Daily Current Affairs Quiz: August 12, 2023

World Elephant Day will be observed globally on Saturday, August 12.
On August 12, 2012, Patricia Sims, a Canadian, and the Elephant Reintroduction Foundation of Thailand, an initiative of HM Queen Sirikit of Thailand, co-founded World Elephant Day. Patricia Sims has continued to oversee World Elephant Day ever since.
It has partnered with 100 elephant conservation organizations globally since its beginning and has reached countless people all over the world.
World Elephant Day is a global observance dedicated to raising awareness about the critical issues faced by elephants and advocating for their protection and conservation.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot launched the ‘Indira Gandhi Smartphone Scheme’ by pressing the remote button and providing smartphones to beneficiary women at Birla Auditorium auditorium in Jaipur.

‘Indira Gandhi Smartphone Scheme’ will become a major medium for the empowerment of women with a revolution in the IT sector. Through the scheme, almost every woman in the state will have a mobile in her hand.

Under the scheme, 1.35 crore women of Chiranjeevi families will be given smartphones with 3 years of internet connectivity. In the first phase, smartphones have been given to 40 lakh women and girls students.
Under the scheme, a DBT of Rs 6800 is being given to the beneficiaries for each smartphone and initially, 20 GB of data is being provided.

Rajasthan Capital: Jaipur
Rajasthan Governor: Kalraj Mishra

Every year 12 August is marked as the annual celebration of International Youth Day.
The first Youth Day was observed in 1999 after the UN General Assembly (UNGA) passed a resolution accepting the recommendation made by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth in Lisbon.
It was first celebrated on August 12, 2000.
The theme of International Youth Day 2023 is Green Skills for Youth: Towards a Sustainable World.

The Centre has approved the establishment of a new spaceport in Kulasekarapattinam, Tamil Nadu, for carrying out the launches of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicles (SSLV) developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Dr Jitendra Singh said, the Government has set up the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) as a single-window agency for the promotion and authorization of space activities. The budget allocations for IN-SPACe:
2021-22 Rs. 10 Cr
2022-23 Rs. 33 Cr
2023-24 Rs. 95 Cr

The Indian Space Research Organisation, commonly referred to as ISRO, is the national space agency of India founded in 1969.
It operates under the Department of Space which is directly overseen by the Prime Minister of India, while the Chairman of ISRO also acts as the executive of DOS.
S Somnath is the present MD.

India Start-up Foundation, a prominent Not-for-profit organization supporting the growth and development of the Indian Start-Up ecosystem, organized the 2nd edition of India Startup Festival (ISF) 2023 from 10th to 12th August 2023 in Bengaluru.
The ISF Exhibition was inaugurated by Chief Guest Sadguru Sri Madhusudan, Founder of Sathya Sai University for Human Excellence, Karnataka in the presence of Sri. J A Chowdary, Key Architect, Indian Tech Industry Chairperson & Convenor, India Startup Festival along with Dr. Siva Mahesh Tangutooru, Deenanath Harapanahalli and Achyut Yerragangu Co-Founders of India Startup Foundation and other dignitaries.

Central Railway has inaugurated the New Amravati station as the 1st “Pink Station” on the Bhusaval Division and the 3rd station on Central Railway to be fully managed by an all-women staff.
The examples are set by Matunga station in the Mumbai division and Ajni station in the Nagpur division.
Railway has a staff strength of 12 women employees.

Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the second phase of the annual Nationwide Mass Drug Administration initiative for Lymphatic Filariasis in New Delhi.
It will cover 81 districts in nine endemic States. This includes Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh.
India is committed to eliminating Lymphatic Filariasis by 2027, three years ahead of the global target through mission mode.

