Current Affairs GK 6th & 11th April 2024

1. NEW YEAR FESTIVALS IN INDIA: VAISAKHI, VISHU, BISHUB, BAHAG BIHU, GUDI PADWA, PUTHANDU –

• Recently, traditional Hindu New Year festivals like Chaitra Sukladi, Ugadi, Gudi Padwa, Cheti Chand, Navreh, and Sajibu Cheiraoba were celebrated across India, fostering cultural unity and appreciation.

Major Traditional Indian New Year Festivals-

• Chaitra Sukladi- Celebrated in North India, marks the beginning of the Hindu New Year. The Hindu New Year Vikram Samvat begins with the new moon of the month of Chaitra.
• Ugadi- Ugadi marks the commencement of the Hindu New Year and is observed in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka.
• Gudi Padwa- Gudi Padwa, also known as Samvatsar Padvo, is observed in Maharashtra and Goa. It marks the beginning of Marathi New Year and is also observed as the first day of Chaitra Month.
• Cheti Chand- Celebrated by the Sindhi community. Marks the beginning of the Sindhi New Year.
• Navreh- Celebrated by the Kashmiri Pandit community.Navreh is derived from Sanskrit Nava Varsha, meaning the new year.
• Sajibu Cheiraoba- Sajibu Cheiraoba, also known as Meitei Cheiraoba, is a traditional festival celebrated in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur.

2. IRAN LAUNCHED DRONES AND CRUISE MISSILES AGAINST ISRAEL UNDER OPERATION TRUE PROMISE (ALSO CALLED “OPERATION HONEST PROMISE”) –

• India issued a statement expressing India’s “serious concern” at the escalation of hostilities, and called for “immediate de-escalation”.
• The Iranian attack was in response to the suspected Israeli strike on an Iranian consular building in Syria’s Damascus that killed 12 people.
• There are about 18,000 Indians in Israel and about 5,000-10,000 Indians in Iran, about 90 lakh people are living and working in the Gulf and West Asia region.
• Any conflict that expands will end up posing a risk to the Indian community that is based in the region.
• The West Asia region contributes to India’s 80 percent of oil supplies, which a potential conflict will impact.
• India has been able to minimise the impact of oil prices due to the Russia-Ukraine war by buying Russian oil at discounted prices, but this conflict will have an adverse impact on energy prices.
• India has invested in a strategic relationship with major Arab countries, Iran, and Israel. India sees the region as its extended neighbourhood, and it has been pushing for the India-Middle-East-Europe Economic corridor, which has strategic as well as economic benefits.
• Chabahar in Iran is another strategic economic project, which acts as a gateway to Afghanistan and Central Asia — since Pakistan denies land transit to Indian goods.
• India has a very deep strategic relationship with Israel, especially in the context of defence and security partnership.

3. INDIA’S MERCHANDISE EXPORTS REACHED A PEAK OF USD 41.68 BILLION IN MARCH 2024 COMPARED TO THE FY 2022-23 –

• India’s goods exports reached USD 41.68 billion in March 2024 compared to the FY 2022-23, despite a 0.67% decline from last year’s tally,
• Imports, on the other hand, dropped by 6% to USD 57.3 billion during the same period. The goods trade deficit contracted to USD 15.6 billion, the lowest in 11 months.
• Gold imports fell sharply by 53.6% in March to USD 1.53 billion. The drop in non-petroleum, non-gold imports contributed to the overall decline. Interestingly, silver imports jumped to USD 816.6 million.
• While goods exports averaged USD 35.4 billion in the first ten months, the last two months’ spike lifted the full-year export figure to USD 437.1 billion.
• This performance is 3.1% below the record USD 451.1 billion achieved in the previous year.

Key contributors to merchandise export growth include-

23. Electronic Goods: Exports increased by 23.64% to USD 29.12 billion.
24. Drugs & Pharmaceuticals: Exports rose by 9.67% to USD 27.85 billion.
25. Engineering Goods: Exports grew by 2.13% to USD 109.32 billion.

• Exports of agricultural commodities, such as tobacco, fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy products, spices, and oil seeds, exhibited positive growth in FY 2023-24.
• The overall trade deficit is estimated to significantly improve by 35.77% to USD 78.12 billion in FY 2023-24.
• Merchandise trade deficit improved by 9.33% to USD 240.17 billion compared to FY 2022-23.

