Current Affairs Quiz 8th April 2024 Quiz

Exp. Tri-Service Conference ‘Parivartan Chintan’ held in New Delhi

Parivartan Chintan, a pioneering Tri-Service Conference aimed at generating new and fresh ideas, initiatives and reforms to propel Jointness and Integration efforts held in New Delhi.

It is the first-ever conference of the Heads of all Tri-Services Institutions, the Department of Military Affairs, Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff and the three Services.

Officers from varied service brackets, through their diverse understanding and experience recommended measures to achieve the desired “Joint and Integrated” end state with celerity.

The Indian Armed Forces have embarked on a major transformative change in their quest to be ready for the envisaged future wars, initiatives are being undertaken to promote Jointness and Integration as structures are modified to enable Tri- Service multi domain operations.

Exp. AGEL to invest ₹1.5 trillion in developing world’s largest RE park in Khavda

Adani Green Energy Ltd plans to invest about ₹1.5 trillion through 2030 to develop the world’s largest renewable energy plant with 30-gigawatt capacity at the Khavda renewable energy park in Gujarat.

The project, part of the Adani Groups renewable energy flagship’s plan to achieve 45 gigawatt (GW) installed renewable energy capacity in the country by 2030, will see 26 GW of solar and 4 GW of wind generation capacity coming up.

Currently, AGEL has an operating renewable portfolio of 10.93 GW—7.39 GW solar, 1.4 GW wind, and 2.14 GW of hybrid—across 12 states.

Exp. Website ‘Booth Raabta’ launched by Punjab for election-related information

In Punjab, under the unique initiative of the District Election Officer and Deputy Commissioner of Malerkotla, Dr. Pallavi, a special website named ‘Booth Raabta’ has been launched to provide election-related information to the people of the district.

The website boothraabta.com will be helpful not only to the voters but also to the polling personnel in any circumstances.

Deputy Election Commissioner of India Hirdesh Kumar and Punjab Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C appreciated this initiative.

About Punjab

• Capital – Chandigarh
• Chief Minister – Bhagwant Mann
• Governor – Banwarilal Purohit

Exp. Miraj’s Sitars and Tanpuras awarded GI Tags

The sitars and tanpuras of Miraj, a small town in Maharashtra’s Sangli district known for its craftsmanship in making musical instruments, have been awarded the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) tags.

These instruments made in Miraj are much in demand among some of the prominent artistes, including those renowned in the field of classical music as well as film industry, the makers claim.

The tradition of making sitars and tanpuras in Miraj goes back more than 300 years, with over seven generations of craftsmen having worked towards making these string instruments

Exp. SIDBI partners fintech platform KarmaLife for micro loans to gig workers

Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has partnered with a fintech Onion Life Private Limited to use the latter’s technology platform KarmaLife for a pilot to provide micro loans to gig workers.

This is expected to support the gig workers’ financial inclusion to formal institutional credit.

KarmaLife will help gig workers access micro loans through a mobile app and eliminates the hassle of extensive paperwork or physical documentation.

This streamlined process will make it easier for gig workers to manage the liquidity needs of their enterprise activities.

Recent MoUs Signed in Banking Sector

• Central Bank of India partners with Veefin Solutions to commence supply chain finance
• Ujjivan Small Finance Bank partners with Veefin Solutions for MSME growth
• Star Housing Finance partnered with Tata Capital Housing Finance to leverage domain of Star HFL in low ticket affordable housing finance space
• Airtel Payments Bank partners with Noise and Mastercard to unveil ‘A New Way To Pay’
• YES Bank partners with Indian Olympic Association for Paris Olympics 2024

Exp. Srinivas Pallia appoints as CEO of Wipro

IT giant Wipro has appointed Srinivas Pallia as its new CEO, following the resignation of Thierry Delaporte.

He will be relieved from the employment of the Company with effect from the close of business hours on May 31, 2024.

Srinivas Pallia has been with Wipro for over 32 years, starting as a Product Manager in 1992, according to his LinkedIn.

Srinivas Pallia has been honoured several times during his time at Wipro, including the Most Valuable Player and Chairman’s Club Award in April 2004, followed by the All STAR Team of the Year Award in April 2006.

Mr Pallia also received the Award for Influencing Analysts and Impacting Wipro’s Competency Ratings in July 2010.

Mr Pallia was also named one of India’s 25 Hottest Young Business Executives by Business Today in May 2008.

About Wipro

• Founded– 29 December 1945
• Founder–H. Hasham Premji
• Headquarters– Bengaluru
• Chairman – Rishad Premji
• CEO – Srinivas Pallia

Recent Appointment

• Chairman of National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd – Meenesh Shah
• DG of Electronics & Mechanical Engineers – J S Sidana
• CMD of Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. – Santosh Kumar Jha
• Chief Business Officer of Perfios – Sridhar Narayan
• President of Assocham – Sanjay Nayar (replace Ajay Singh)

Exp.  Peter Pellegrini elected President of Slovakia

A close ally of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico beat a pro-Western career diplomat to become Slovakia’s new President, and succeed Zuzana Čaputová, the country’s first female head of State.

