Daily Current Affairs for UPSC Exam 16 January | Prelims Bits

Daily Current Affairs for UPSC Exam

Daily Current Affairs for UPSC: Daily Current Affairs for UPSC article covers important articles of the day which is important for various competitive exams like UPSC, State PCS, SSC and various Bank Exams. 

Vande Bharat Express

Vande Bharat Express in News

• Recently, PM Modi flagged off the Vande Bharat Express train connecting Secunderabad with Visakhapatnam via video conferencing.

Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express

• This train will be the-
  • Eighth Vande Bharat Express to be introduced by Indian Railways and
  • First one connecting the two Telugu-speaking states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, covering a distance of around 700 km.
• The travel time from Secunderabad to Visakhapatnam will be reduced to eight and a half hours from 12 and a half hours.
• It will have stoppages at Visakhapatnam, Rajahmundry and Vijayawada stations in Andhra Pradesh and at Khammam, Warangal and Secunderabad stations in Telangana.

What is Vande Bharat Express Train?

• The indigenously designed train set of Vande Bharat Express is equipped with state-of-the-art passenger amenities. It will provide a faster, more comfortable and more convenient travel experience to rail users.
• The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel.
• Vande Bharat 2.0 is equipped with more advancements and improved features such as reaching a speed of 0 to 100 kilometres per hour in just 52 seconds, and a maximum speed of up to 180 kilometres per hour.
• The improved Vande Bharat Express will weigh 392 tons when compared to the previous version of 430 tons. It will also have a Wi-Fi content on-demand facility.
• Every coach has 32” screens providing passenger information and infotainment compared to 24” in the previous version.
• Vande Bharat Express will also be environmentally friendly as the ACs will be 15 per cent more energy efficient.
• With dust-free clean air cooling of the traction motor, travel will become more comfortable.
• A side recliner seat facility provided only to Executive Class passengers earlier will now be made available for all classes. Executive Coaches have the added feature of 180-degree rotating seats.

Startup India Innovation Week

Startup India Innovation Week in News

• Continuing with the week long Start up India Innovation Week to foster spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship, several events are being conducted across country.

Startup India Innovation Week- Promoting Innovation and Entrepreneurship

• Atal Incubation Centre at Banasthali Vidhyapeeth is organizing a 2-day Mega Startup Fest on the 15th and 16th of January to bring creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurial thinking.
• The first day of the fest witnessed participation from students across colleges and dynamic streams, including, Department of Engineering, Management, Biosciences, Pharmacy, Design.
• Startup India organised the 6th session in the 7-day series of industry-focused webinars on the topic – Channelizing Private Investments into Startups.
• The webinar focussed on the different category of investors in the startup ecosystem and what they look at while investing in startups.
• The webinar was joined by enablers of the ecosystem such as Banks, Debt funds, Proptech funds as well as an accelerator to discuss the same.

‘Music in the Park’ series under “Shruti Amrut”

Music in the Park Series in News

• SPIC MACAY organizes its very popular ‘Music in the Park’ series this year under the name “Shruti Amrut” in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and the New Delhi Municipal Council.
• The beauty of Indian Classical Music was showcased  by eminent artists from across the country.

Music in the Park Series Events

• The concert begun with Sarod performance by Aman Ali Bangash, 7th Generation musician from Senia Bangash Gharana. He was accompanied by Anubrata Chatterjee (Tabla) and Abhishek Mishra (Tabla).
• Following this, Hindustani Vocal performance by Padma Bhushan Begum Parween Sultana of Patiala Gharana accompanied by Akram Khan (Tabla), Shrinivas Acharya (Harmonium) and Shadaab Sultana (Vocals) were performed.

What is SPIC MACAY?

• SPIC MACAY full form is ‘The Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth’.
• SPIC MACAY is a voluntary youth movement that promotes the tangible & intangible aspects of Indian & world heritage by organizing programs and workshops of Indian Classical, Folk Music and dance, Yoga, meditation, crafts, and other aspects of Indian culture.
• SPIC MACAY is a movement started in 1977 and has chapters in over 850 towns across the world.

G20 Infrastructure Working Group (IWG)

G20 Infrastructure Working Group (IWG) in News

• The first G20 Infrastructure Working Group (IWG) meeting under G20 India Presidency will take place in Pune, Maharashtra on 16th -17th January 2023.

G20 Infrastructure Working Group (IWG) 2023

• The meeting will be joined by the IWG member countries, guest countries and international organizations invited by India to discuss the 2023 Infrastructure Agenda under the Indian G20 Presidency.
• The Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India will host the two-day IWG meetings, along with Australia and Brazil as the co-chairs.
• The first IWG meeting in Pune would be attended by 65 delegates across the G20 membership, invitee countries and International Organizations.

What is G20 Infrastructure Working Group (IWG)?

• The G20 Infrastructure Working Group deliberates on various aspects of infrastructure investments, including-
  • Developing infrastructure as an asset class;
  • Promoting quality infrastructure investment; and
  • Identifying innovative instruments for mobilizing financial resources for infrastructure investment.
• The outcomes of the Infrastructure Working Group feed into the G20 Finance Track priorities to promote a common objective of economic growth.

Daily Current Affairs For UPSC 14 January 2023, Prelims Bits

Daily Current Affairs For UPSC 14 January 2023, Prelims Bits

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