NATIONAL:
1. Supreme Court Declines Stay On CAA
Why in news: The Supreme Court refused to stay the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act, or CAA.
Key points:
• The court also gave the government three weeks to respond to 237 petitions challenging the law, days before the Lok Sabha election.
• Under this CAA, non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan fleeing religious persecution can seek citizenship.
• Persons from Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, or Christian communities from these three nations are eligible if they entered on or before December 31, 2014.
2. India’s Flourishing Start-up Ecosystem
Why in news: Concluding day of the Start-up Mahakumbh, a three-day event that saw the participation of hundreds of start-ups, incubators, investors, and delegations from over 10 different countries.
Key Points:
• India’s start up ecosystem has witnessed rapid growth, creating employment for hundreds of thousands of people and transitioning job seekers into job providers.
• Viksit Bharat,” by 2047: Start-up Mahakumbh is a significant step towards realizing this vision.
Value Addition:
• India is the world’s third largest start up ecosystem. There are over 1.25 lakh registered start-ups that generate employment for over 12 lakh people.
• India has over 110 unicorns.
• Our start-ups have registered over 12,000 patents.
INTERNATIONAL:
1. Honored For Sustainable Energy Leadership
Why in news: Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, President of COP28, was awarded the prestigious ‘CERAWeek Leadership Award for Building Global Consensus towards a Sustainable Energy Future’.
Key Points:
• The award underscores Dr. Al Jaber’s extraordinary leadership and its potential impact on a global scale.
• The UAE Consensus, a product of COP28, prioritises multilateralism, inclusivity, and partnership.
• It includes commitments to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources and ambitious targets for renewable energy capacity by 2030.
• With over 50 major companies already committed to the charter, he urged others to join, stressing the importance of collective action in achieving climate goals.
Value Addition:
• Over the last decade, CERAWeek by S&P Global has honoured Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada; and Enrique Peña Nieto, former President of Mexico.
ENVIRONMENT:
1. UN Sounds ‘Red Alert’ to the World
Why in news: The WMO community is sounding the Red Alert to the world,” according to WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo, who took over the job in January.
Key Points:
• Every major global climate record was broken last year and 2024 could be worse, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
• In annual State of the Global Climate report that average temperatures hit the highest level in 174 years of record-keeping by a clear margin, reaching 1.45 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
• Ocean temperatures also reached the warmest in 65 years of data with over 90% of the seas having experienced heat wave conditions during the year.
• The report showed a big plunge in Antarctic sea ice, with the peak level measured at 1 million km2 below the previous record – an area roughly equivalent to the size of Egypt.
• Ocean heat was concentrated in the North Atlantic with temperatures an average 3 degrees Celsius above average in late 2023.
SPORTS:
1. New Khelo India Scheme
Why in news: The Sports Authority of India (SAI) recently allocated funds of more than Rs. 30.83 crore for the financial year 2023-24.
Key Points:
• Under the long-term development program, approximately 3000 athletes have been identified as Khelo India athletes.
• These athletes receive an out-of-pocket allowance of ?1,20,000 per annum per athlete, along with an additional ?5 lakh allocated for each athlete towards training and competition expenses.
BIHAR:
1. NABARD Credit Potential for Bihar
Why in news: The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has projected Rs 2,43,093 crore credit potential for Bihar in 2024-25.
Key Points:
• The State Focus Paper 2024-25 for Bihar, a compilation of the assessed credit flow for all 38 districts of the state.
• The total credit flow under the priority sector for the year 2024-25 is estimated at Rs 2,43,093 crore.
• Bihar with a Credit - Deposit ratio (CD ratio) of 53.01 per cent is classified as one of the states with the lowest CD Ratio.
• Twenty-eight out of 38 districts in the state have been classified as credit deficient districts, where per capita credit availability is less than Rs 6000.
Click here to download Current Affairs English PDF
Click here to download Current Affairs Hindi PDF