Important TNPSC Current Affairs March (21-31) 2021

Topic: Welfare Oriented Govt Schemes and their Utilities

GRAM UJALA

Recently, the Government has launched the Gram UJALA Programme – an ambitious scheme offering the world’s cheapest LED bulbs in rural areas at a mere Rs. 10.

Key facts:

Coverage: In its first phase launched from Arrah in Bihar, 15 million LED bulbs will be distributed across villages of 5 districts – Aarah (Bihar), Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh), Nagpur (Maharashtra), and villages in western Gujarat.

The light-emitting diode (LED) is one of today’s most energy-efficient and rapidly-developing lighting technologies.

Implementation:

7 watt and 12-watt LED bulbs with 3 years warranty will be given to rural consumers against submission of working Incandescent bulbs. Each household will get up to 5 LEDs. Participating rural households will also have metres installed in their houses to account for usage.

The LED bulbs are offered by state-run Energy Efficiency Services Ltd’s (EESL’s) subsidiary Convergence Energy Services Ltd (CESL). EESL is a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) under the Ministry of Power.

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Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Earth Hour

The Earth Hour is being observed on 27th March 2021. Earth Hour is the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF)’s annual initiative that began in 2007. It is held every year on the last Saturday of March.

It encourages people from more than 180 countries to switch off the lights from 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm as per their local time. The idea is to refrain from the use of non-essential lighting to save energy in a symbolic call for environmental protection.

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Topic: New inventions on Science and Technology

NISAR: Joint Earth Observing Mission of NASA and ISRO

NASA and ISRO are collaborating on developing an SUV-sized satellite called NISAR, which will detect movements of the planet’s surface as small as 0.4 inches over areas about half the size of a tennis court.

The satellite will be launched in 2022 from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) into a near-polar orbit.

Key facts:

The Name ‘NISAR’: The name NISAR is short for NASA-ISRO-SAR.

SAR here refers to the Synthetic Aperture Radar that NASA will use to measure changes in the surface of the Earth. It refers to a technique for producing high-resolution images. Because of the precision, the radar can penetrate clouds and darkness, which means that it can collect data day and night in any weather.

Function: It will scan the globe every 12 days over the course of its three-year mission of imaging the Earth’s land, ice sheets and sea ice to give an unprecedented view of the planet.

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Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Exercise VAJRA PRAHAR

Recently, Special Forces of India and the USA conducted the joint military exercise ‘VAJRA PRAHAR 2021’ in Himachal Pradesh. Earlier, India and the USA navy had carried out a two-day Passage Exercise (PASSEX) in the eastern Indian Ocean Region.

About the Exercise:

The joint exercise by the Special Forces of both the countries is conducted alternatively between India and the United States. Special Forces are the units of a country’s armed forces that undertake covert, counterterrorist, and other specialized operations.

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Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Jaapi & Xorai

Jappi: It is a conical hat made of bamboo and covered with dried tokou (a palm tree found in rainforests of Upper Assam) leaves. While it is most often used in official functions to felicitate guests, the landscape of rural Assam features a more utilitarian version, which farmers wear to protect themselves from the harsh weather, both sun and rain, while working in the fields.

Xorai: Made of bell-metal, the xorai — essentially a tray with a stand at the bottom, with or without a cover — can be found in every Assamese household. While it is primarily used as an offering tray during prayers, or to serve tamale-paan (betel-nut) to guests, a xorai is also presented along with the jaapi and gamosa while felicitating someone. The bulk of xorais in Assam are made in the state’s bell metal hub Sarthebari in Bajali district.

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Topic: Persons in News

Bacteria found on International Space Station named after Indian scientist

Four species of bacteria have been discovered onboard the International Space Station (ISS), one of which has been named after Indian biodiversity scientist Seyed Ajmal Khan (Methylobacterium ajmalii).

Four strains of bacteria belong to the family. While one strain was identified as Methylorubrum rhodesianum bacteria, the other three strains were previously undiscovered.

Seyed Ajmal Khan:

Seyed Ajmal Khan is a professor at the Annamalai University in Tamil Nadu. The newly-discovered strains might possess “biotechnologically useful genetic determinants” for the growing of crops in space.

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Topic: Awards and Honours

Gandhi Peace Prize

The father of the nation of Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the former Sultan of Oman, the late Qaboos bin Said Al Said, will be awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize for 2020 and 2019, respectively.

They were selected by the jury, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and comprising the Chief Justice of India, the leader of the single largest Opposition party in the Lok Sabha, Lok Sabha Speaker and founder of Sulabh International.

About the Gandhi Peace Prize:

Instituted in the year 1995 on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. This annual award is given to individuals and institutions for their contributions towards social, economic and political transformation through non-violence and other Gandhian methods.

The award carries a cash prize of Rs 1 crore, a citation and a Plaque as well as an exquisite traditional handicraft/handloom item. It is open to all persons regardless of nationality, creed, race or sex.

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Topic: Latest Diary of Events

What is Freedom Pineapple Movement?

The Foreign Minister of Taiwan, Joseph Wu, recently launched a “Freedom Pineapple” campaign on Twitter in order to condemn the politically-driven ban on the import of pineapples from Taiwan by China. The Taiwanese pineapples have also become a political symbol in the region following the ban.

About Freedom Pineapple:

Freedom pineapples is a political and social response against the Chinese ban on import of pineapples from Taiwan. The Chinese government has banned the import of Pineapples from Taiwan just before the season for pineapple was started in the year 2021. The government has banned the import stating that the imports done in the previous instances had been contaminated with pests. However, this was denied by experts, producers, and the government of Taiwan. The movement’s name is inspired from a “Play on Freedom Fries” which is named as the “Freedom pineapples”.