Daily Current Affairs for UPSC IAS: 3rd April 2024

Michelangelo’s David Statue And Italy’s Cultural Heritage Code:

Michelangelo’s David is a renowned marble sculpture created by the Italian Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti between 1501 and 1504.

• The statue depicts the Biblical figure David, a young shepherd who fought and defeated the giant Goliath.
• The sculpture is considered a masterpiece of Renaissance art and is famous for its artistic beauty, anatomical accuracy, and symbolic representation of strength and youthful vigour.
• It symbolises the artistic ideals and techniques of the Renaissance period, showcasing Michelangelo’s skill in creating lifelike and anatomically accurate human forms.
• The statue was commissioned by the Florentine government and became a symbol of the city’s independence, strength, and defiance against powerful adversaries.
• Michelangelo’s David differs from previous depictions of the subject by presenting a nude, youthful, and contemplative David before the battle with Goliath, rather than after the victory.

Tri-Service Common Defense Station In Mumbai:

The Armed Forces are embarking on a significant initiative to transform Mumbai into India’s inaugural tri-service common defence station, marking a crucial step towards achieving jointness among the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

• This strategic move aims to consolidate all facilities and resources of the three services, encompassing logistics, infrastructure, repair and maintenance, and supplies, under a unified leadership framework.
• Currently, Mumbai houses separate wings of the three services, operating independently.
• The Navy, with its substantial presence in Mumbai, will assume the lead role in this new integrated setup.
• Sulur, located near Coimbatore, and Guwahati are expected to be selected as the sites for the second and third common defence stations.
• Currently, there are no common defence stations in India.
• The Andaman and Nicobar command is a full-fledged command raised as a tri-service command in 2001.

India Employment Report 2024:

The India Employment Report 2024, prepared jointly by the Human Development and the International Labour Organization, was released recently.

Key findings:

• Basic long-term feature of the employment situation in the country continues to be insufficient growth of the non-farm sectors and the ability of these sectors to absorb workers from agriculture.
• India’s working-age population (aged 15–59) increased from 61% in 2011 to 64% in 2021 and is projected to reach 65% in 2036.
• About 7-8 million young people are added each year to the labour force.
• The authors warn that unemployment in the country is “predominantly a problem among youth”, especially those with a secondary level of education or higher, and that it has intensified over time.
• In 2022, the share of unemployed youth in the total unemployed population was 82.9%,” report noted, adding that the share of educated youth among all unemployed people also increased, from 54.2% in 2000 to 65.7% in 2022.
• Also, among the educated (secondary level or higher) unemployed youth, women accounted for a larger share (76.7%) than men (62.2%).
• There is a significant gender gap in the labour market, with low rates of female labour force participation. The gender gap in the LFPR has remained almost consistent over the past two decades.
• In 2022, the LFPR of young men (at 61.2%) was almost three times higher than that of young women (at 21.7%), and the gender gap was similar in both rural and urban areas.
• The ILO and IHD stated that the jobs remained low-productive and low-earning. Real wages and earnings showed a decline or had stagnated.
• While India’s large young workforce is a demographic dividend, the report noted that they don’t appear to have the skills to deliver with 75% of youth unable to send emails with attachments, 60% unable to copy and paste files, and 90% unable to put a mathematical formula into a spreadsheet.

SYRIA:

At least seven people have tragically lost their lives in a devastating car bombing that targeted a bustling market in northern Syria. The ongoing conflict has had a significant humanitarian impact, with many Syrians displaced both internally and externally.

• The attack occurred in the town of Azaz. Azaz holds strategic significance in the context of the Syrian civil war due to its proximity to the Turkish border and its role as a crucial supply route.
• The town is home to the Syrian Interim Government, an opposition group that claims legitimacy as the country’s authority.
• Syria, officially known as the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant.
• It is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east and southeast, Jordan to the south, and Israel and Lebanon to the southwest.
• The capital and largest city is Damascus.
• Syria is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including the majority Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens, Assyrians, Circassians, Armenians, Albanians, Greeks, and Chechens.
• Religious groups include Muslims, Christians, Alawites, Druze, and Yazidis.
• The country has been embroiled in a civil war since 2011, which has resulted in one of the most violent conflicts in the world.
• The war began with large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria, as part of the wider Arab Spring protests in the region.