4. VOLCANIC VORTEX RINGS –

• Mount Etna, the largest volcano in Europe, and among the world’s most active volcanoes, has been sending up almost perfect rings of smoke into the air, which is a rare phenomenon that scientists refer to as volcanic vortex rings.
• Vortex rings are generated when gas, predominantly water vapour, is released rapidly through a vent in the crater. The vent that has opened up in volcano’s crater is almost perfectly circular, so the rings that have been seen are also circular.
• Volcanic vortex rings were first observed at Etna in 1724 and have since been documented at various volcanoes worldwide. These rings can remain in the air for up to 10 minutes but tend to disintegrate quickly if conditions are windy and turbulent.

5. APPLE HAS RECENTLY ISSUED URGENT SECURITY ALERTS TO IPHONE USERS IN INDIA AND 91 OTHER COUNTRIES –

• Mercenary spyware attacks are exceptionally rare and highly sophisticated compared to regular cybercriminal activity or consumer malware.
• Unlike common cyber threats, mercenary spyware aims to gain unauthorised access to a user’s device.
• If a device is compromised by a targeted mercenary spyware attack, the attacker may be able to remotely access sensitive data, communications, or even the camera and microphone.
• These are strategically aimed, high-cost attacks, historically linked to states, targeting select individuals like journalists, activists, politicians, and diplomats.
• Pegasus, developed by the NSO Group is one of the examples of Mercenary Spyware.

6. INDIA TO RECEIVE ABOVE-NORMAL MONSOON RAINS: IMD –

• IMD in a press briefing has forecast that the rains in June-September will be 6% more than these months, an annual average of 87 cm.
• The forecasts also indicate that “above-normal” rain was likely over most parts of the country except northwest, east and northeast India.
• The models indicate a 30% chance of monsoon rains being over 10%, categorized as ‘excess’. Usually the chances of excess rain in any given year is only a 17%
• The El Nino is expected to fade away by June and progress to La Nina (a converse cooling effect in the Central Pacific region that is usually linked to surplus rainfall by the second half of the monsoon ie. August and September).
• El Nino last year dented India’s monsoon by 6%.

7. KRISTALINA GEORGIEVA RE-APPOINTED AS IMF MANAGING DIRECTOR –

• Kristalina Georgieva has been re-appointed as the Managing Director (MD) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a new 5-year term starting on 1 October 2024. She was the sole candidate nominated for the position this year, and her appointment was made by the IMF executive board.
• The IMF managing director is appointed by the executive board, which can choose a managing director through either voting or consensus. In 2004, the IMF adopted a policy of appointing a Managing Director through consensus. Candidates for the MD post can be nominated by an IMF Fund Governor or an Executive Director.
• The Board of Governors is the highest decision-making body of the IMF, consisting of one governor and one alternate governor from each member country. The Executive Board, with 24 Directors elected by member countries or groups of countries, handles the IMF’s day-to-day business. The Managing Director serves as the chairman of the Executive Board.

8. INDIA’S TRADE DEFICIT NARROWS TO 11-MONTH LOW –

• India’s merchandise trade deficit reached a low of $15.60 billion annually in March, marking a significant reduction in the yearly deficit to $240.2 billion in FY24. This decline comes as India strategically curtails its overseas purchases.
• Economists had initially estimated March’s deficit to be $18.55 billion, making this reduction even more noteworthy.
• In March, India’s merchandise exports totaled $41.68 billion, maintaining a positive trajectory above $40 billion for the second consecutive month in the fiscal year.
• Imports for March stood at $57.28 billion, reflecting a concerted effort to limit overseas purchases.
• Despite challenges, merchandise exports in FY24 saw a modest decline of 3.11% to $437.06 billion. Key contributors to export growth included electronic goods, drugs and pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, iron ore, and cotton yarn/fabric/made-ups.
• Imports during the same period slipped by 5.41% to $677.24 billion, showcasing a balanced approach to trade.

9. SENIOR IPS OFFICER ANURAG KUMAR APPOINTED AS JOINT DIRECTOR OF CBI –

• In a significant development in India’s law enforcement landscape, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of senior IPS officer Anurag Kumar as the Joint Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). This move, which comes into effect immediately, underscores the government’s confidence in Kumar’s leadership and expertise to serve in this crucial role.

•      Anurag Kumar is a 2004 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from the Assam-Meghalaya cadre. Prior to his new appointment, he was serving in the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), a premier organization under the Ministry of Home Affairs that focuses on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of police forces across the country.