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The Finance Minister of India urged the advanced economies to scale up their commitments to climate finance and transfer of technologies – which are important for achieving climate-related commitments and goals. The Minister was addressing the International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI). Climate Finance (Meaning): Climate finance refers to local, national or transnational financing—drawn from …

Chief Ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh signed a memorandum of agreement to implement the Ken Betwa Link Project (KBLP), the first project of the National Perspective Plan for interlinking of rivers. The two states signed a tripartite agreement with the Centre on World Water Day (22nd March) to finally implement this ambitious …

Justice Ravindra Bhat, one of the judges on the Constitution Bench hearing the question of 50% ceiling limit on reservation, asked why welfare should be dependent on caste quota benefits alone. “Why stop at reservation? Why can’t other things also be done? Why not promote education, establish more institutes? Somewhere this …

Built water reservoir capacity per person is decreasing globally as reservoir expansion has not been able to keep pace with population growth, said the United Nations World Water Development Report released on March 22, 2021 observed as World Water Day.  Important points: While the world population is expected to reach …

The United Nations observes March 21 as the International Day of Forests, commemorating the green cover around the world and reiterating its importance. The theme of the International Day of Forests for 2021 is “Forest restoration: a path to recovery and well-being”. Why is the International Day of Forests celebrated? The United Nations …

Recently, US India Artificial Intelligence (USIAI) initiative has been launched to scale up the science and technology relationship between India and the United States. Important points: US India Artificial Intelligence (USIAI) is an initiative of Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) which was established in March 2000. The Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government …

Scientists from the ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) have developed an on-farm green energy refrigeration system (Pusa-FSF) and a technology for extraction of gluten from wheat dough and its regeneration in bajra (pearl-millet) and makka (maize) flour.   Pusa-FSF: Pusa Farm Sun Fridge (Pusa-FSF) is a 100% solar-powered battery-less cold store that can preserve around 2 tonnes of freshly-harvested produce at 3-4°C during the day …

The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has decided to conduct simultaneous purchase and sale of government securities (G-Sec) under Open Market Operations (OMOs) for an amount of Rs. 10,000 crore each. Important points: Simultaneous purchase and sale of government securities under OMOs, popularly known as operation twist, involves purchasing G-Sec of longer maturities and selling equal amounts …

State-owned Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. has entered into a joint venture with Israel-based battery technology startup Phinergy to develop aluminium-air technology based battery systems for electric vehicles and stationary storage, as well as hydrogen storage solutions. About: Top automakers, including Maruti Suzuki and Ashok Leyland, have already signed letters of …

TIGER Six tigers — four adults and two sub-adults — have been unaccounted for since March 2020 in the Ranthambore tiger sanctuary, Rajasthan. However, State forest officials are not willing to label them “missing” and denied reports that they may have been poached. About: The National Tiger Conservation Authority, a …