
• At 167 million years old, they are the oldest known diplodocus fossils in the world.
•  The scientists named the dinosaur Titanosaurus indicus, with Tharo deriving from the Thar desert.

• It was set up in 1851 primarily to find coal deposits for the Railways.
• Its HQ in kolkata 
• Over the years, it has grown into a repository of geo-science information required in various fields in the country..
• It also emphasizes systematic documentation of all geological processes, both surface and subsurface, of India and its offshore areas.
• The main functions of the GSI relate to the creation and update of national geoscientific information and mineral resource assessment.
• Presently, GSI is an attached office to the Ministry of Mines.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan unveiled a gigantic statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya on the Mandhata hillock at Omkareshwar in Khandwa district.

Key points

• It is called the Ekatmata ki Murti (Statue of Oneness).
• The 108-feet-tall statue portrays the 8th-century Indian philosopher and theologian, who consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta. 
• The unveiling is part of the ambitious Ekatma Dham project of the State government and marks the initiation of its first phase. 
• The government wants to develop it along the lines of the Mahakal Lok corridor as a major destination for spiritual-religious tourism.

Adi Shankaracharya

• He was an Indian philosopher and theologian, Sankara (Jagatguru), and was a firm believer in ancient Hinduism.
• He took guidance from guru Govinda Bhagavatpada under whom he studied ‘GaudapadiyaKarika’, ‘Brahmasutra’, Vedas, and Upanishads.
• Shankara propagated ‘Advaita Vedanta’ and ‘Dashanami Sampradaya

Did you know?

Advaita vedanta school advocates monism i.e soul and brahman are not distinguish but one  

India has fallen one notch to the 87th position out of 165 countries.

Key facts: 

• The ‘Economic Freedom of the World: 2021 Report’  released by Canada’s Fraser Institute.
• It is released annually 

About economic freedom index

• It is to measure the degree of economic freedom enjoyed by the nation 
• As the economic freedom protect the liberty of an individual to pursue their own economic interest 
• Economic freedom promotes greater prosperity for larger society.

Did you know? 

According to the report the poor rank shows the country’s dependability.

Major economies China , India and the US did not attend the summit .

Key points

• The CAS  happened at the 78th session of UNGA 
• China, the United States, and India, collectively responsible for 42% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
• The CAS aimed to showcase leaders with credible actions and policies to uphold the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C degree goal and promote climate justice.

Did you know?

India has specified the target of net zero by 2070.

Scientists of the Zoological  Survey of India (ZSI) have discovered a new species  from Digha Mohan fishing harbor.

Key points

• The fish is of vibrant orange coloured deepwater marine fish
• It is  having a bony head with pointed rostral spines
• The new species belongs to the Triglidae family 
• It has been named  as  Pterygotrigla intermedica due to its intermediate similar  characters to species like Pterygo Trigla hemistictus and P spirai.

Did you know?

It is the fourth species of pterygotrigla discovered in India so far out of the total 178 of the triglidae family across the world

The Odisha  Government allocated Rs 210 crore for the much-awaited Metro rail project in the state.

Key points

• In the Supplementary Budget for the year 2023-24, the State Government allocated Rs 210 crore for Odisha Metro Rail Transport.
• The Metro train service will begin from Bhubaneswar airport to Trisulia covering Bhubaneswar Railway Station, Vani Vihar, Jaydev Vihar, Patia, Nandankanan and Trisulia. 
• The proposed project will be extended to Puri subsequently.

A two-member delegation team from TECC visited Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bhubaneswar.

Key facts 

• The delegation visited to explore  the collaboration opportunities in the fields of academics and research.

About TECC

• It aims To expand mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities between Taiwan and India. 
• To promote exchanges and cooperation in science and technology, education, culture, and people-to-people ties under Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy.
• To provide visa services, document authentication, and emergency assistance to businesspeople, tourists, and Taiwanese nationals in the western region of India. 

The authorities  instructed the three departments implementing the World Bank-aided Odisha integrated irrigation project for climate resilient agriculture (OIIPCRA)

Key facts :

• This is to accelerate the activities to complete the projects within the stipulated timeline.
• Externally aided projects involving a cost of about Rs 1,683 crore are being implemented in 15 districts of the state.

About OIIPCRA:

• Its objective is to intensify and diversify agricultural production and enhance climate resilience under four components.
• The projects aim at demonstrating climate-smart agriculture in irrigation.
• Area covered is about  56,400 hectares of command area under 538 minor irrigation projects
• And  about 70,000 hectares of rain-fed area under the influence of minor irrigation projects
• The project is  for augmenting the capacity and income of the farmers in the project area.

Forest officials of Digapahandi forest range successfully thwarted an attempt of wildlife smugglers to transport a Asian palm civet,  protected wild animal outside the state

Asian Palm Civet Cat

• It is also known as “Salia Patini,” 
• The Asian Palm Civet Cat is classified as a Schedule-I animal under wildlife protection act 1972.
• The Asian palm civet’s long, stocky body is covered with coarse, shaggy hair that is usually grayish in color.
• It is a viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. 

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