1. PM chairs First meeting of Governing Body of Anusandhan National Research Foundation
– The meeting focussed on discussion about India’s Science and Technology landscape and redesigning of research and development programmes.
About Anusandhan National Research Foundation
– The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) has been established with Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) 2023 Act.
– The ANRF aims to seed, grow and promote research and development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.
– ANRF will act as an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction of scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP).
– With the establishment of ANRF, the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) established by an act of Parliament in 2008 has been subsumed into ANRF.
– ANRF will forge collaborations among the industry, academia, and government departments and research institutions, and create an interface mechanism for participation and contribution of industries and State governments in addition to the scientific and line ministries.
2. India to Host 2nd Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation
– The conference aims for Regional Aviation Growth and Sustainability
– Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation 2024 to Set Stage for ‘Delhi Declaration‘ on Air Safety, Security, and Sustainability
– It is the 2nd Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation and the first Ministerial Conference of the Asia Pacific region was organized in 2018 in Beijing, China.
– The event is co-hosted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India.
Chicago Convention
– Convention on International Civil Aviation (also known as Chicago Convention), was signed on 7 December 1944 by 52 States.
– Pending ratification of the Convention by 26 States, the Provisional International Civil Aviation Organization (PICAO) was established. It functioned from 6 June 1945 until 4 April 1947.
– India became a member of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) on March 30, 1947, enabling participation in global aviation initiatives promoting safety, efficiency, and international collaboration.
Facts :
– The roots of Indian aviation date back to 1911 when Monseigneur Piguet piloted the first commercial flight from Allahabad to Naini, initiating the world’s maiden airmail service.
– Tata Airlines (now Air India) further solidified this journey in 1932, pioneering scheduled air services.
– The dawn of the jet age in 1960 saw Air India introducing the Boeing 707, Gauri Shankar, becoming Asia’s first jet-equipped airline.
– By 1962, it operated the world’s first all-jet fleet.
– The acquisition of Boeing 747s in 1971 elevated Air India’s stature as a luxury carrier, setting new standards in international travel.
3. Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) globally ranked No. 1 in Networking and 51 in LinkedIn’s Top 100 MBA Programmes in the world.
The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT)
– The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) was established in 1963 as an autonomous body under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry .
– It aims to contribute in the skill building for the external trade sector of India.
4. Quality Council of India (QCI) approves National Test House (NTH), Ghaziabad as a Certification Body for type certification of drones
– This assessment is a crucial step towards securing type certification, a mandatory requirement for drones operating in India under the Drone Rules 2021.
– NTH’s Ghaziabad branch is playing a vital role in ensuring that Indian-made drones adhere to the highest standards of safety, quality, and performance.
– National Test House is offering its drone certification services at a highly competitive fee of ₹1.5 lakh for the certification process, which is the lowest in the industry.
What is type certification in drones?
– Drone type certification is an official recognition from aviation authorities that a specific drone model meets rigorous safety and performance standards.
– It’s a mandatory step for any drones intended for commercial or extensive operational use in regulated airspace.
5. Union Minister Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh to launch Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojna
– Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY) a sub-scheme under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) implemented with effect from the current year (2024-25) with an investment plan of Rs 6,000 crore.
– These programs focus on enhancing production, productivity, improving quality, boosting exports, reducing post harvest losses and fostering innovation & innovative, technology infusion, entrepreneurship development, create livelihood and employment opportunities to fishers, fish farmers and other stakeholders and welfare of fishers, fish farmers, fish workers fish vendors, and other directly associated fisheries value chain.
6. SpaceX’s Polaris Dawn mission
– A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Florida on Tuesday, carrying American billionaire Jared Isaacman and three others into orbit to attempt the world’s first private spacewalk
– The five-day mission, known as Polaris Dawn, is the first of three testing and development missions under the Polaris Program, which will be jointly executed by Isaacman and Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
– The program aims to develop new technologies that could be used to send people to Mars some day.
– The crew, who are travelling in SpaceX’s Dragon capsule, will first aim to get a maximum of about 1,400 km from Earth.
– That height means that the Polaris Dawn mission will be well into the inner band of the Van Allen radiation belts — regions in space that encircle the Earth and are highly radioactive — which begins at around 1,000 km altitude.
– The crew will use this opportunity to “conduct research with the aim of better understanding the effects of spaceflight and space radiation on human health.
– During the mission, the crew will conduct 40 scientific experiments. This includes trying to obtain X-ray images without an X-ray machine, with the help of natural showers of radiation in space.
What is spacewalk :
– A spacewalk or an “extravehicular activity (EVA)” is a period of activity spent outside a spacecraft by an astronaut in space.
– The first-ever spacewalk was carried out on March 18, 1965, by the Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov at the height of the Space Race — the 20th century competition between the US and USSR over who could conquer space exploration first — during the Cold War. Leonov’s walk lasted 10 minutes.
– Today, spacewalks are usually done outside the International Space Station (ISS) and can last between five and eight hours.
– Spacewalks are done for several reasons, including to carry out science experiments.
7. Google and Apple Face Billions in Penalties After Losing E.U. Appeals
– The European Union’s highest court delivered the 27-nation bloc a major victory on Tuesday in its years long campaign to regulate the technology industry, ruling against Apple and Google in two landmark legal cases.
Apple Issue :
– In the Apple case, the court sided with a European Union order from 2016 for Ireland to collect 13 billion euros, worth about $14.4 billion today, in unpaid taxes from the company. Regulators determined that Apple had struck illegal deals with the Irish government that allowed the company to pay virtually nothing in taxes on its European business in some years.
– As the case wound its way through the appeals process, the €13 billion was placed in an escrow account. The money will now be released to Ireland, a sizable injection to the country’s treasury.
Google Issue
– In the Google case, the court agreed with the commission’s 2017 decision to fine the company €2.4 billion for giving preferential treatment in Google search results to its own price-comparison shopping service over rival offerings. Google lost an appeal in 2021.
– The two cases address different legal issues. The Google case is largely about antitrust law, while the Apple case centers on the European Union’s ability to intervene in areas of tax policy in one of its member nations.
8. Typhoon Yagi
– Typhoon Yagi Hits Vietnam
9. First Foundation Day celebrations of I4C
About 14C
– Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) was established by MHA, in New Delhi to provide a framework and eco-system for Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) for dealing with Cybercrime in a coordinated and comprehensive manner.
Some Initiatives Related to Cyber Security :
1. Samanvay Platform (Joint Cybercrime Investigation Facilitation System):
The platform is a web-based module that will act as a one stop portal for data repository of cybercrime, data sharing, crime mapping, data analytics, cooperation and coordination platform for Law Enforcement Agencies across the country.
2. Cyber Commandos’ Program:
Under this program a special wing of trained ‘Cyber Commandos’ in States/UTs and Central Police Organizations (CPOs) will be established to counter threats of cyber security landscape in the country. Trained Cyber Commandos will assist States/UTs and Central Agencies in securing the digital space.
3. Suspect Registry
As part of this initiative a Suspect Registry of various identifiers is being created based on National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP), in collaboration with banks and financial intermediaries for strengthening fraud risk management capabilities of financial ecosystem.