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Current Affairs Capsule – January 5, 2020

January 5, 2020
Posted by: Team CP
Category: Current Affairs Capsule

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Indian Science, Technology and Engineering Facilities Map (I-STEM) website at the 107th India Science Congress on 3rd January, 2020 in New Delhi. It has been developed by scientists from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru. It is designed to be the gateway for researchers to locate a specific type of facility they need for their Research & Development (R&D) work in India.
Union Minister and Senior BJP leader Smriti Irani on 3rd January, 2020 launched BJP’s Meri Dilli, Mera Sujhav Campaign to gather suggestions from the people of the national capital for the formulation of its manifesto for the forthcoming Assembly polls in Delhi. Under the campaign, 49 ‘video raths’ will frequent the 70 Assembly constituencies to gather people’s suggestions. People can also record their suggestions through a dedicated mobile number and website.
A turtle rehabilitation centre, that will shelter more than 500 turtles, will be set up in Bihar’s Bhagalpur forest, in January 2020. Spread over half a hectare, the rehab centre will act as home to sick and severely injured turtles that are being rescued from smugglers. Every year around 11,000 turtles are smuggled from India. Previously, rescued turtles used to be released into rivers without much treatment in the absence of any facility like the centre.
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) signed a pact with the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) for collaboration in establishing an optical telescope under Project NETRA for tracking space objects. The ISRO is also going to set up a regional academic centre for space at the National Institute of Technology (NITK) at Surathkal in Karnataka to conduct joint research and development in space technology applications. Project NETRA was launched by ISRO in September 2019.
The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) inaugurated its first silk processing plant at Surendranagar in Gujarat on 3rd January, 2019, which would help cut down the cost of production of silk yarn and increase availability of raw material used in production of Patola sarees locally. Patola is the trademark saree of Gujarat. Patola is considered to be expensive as the silk yarn is purchased from Karnataka or West Bengal. KVIC was set up under the Act of Parliament, ‘Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act of 1956’. In April 1957, it took over the work of the former All India Khadi and Village Industries Board. The current chairman of KVIC is Vinai Kumar Saxena.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced the setting up of a new division called ‘New, Emerging and Strategic Technologies’ (NEST) that will act as the nodal point in India’s Foreign Ministry for all matters connected to new and emerging technologies. It will help in collaboration with foreign partners in the field of 5G and artificial intelligence. It will also help assess foreign policy and international legal implications of new and emerging technologies and technology-based resources and recommend appropriate foreign policy choice.
For the first time in four years, Maharashtra saw the highest increase in farmer suicides with 300 such cases in November 2019. Last time, farmer suicides had crossed 300 cases in a month in the state in 2015. The unseasonal rains in the state from October destroyed around 70% of the kharif crop. The maximum cases were from drought-prone Marathwada, which recorded 120 cases, followed by 112 cases in Vidarbha, which usually records the maximum number of farmer suicides.