Parliamentary Speaker Peter Pellegrini received 53.85% of the vote with the ballots from over 98% polling stations counted by the Statistics Office in Saturday’s runoff election, topping former Foreign Minister Ivan Korčok who had 46.14%.

Mr. Pellegrini becomes Slovakia’s sixth President since the country gained independence after the split of Czechoslovakia in 1993.

About Slovak Republic (Slovakia)

• Capital- Bratislava
• Currency– Euro
• President – Peter Pellegrini

Newly Appointed Prime Minister & President

• President of Egypt – Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi (3rd term)
• PM of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – Judith Suminwa Tuluka (nation’s first female PM)
• President of Senegal – Bassirou Diomaye Faye
• Prime Minister of Portugal – Luis Montenegro
• President of Indonesia – Prabowo Subianto

Exp. U.S. and Britain Forge Alliance to enhance AI Safety

The United States and Britain have joined forces to bolster the safety measures surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) amidst concerns over upcoming advanced AI iterations.

This collaboration aims to collectively develop advanced AI model testing procedures, aligning with commitments made during the AI Safety Summit held at Bletchley Park.

Both countries are establishing government-led AI safety institutes.

Britain announced its institute in October to examine and test new types of AI, while the United States launched its own safety institute in November to evaluate risks from advanced AI models. The US institute is now collaborating with 200 companies and entities.

Exp. Raghu Ram received fellowship of American Surgical Association (ASA)

The American Surgical Association (ASA) has honoured Dr Raghu Ram with an Honorary Fellowship in Washington DC.

This is the highest recognition that the ASA can bestow upon a surgical colleague from a foreign country.

Dr Raghu Ram is the third surgeon from South Asia to receive this honour in the 144 years’ history of the United State’s oldest surgical organisation.

Recent Awards

• 15th CIDC Vishwakarma Awards 2024 – SJVN Limited
• SKOCH ESG Award 2024 in Renewable Energy Financing Category – REC Limited
• International Culture Award 2024 – Meena Charanda
• Times Power Icon 2024 Award by The Times Group – Vijay Jain
• Abel Prize 2024 – Michel Talagrand (for work in probability theory and stochastic processes).

Exp. EIL conferred with CIDC Vishwakarma Award

Engineers India Limited (EIL) has been conferred with the prestigious CIDC Vishwakarma Award by the Construction Industry Development Council (CIDC) in the category of “Construction Health, Safety & Environment” for Rajasthan Refinery Project, Barmer.

The awards were presented during the 15th CIDC Vishwakarma Awards ceremony held in New Delhi.

The Award recognizes EIL’s respect for human life and well-being as reflected in its best practices towards construction safety and occupational health management, especially in complex projects.

Exp. Max Verstappen wins Japanese Grand Prix

Triple world champion Max Verstappen romped to victory at the Japanese Grand Prix, leading team-mate Sergio Perez to a dominant one-two finish for Red Bull.

Verstappen failed to finish in Australia a fortnight ago but he was in control for the entire race at Suzuka after starting from pole and claimed his third win from four grands prix this season.

Carlos Sainz of Ferrari took third place, ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc, who started from eighth on the grid.

McLaren’s Lando Norris finished fifth, while Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was sixth.

Recent 2024 Grand Prix Winner

• Australian Grand Prix – Ferrari’s Carlos Saina (Spain)
• Saudi Arabian Grand Prix – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands)
• Bahrain Grand Prix 2- Red Bull’s Max Verstappen (Netherlands)

Exp. 8 April – National Zoo Lovers Day

National Zoo Lovers Day is celebrated every year on 8 April.

National Zoo Lovers Day encourages us to explore our local zoos.

Each year millions of people visit zoos and learn about the many animals that live there. Also known as zoological parks, many of them serve as breeding centers.

These facilities are relied upon when species are endangered or at risk of becoming endangered. They also provide education to the public about a broad variety of animals and their habitats.

The Vienna Zoo is the oldest existing zoo and was opened to the public in 1765.

Exp. 7 April – National Beer Day

National Beer Day is celebrated on April 7th each year.

This day is celebrated to appreciate the contributions of the brewing industry to the economy and society as a whole.

Beer is the world’s most widely consumed alcoholic beverage, and it’s consumed by people in over 150 countries.

The history of National Beer Day dates back to 1933, when the Cullen-Harrison Act was signed into law, which reversed the prohibition on the sale of beer in the United States.

Exp. 7 April – World Health Day

World Health Day 2024 is celebrated every year on April 7.

This day is dedicated to the health of people and the well-being of the global community.

Theme 2024 – My health, my right.

The World Health Organization was established on October 24, 1945 as part of the United Nations’ efforts to promote global peace, security, and better living conditions for all.

On April 7, 1948, the WHO’s constitution came into effect, merging the Health Organization of the League of Nations, the Office International d’Hygiène Publique, and the International Classification of Diseases. India became a member of the WHO on January 12, 1948.