Current Affairs

Current Affairs
Compiled by Sarasij Majumder, 1971 Civil Engineering

In a major diplomatic success for India, the 8 Indian navy veterans who had been in Qatari custody since August 30 2022, were released on Sunday the 18th February 2023 in Doha. The development was followed by the announcement that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Qatar on his way back home from the United Arab Emirates where he will pay a two-day visit during February 13-14. The men were given the death penalty by a lower court in Qatar on October 26 2023 that had shocked India. Subsequently, a court of appeals in Doha struck down the death penalty on December 28.

Qatar is a major supplier of energy to India and at least eight lakh Indian workers are employed in the Gulf country which continues to be a major source of foreign remittances to the Indian economy. Despite the case involving the eight Indian navy veterans, economic ties have remained on track and recently the two sides signed a $78 billion LNG deal that extended an existing agreement on supply of liquified natural gas (LNG) till 2048.

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In Badminton, the Indian Women’s Team has won their first-ever Asia Team Championships title at Setia City Convention Centre in Shah Alam, Malaysia. In the final match, India clinched the gold medal by defeating Thailand 3-2, with youngster Anmol Kharb’s exceptional performance in the title decider game. Indian shuttlers PV Sindhu, and Anmol Kharb and the pair of Treesa and Gayatri registered victory in the final match.
It is first-ever major title for Indian women in Team championships and provides a big boost to the team ahead of the Uber Cup, which is set to be held in Chengdu, China from April 28 to May 5.

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Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik announces: Organ donors to get full state honours at funeral.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced that last rites of organ donors will be performed with full state honours, aiming to create awareness on organ donation and encourage people to donate organs and save lives.
The step, which is likely to create widespread awareness in the field of organ donation, is in addition to ₹5 lakh being provided from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to the relatives of the organ donors and Suraj Award instituted since 2020 to encourage donation.
“Organ donation is a pious gift. In cases of brain death, relatives are taking courageous decision by giving consent to organ donations and playing important role in saving the lives of others,” said Mr. Patnaik in a statement.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the country’s longest bridge over the sea, the 22 km Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, officially the Atal Setu Nhava Sheva Sea Link. The bridge that was first conceptualised six decades ago will cut the travel time between Sewri and Chirle to under 20 minutes.
The idea of a bay crossing connecting Mumbai to the mainland was first floated in 1963 by the American construction consultancy firm Wilbur Smith Associates, but no follow-up action was initiated. The plan was revived in the late 90s, and the first tenders were floated in 2006.
In February 2008, Anil Ambani’s Reliance Infrastructure emerged as the preferred bidder after promising to build and recover the cost of building the (then) Rs 6,000 crore bridge in nine years and 11 months through a public private partnership (PPP) model.

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Grammy Awards: Fusion band Shakti, featuring vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, Ustad Zakir Hussain, John McLaughlin, percussionist V Selvaganesh, and violonist Ganesh Rajagopalan won big at the Grammy Awards this year. Shakti won the Grammy for Best Global Music Album for the band’s latest release “This Moment”. The album, “This Moment”, comprises a total of eight songs by vocalist Shankar Mahadevan, tabla maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain, guitarist John McLaughlin, percussionist V Selvaganesh, and violonist Ganesh Rajagopalan.
This Moment is Shakti’s first new album in more than 45 years. The album was released on June 30th 2023 and was reportedly recorded separately by each member of the band. The band won the prestigious award after defeating artists like Bokante, Susana Baca, Davido and Burna Bay.
Three-time Grammy winner Ricky Kej shared the news on X (formerly Twitter) and said: “Through this album, 4 brilliant Indian musicians win Grammys!! Just amazing. India is shining in every direction. Shankar Mahadevan, Selvaganesh Vinayakram, Ganesh Rajagopalan, Ustad Zakhir Hussain. Usthad Zakhir Hussain won a second Grammy along with virtuoso flute player Rakesh Chaurasia. Brilliant!!!!”

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The NITI Aayog has recently launched the ‘Greening and Restoration of Wasteland with Agroforestry’ (GROW) report and portal. The GROW initiative by NITI Aayog utilizes remote sensing and GIS to assess agroforestry suitability across all districts in India.

On February 2024, the government of India has launched the SWATI (Science for Women- A Technology & Innovation) portal, a database highlighting accomplishment of Indian women in STEMM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics & Medicine) fields. The Portal is a complete interactive database; and the first-of-its-kind in India which is developed, hosted and maintained by the National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi.

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US House of Representatives approves Quad bill to facilitate closer cooperation between US, Australia, India and Japan. Quad countries can establish mechanism for real-time data sharing: Vivek Lall, CEO of General Atomics. US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti stated that India holds the driving seat in the Quad, while the US has the corrective steering wheel. He emphasized that it is up to India to define the nature of the diplomatic partnership. Garcetti used analogies of eating, drinking, and sharing a ride to explain the roles of Quad members. He praised the Quad as a strong and stable model for the world, highlighting its work on semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and space projects.

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Milan: In a rare alignment amid current geopolitical tensions, warships from the US, Russia, Iran, and other nations will join India’s naval exercise, Exercise Milan, in Visakhapatnam. The exercise, involving 51 nations, includes table-top exercises, discussions, and a harbour phase simulating cooperative humanitarian missions. The presence of a US Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, two Russian warships, and an Iranian warship is notable. Despite strained ties, Quad nations India, US, Australia, and Japan.

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In Cricket, India secured victory over England in 3rd test against England by the margin of 434 runs. This is an Indian Record. Before, Ace spinner of India scalped 500 wickets in Test Cricket.

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Bangladesh has concluded ins general election, and Awami League has won. Sheik Hasina remains on saddle. On the other side a disturbed, army-controlled election is concluded in Pakistan. Nobody knows who will be the P.M.as no party has won absolute majority. Leader of Teheriq -E -Insaf party, Mr. Imran Khan is in jail. The party fought election and seems to be the single party with maximum votes obtained.

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Farmers’ Protest
Protesting representatives of 56 union of farmers primarily from Punjab, and a few from North Haryana, and west U.P. are trying to reach Dehi, and pressurize the GOI for a charter of demands. They are stopped at various points on road from Delhi Boder. They are camping there. Sources confirms that they are not real Farmers, but various groups of intermediaries between actual Farmers, and Consumers.