Current Affairs

GLOBAL FINANCE CENTRAL BANKER REPORT CARDS 2024

Why in the News?

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has earned “A+” grade for the second consecutive year in the Global Finance Central Banker Report Cards 2024. The two other central bankers- Thomas J. Jordan of Switzerland and Nguyen Thi Hong of Vietnam also earned an ‘A+’ grade.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das

About the Report Cards

• Global Finance magazine has been publishing the Central Banker Report Cards every year since 1994.
• These report cards assess the performance of central bank governors from close to 100 important countries, territories, and districts
• The central bank governors are graded on an “A+” to “F” scale for success in areas such as inflation control, economic growth goals, currency stability and interest rate management.
• Additionally, they evaluate the European Union, the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, the Bank of Central African States, and the Central Bank of West African States.

RBI

• The bank was established on 1^st April 1935 in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
• It was initially established in Kolkata but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937.
• Functions
  • It plans and supervises the monetary policies designed for the country.
  • It designs the parameters under which all the banks of the country should work.
  • All the foreign exchanges that happen between India and other countries are maintained and looked after by the RBI.
  • RBI is the authority who issues notes, destroys the old notes and decides which currency is fit for circulation among the people.
  • It introduces and upgrades safe and efficient modes of payment systems in the country to meet the requirements of the public at large.
• Publications of RBI: Financial Stability Report, Monetary Policy Report and Report on Financial Review.
• Initiatives: Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) in Bengaluru and International Trade in Rupees (INR).

Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

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WORLD’S OLDEST PERSON

Why in the News?

The world’s oldest person, Spain’s Maria Branyas Morera has died at the age of 117. She was born in the US in 1907 and lived through two world wars. Guinness World Records had officially acknowledged Branyas’s status as the world’s oldest person in January 2023 after the death of the French nun Lucile Randon.

Maria Branyas Morera

Note: The oldest verified person to have ever lived was a Frenchwoman Jeanne Louise Calment who died in 1997 at the age of 122 years and 164 days.

Guinness World Records

• Editor: Craig Glenday
• Publication place: United Kingdom
• Publisher: Jim Pattison Group
• It was first published in 1955 as the Guinness Book of Records.
• It was initiated by Sir Hugh Beaver, managing director of the Guinness Brewery, originally created to settle pub arguments about records.
• It is an annual publication listing world records of human achievements and the extremes of the natural world.
• It is one of the best-selling copyrighted books of all time and is sold in more than 100 countries and translated into over 20 languages.

Logo of Guinness World Records

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PARIS PARALYMPICS 2024

Why in the News?

The Paralympic Committee of India has appointed Vice-President Satya Prakash Sangwan as the Chef de Mission for India's Paralympic contingent. India will be participating across 12 sports with a record 84 Indian athletes participating in the Paris Paralympics.

Satya Prakash Sangwan

Paralympic Games

• The games are an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities, held every four years following the Olympic Games.
• The first official Paralympic Games were held in Rome in 1960, but the origins trace to the Stoke Mandeville Games in 1948, organized for World War II veterans with spinal cord injuries.
• The Games promote inclusion, diversity and the breaking down of barriers for people with disabilities.
• The Paralympics feature a wide range of sports, including athletics, swimming, wheelchair basketball, sitting volleyball, and para-powerlifting, among others.

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HORSESHOE CRABS

Why in the News?

The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the Odisha Forest department have tagged horseshoe crabs to understand their population and habitat utilisation for conservation and management. They are one of the oldest living creatures on the Earth. They are found along the northeastern coast of India, especially along the Odisha and West Bengal coast.

Horseshoe Crabs

About

• They are marine chelicerate arthropods living in shallow coastal waters on soft sandy or muddy bottoms and spawn mostly on intertidal beaches at summer spring high tides.
• They are often called living fossils because they have existed for over 450 million years, predating dinosaurs.
• Species
  • The American horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) along the eastern coast of the USA and in the Gulf of Mexico.
  • The tri-spine horseshoe crab (Tachypleus tridentatus)
  • The coastal horseshoe crab (Tachypleus gigas)
  • The mangrove horseshoe crab (Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda)
• The last three are Indo-pacific species found in the coastal waters of India, southeast Asia, China and Japan.
• Conservation status in India: Wildlife Protection Act 1972, Schedule IV
• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Status
  • American horseshoe crab: Vulnerable
  • Tri-spine horseshoe crab: Endangered
  • The two other species are not listed yet

Note: Odisha is the largest habitat of horseshoe crabs in India.

About ZSI

• Established: 1^st July1916
• Headquarter: Kolkata
• It is a subordinate organization of the Ministry of Environment and Forests.
• It is a national centre for faunistic survey and exploration of the resources leading to the advancement of knowledge on the exceptionally rich faunal diversity of the country.
• It has 16 regional stations in different geographic locations of the country.

About IUCN

• It was founded in October 1948 as the International Union for the Protection of Nature (IUPN) following an international conference in Fontainebleau, France.
• The organization changed its name to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources in 1956 with the acronym IUCN (or UICN).
• Headquarter: Gland, Switzerland
• Membership: Comprises both government and civil society organizations. It includes over 1,400 member organizations.
• Structure: Includes a Council, President, Director General, and a Secretariat that works on regional and global levels.
• Publication
  • The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species assesses risk of species extinction
  • The IUCN Red List of Ecosystems assesses risk of ecosystem collapse
  • The IUCN World Heritage Outlook assesses World Heritage sitesover time
  • The World Database of Key Biodiversity Areas assesses sites important for biodiversity
  • Protected Planet assesses protected areas
  • ECOLEX provides a gateway to environmental law
  • PANORAMA

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• INTERNATIONAL DAY OF REMEMBRANCE AND TRIBUTE TO THE VICTIMS OF TERRORISM 2024
• It is annually observed on 21^st August.
• The day was adopted by United Nations General Assembly in its resolution 72/165 (2017).
• The focus of the day is to honour, remember and pay tribute to the victims of terrorism by standing in solidarity and promoting and protecting their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
• To mark the seventh commemoration of the day, a virtual high-level event titled Voices for Peace: Victims of Terrorism as Peace Advocates and Educators will be held.

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General Knowledge

EMINENT PERSONALITIES IN THE NEWS TODAY

Name	Designation	Image
Jitendra Singh	Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Science and Technology, Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Minister of State in the Department of Atomic Energy, and Minister of State in the Department of Space
Dhananjaya Yashwant Chandrachud	Chief Justice of India
Mallikarjun Kharge	President of Indian National Congress
G. Kishan Reddy	Union Minister of Coal and Mines
Pralhad Joshi	Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution & New and Renewable Energy
Minoru Kihara	Defence Minister of Japan
Sithiveni Rabuka	Prime Minister of Fiji
Aman Sehrawat	Indian Freestyle Wrestler
Darius Visser	Samoan Cricketer
Aryna Sabalenka	Belarusian Tennis Player
Jannik Sinner	Italian Tennis Player