International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Rwanda Genocide
International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda observed globally on 7 April every year. The International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda was announced by the United General Assembly in 2003. On April 7th, the date where the genocide against members of the Tutsi began. For approximately 100 days, over 800,000 Tutsi were assassinated.
UNESCO aims to educate the world population regarding genocides and the consequences of the crime. UNESCO is committed to promoting education about genocides as a means to sensitize learners for the causes, dynamics and consequences of such crimes and to strengthen their resilience against all forms of discrimination.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- UNESCO formation: 4 November 1946.
- UNESCO Headquarters: Paris, France.
- UNESCO Director-General: Audrey Azoulay.
Former Union Minister and Gujarat MLA Digvijaysinh Zala passes away
Former Union Environment Minister and an MLA from Wankaner in Gujarat, Digvijaysinh Zala has passed away. The veteran Congress leader became the first Environment Minister of India under the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi from 1982 to 1984.
Cabinet Appoints Tarun Bajaj as new Revenue Secretary
The Central Government has approved the appointment of Tarun Bajaj as the new Revenue Secretary under the Ministry of Finance. Prior to this, Bajaj, a 1988 batch Haryana-cadre IAS officer, was serving as the Economic Affairs Secretary since April 30, 2020. The cabinet has also approved the appointment of Ajay Seth, a 1987 batch Karnataka-cadre IAS officer, as new Economic Affairs Secretary in place of Bajaj.
Justice N V Ramana to assume charge as next CJI
The senior-most Supreme Court judge Justice Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana has been appointed as the next Chief Justice of India (CJI). Justice Ramana would succeed incumbent CJI Sharad Arvind Bobde to take over as the 48th CJI. He would assume charge of the office from April 24, 2021, till August 26, 2022.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Supreme Court of India Established: 26 January 1950.
Jeff Bezos tops Forbes’ Annual Billionaire list fourth year in a row
The Amazon.com Inc founder, Jeff Bezos has topped Forbes’ annual world’s billionaires list for the fourth consecutive year. India’s richest billionaire Mukesh Ambani ranked at 10th position with a total net worth of USD 84.5 billion. The 35th edition Forbes World’s Billionaires list was released on April 06, 2021, comprising a record-breaking 2,755 billionaires. The list is prepared based on the wealth using stock prices and exchange rates from March 5, 2021.
Top five billionaires on the list :
| Rank | Name | Company | Net Worth in USD ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jeff Bezos | Amazon | 177 billion |
| 2 | Elon Musk |
Tesla, SpaceX
|
151 billion |
| 3 | Bernard Arnault | LVMH | 150 billion |
| 4 | Bill Gates | Microsoft | 124 billion |
| 5 |
Mark Zuckerberg
|
97 billion | |
| 6 | Mukesh Ambani | Reliance Industries | 84.5 billion |
IMF revises GDP growth forecast of India to 12.5% for FY22
International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised its growth forecast for the Indian economy by 100 basis points to 12.5 per cent for the fiscal year 2021-22. GDP growth for FY23 is pegged at 6.9 per cent. The revised forecast was published in the IMF’s World Economic Outlook. India is the only country among major world economies that is projected to grow at a double-digit rate during FY22.
India completes arch of world’s highest railway bridge in J&K
The construction of the arch of the world’s highest railway bridge that soars 359 metres above the bed of the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir was completed. The 1.3-kilometre-long bridge aims to boost connectivity to the Kashmir Valley and it is being constructed at a cost of ₹ 1,486 crores as part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Link (USBRL) project.
Features of the Arch of the iconic Chenab Bridge:
- The construction of the Chenab bridge was declared as a national project in 2002.
- Indian Railways is constructing the iconic Arch Bridge on River Chenab as a part of the USBRL project to connect the Kashmir valley to the rest of the nation.
- This bridge is 1315m long.
- This is the highest Railway Bridge in the world being 359m above the river bed level.
- It will be 35 meters higher than the iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris (France).
- The overall weight of Arch is 10,619 MT.
- The most sophisticated ‘Tekla’ software used for structural detailing.
- Structural steel was suitable for -10°C to 40°C temperature.
- Bridge designed to bear earthquake forces of highest intensity zone-V in India.
- Bridge designed to withstand high wind speed up to 266 Km/Hour.
DRDO develops Advanced Chaff Technology to safeguard naval ships
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed an Advanced Chaff Technology to safeguard naval ships against missile attack. The development of Advanced Chaff Technology by the DRDO lab is another step towards Atmanirbhar Bharat.
About the Advanced Chaff Technology:
Chaff is a passive expendable electronic countermeasure technology used worldwide to protect naval ships from enemy’s radar and Radio Frequency (RF) missile seekers. The importance of this development lies in the fact that a very less quantity of chaff material deployed in the air acts as a decoy to deflect the enemy’s missiles for the safety of the ships.
Defence Laboratory Jodhpur, a DRDO laboratory, has indigenously developed three variants of this critical technology:
- Short Range Chaff Rocket,
- Medium-Range Chaff Rocket and
- Long Range Chaff Rocket.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Chairman DRDO: Dr G Satheesh Reddy.
- DRDO Headquarters: New Delhi.
- DRDO Established: 1958.
Carl Bildt appointed WHO special envoy for ACT-Accelerator
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), appointed Carl Bildt as WHO Special Envoy for the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-Accelerator). Bildt succeeds Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Andrew Witty in the special envoy role. He will help lead the collective advocacy for the ACT-Accelerator in his new role, mobilising support and resources so it can deliver against its strategy for 2021.
About the ACT-Accelerator:
- The ACT-Accelerator is a groundbreaking global collaboration to accelerate development, production, and equitable access to novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) tests, treatments and vaccines, according to the WHO website.
- It brings together governments, scientists, businesses, civil society, and philanthropists and global health organizations.
- These include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, CEPI, FIND, Gavi, The Global Fund, Unitaid, Wellcome, the WHO and the World Bank.
Who is Carl Bildt?
Bildt has served as both prime minister and foreign minister of Sweden and is a renowned international diplomat, having been the European Union Special Envoy to erstwhile Yugoslavia; High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina; UN Special Envoy to the Balkans and Co-Chair of the Dayton Peace Conference, according to a press statement by the WHO.
Chintan Vaishnav appointed as Mission Director of Atal Innovation Mission
Noted socio-technologist, Dr Chintan Vaishnav has been appointed the mission director of Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), the government’s flagship initiative under NITI Aayog. Vaishnav will take over from Ramanathan Ramanan later this month. Ramanan has been leading AIM as its first mission director since June 2017. Vaishnav is currently at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), US. He holds a PhD in technology, management, and policy from MIT.
About the Atal Innovation Mission:
AIM’s mission is to create and promote a vibrant ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship across the country. Over the past four years, since its inception, AIM’s various initiatives have achieved notable successes. So far, AIM has established 72,59 Atal Tinkering Labs in schools across 650 districts, providing over 3.5 million students access to emerging technologies.
Gita Press president Radheshyam Khemka passes away
The president of Gita Press, Radheshyam Khemka, passed away. He is credited for taking the Sanatan literature to the masses. Khemka for 38 years was the editor of the prominent ‘Kalyan’ magazine printed at the press. He last edited the magazine’s April 2021 issue. Gita Press is the world’s largest publisher of Hindu religious texts.