Indonesian capital Jakarta has become the world’s most polluted major city, according to air quality monitoring firm IQAir, topping global charts for days as authorities fail to grapple with a spike in toxic smog.
Air pollution is estimated to contribute to seven million premature deaths every year and is considered by the United Nations to be the single biggest environmental health risk.
The capital and its surroundings form a megalopolis of about 30 million people that has outpaced other heavily polluted cities including Riyadh, Doha and Lahore all week for its concentration of tiny particles known as PM 2.5.

Lieutenant Governor Shri Manoj Sinha of Jammu and Kashmir commenced the 9th India International MSME Expo and Summit 2023 in New Delhi.
This prestigious gathering, organized by the MSME Development Forum, served as a platform to foster collaboration between policymakers and entrepreneurs in the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector, driving forward the nation’s economic growth.

Jammu & Kashmir witnessed the tremendous potential of the MSME sector. Just in the last three years, an impressive 2.81 lakh MSMEs have registered on the Udyam portal.
Notably, there is a rapid expansion of micro and small units in districts including Shopian, Pulwama, Anantnag, Baramulla, Kulgam, and Bandipora.

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma Friday launched the Rs 500 crore Chief Minister’s Solar Mission here aimed at minimizing the power deficit in this northeastern hill state. The money will be invested by the government in the next 5 years.

The state government will earmark an investment of Rs 100 crore annually for the solar mission initially. It intends to attract and invite more partners to diversify the portfolio for funding, including from corporate social responsibility.
Meghalaya Capital: Shillong
Meghalaya Governor: Phagu Chauhan

Eminent nuclear physicist Bikash Sinha, a former director of the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (SINP) and the Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC), died.
Bikash Sinha, 78, who had been suffering from old age-related ailments, was a recipient of the Padma Bhushan in 2010 for his contribution to science & technology.
Bikash Sinha had held the Homi Bhaba chair at the VECC and was a fellow of the Indian National Science Academy. He had also been nominated as a member of the Scientific Advisory Council to the PM in 2005.

Born in a zamindar family of Kandi in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, he studied physics at Presidency College in Kolkata, before pursuing higher studies in the subject at King’s College, Cambridge.

Fintech major BharatPe on Friday launched its new Android point of sale (PoS) terminal called BharatPeSwipe Android which offers multiple modes for digital payment acceptance, including debit/credit cards, UPI, mobile wallets and QR codes.

Powered by the Android 10 operating system, the new device has a 5.5-inch HD touchscreen and a long-lasting battery, supports fast charging, and is compatible with 4G and Wi-Fi for better connectivity.

A new chapter in the history of Indian Agriculture unfolded on Friday with the successful launch of the country’s first Agricultural Data Exchange (ADeX) in Hyderabad. Developed as a digital public infrastructure (DPI) for the agriculture sector, ADeX has been developed in collaboration with the Telangana government, the World Economic Forum, and the Indian Institute of Science.

Minister for IT, Industries, and MA&UD KT Rama Rao launched ADeX and Agriculture Data Management Framework (ADMF) at an event held in the city. “Both ADeX and ADMF provide the right platform to ensure fair and efficient usage of agricultural data by the industry and startups and provide a big boost to the data economy specifically in the agri-sector.

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) approved the appointment of Amit Jhingran as the new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer for SBI Life Insurance Company Limited.
Amit Jhingran has over three decades of experience in the insurance sector and serves as the Assistant General Manager of the Hyderabad Circle.
He joined the company in 1991 as a probationary officer and has been with SBI Life since then. Amit Jhingran also held the post of CEO of SBI, Chicago.

INS Chennai recently deployed in the Red Sea undertook Passage Exercise (Passex) with Royal Saudi Naval Ship HMS Al Jubail.
About INS Chennai: It is the Indian Navy’s indigenously designed and constructed guided missile destroyer.
It is the Indian Navy’s indigenously designed and constructed guided missile destroyer.
It is the third and last ship of the Kolkata-class stealth-guided missile destroyers (Project 15A).
It was constructed by the Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai.
INS Chennai was commissioned into the Indian Navy on November 21, 2016.