Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 23 September 2022

::NATIONAL::

Union Minister of Ayush inaugurated the international conference on Consciousness with the theme, “Exploring Consciousness- From Non- Locality to Non- Duality: The Man- Machine Debate” at NIMHANS, Bengaluru.

About:

The conference is organized by India Foundation and NIMHANS and supported by Ministry of Ayush.
The conference will bring together some of the most eminent researchers and inventors in the areas of physics, biology, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, cybernetics, quantum computing and allied fields as well as scholars and spiritual teachers of the major Indic Spiritual and psychological disciplines and doctrines.

Ayurswasthya Yojana:

The Minister also inaugurated the Centre of Excellence project in the Department of Integrative Medicine, NIMHANS, Bengaluru as part of “AYURSWASTHYA YOJANA”, a flagship programme under Ministry of Ayush.
The Centre of Excellence (CoE) will strengthen competencies of Ayush professionals in Education technology, Research & innovation and others.
Main objectives of the CoE project at NIMHANS is to conduct clinical trials in four neuro-psychiatric disorders to establish efficacy, safety and proposed mechanism of Integrated Yoga and Ayurveda treatment approaches.

To control stubble burning and reduce air pollution during winter, the Delhi government will spray a bio-decomposer free of cost over 5,000 acres of paddy fields in the city this year.

About:

This bio-decomposer capsule has been developed by Indian Agricultural Research Institute.
It accelerates decomposition process of stubble by turning it into manure over a period of 15-20 days.
It is composed of a group of beneficial micro-organisms, which rapidly convert crop residues, animal waste, dung and other wasteinto organic manure.
Stubble burning is the act of clearing agricultural fields by burning the residue that is left on land after harvesting, to ready it fornext round of seeding.
It is the easiest and cheapest method and practised mainly in Indo-Gangetic plains of Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.

Impact of stubble burning:

India-Israel-UAE-USA, I2U2 Sherpas met on the 20th of this month on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
The group agreed to continue working closely together in line with the outcome of the Heads of State and Government Summit in July this year.

About:

The I2U2 group is a grouping from India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.
The group held their inaugural summiton July 14, 2022, attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and
United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will invest $2 billion" to develop a series of integrated food parks across India.
The group also agreed to proceed with a hybrid renewable energy project in the Indian state of Gujarat consisting of 300 megawatts (MW) of wind and solar capacity, complemented by a battery energy storage system.
The first joint statement by the Group, published July 14, 2022, states that the countries are seeking to work together on “joint investments and new initiatives in water, energy, transport, space, health and food security.”

India and Egypt have signed MoU to further enhance bilateral defence cooperation.

Political features:

Egypt is a transcontinental country situated in North-easternAfrica and the Sinai Peninsula in Western Asia.
Land Borders: Libya in the west, the Palestinian territory (GazaStrip) and Israel in the northeast, and Sudan in the south.
Maritime Borders: Cyprus, Turkey and Greece in the Mediterranean Sea, and with Jordan and Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea.

Geographical Features:

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently removed the Central Bank of India from the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework on complying with parameters like net non-performing assets (net NPAs) and capital ratios.

About:

PCA framework is imposed when a bank breaches certain regulatory thresholds on capital to riskweighted assets ratio (CRAR), net NPAs and return on assets (RoA).
The RBI had imposed the PCA norms on the bank in June 2017 due to its high net NPA andnegative return of assets (RoA).
Various action under PCAs include

1. Restriction on dividend distribution/remittance of profits.
2. Restriction on branch expansion; domestic and/or overseas.

About:

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a large infrared telescope launched in 2021 by NASA incollaboration with ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
It will study every phase in the history of our Universe, such as:

1. First luminous glows after the Big Bang,
2. Formation of solar systems capable of supporting life on planets like Earth,

The Supreme Court appointed former apex court judge Justice L Nageswara Rao for amending constitution of Indian Olympic Association and preparing electoral college.

About:

A bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud said the ex-top court judge would ensure a fair and development-oriented approach for the future of the Olympics in the country.
The apex court asked Justice Rao to prepare a road map for amending the constitution and holding elections by December 15, 2022.
The court so gave its permission to Rajeev Mehta, who is currently the secretary general of IOA, and AdilleSumariwalla, vice president of IOA, to participate in the September 27 meeting with the International Olympic Committee.