Today’s Current Affairs: 6th May 2024 for UPSC IAS exams, State PSC exams, SSC CGL, State SSC, RRB, Railways, Banking Exam & IBPS, etc
Table of Contents
Lakshya Aircraft:
Aeronautical Development Establishment, a Bengaluru-based DRDO lab that developed the Lakshya aircraft, has been visited by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
- Lakshya Aircraft is an indigenously developed micro-light and pilot-less target aircraft.
- It designed and built by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a subsidiary of the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), for the Indian Armed Forces.
- The Lakshya was inducted into the Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, and Indian Army in 2000, 2001, and 2003, respectively.
- It is a cost-effective re-usable high subsonic aerial target system powered by a gas turbine engine.
- The engine is designed and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bangalore. It is required for evaluation and development trials of new surface-to-air and air-to-air weapon systems.
- It carries two tow targets of tow lengths of 1.5 km each, having radar, IR or visual signature augmentation, and a Miss Distance Indication Scoring System.
- These tow targets are used for training of land- or ship-based gun and missile crew and combat aircraft pilots in weapon engagement.
- It was designed to launch either from land or sea through a zero-length launcher and be recovered by a dual stage parachute system.
- The Lakshya can be controlled from the ground control station (GCS) through pre-programmed hardware and software systems.
- Designed to be reused for 15 missions, the aircraft can spiflicate airborne incoming enemy targets.
Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) Technology:
A Rs 60,000 crore contract to modernize the Indian Navy submarine fleet to build six stealth submarines equipped with Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) technology has started.
- With the emergence of submarines, there was a problem finding satisfactory forms of propulsion underwater.
- Traditional diesel-electric submarines need to surface frequently to charge their batteries and have an underwater endurance of only a few days.
- As battery technology improved, the endurance of these submarines increased proportionally. But it was not enough to last them beyond a week.
- In 1908, the Imperial Russian Navy launched the submarine Pochtovy, which used a gasoline engine fed with compressed air and exhausted underwater.
- These two approaches, the use of a fuel that provides energy to an open-cycle system, and the provision of oxygen to an aerobic engine in a closed cycle, characterise AIP today.
- Most of these systems generate electricity, which, in turn drives an electric motor for propulsion or recharges the boat’s batteries.
- The introduction of AIP vastly improved the underwater endurance of these submarines and gave them a distinct advantage.
- AIP is mostly implemented as an auxiliary source, with the traditional diesel engine handling surface propulsion. AIP technology can be installed on existing, older-generation submarines by inserting a new hull section during a retrofit.
- A typical conventional power plant provides 3 megawatts maximum, and an AIP source around 10 percent of that. A nuclear submarine’s propulsion plant is much greater than 20 megawatts.
Integrated Pensioners Portal:
The government’s Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare recently started the Integrated Pensioners’ Portal in collaboration with Bank of India.
- Integrated Pensioners’ Portal is specifically designed to ensure complete digitization of the pension processing and payment system.
- It combines the pension processing and payment services of five banks (Bank of India, State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, and Canara Bank) into a single window.
- Most pension-disbursing banks will be integrated with the portal later.
- Its primary objective is to achieve transparency and efficiency in pension-related services. With this system, the pensioner’s personal and service particulars can be captured, which enables the online submission of pension forms.
- Retirees will also be notified of the progress of their pension sanction through SMS or email, keeping them informed throughout the process.
- A major feature of the IPP is that retirees can access their monthly pension slips, check the status of life certificates, submit Form 16, and view statements of arrears paid.
- The portal has a Bhavishya platform and a Centralised Pension Grievances Redress and Monitoring System (CPENGRAMS).
Boeing Starliner:
An Atlas V rocket is set to lift off with a team of two veteran astronauts sitting inside a crew capsule called Starliner, built by Boeing.
- Starliner is a spacecraft that transports astronauts into space after being launched there by a rocket.
- It consists of a crew capsule and a service module.
- The crew capsule houses the astronauts; like others of its kind, it will be able to survive reentry and return to the ground.
- The service module consists of the equipment and systems the astronauts need to survive in space, including air and temperature control, water supply, sanitation, etc., plus the engines and fuel required to manoeuvre the spacecraft.
- The service module won’t be reusable.
- Starliner is more than 4 meters wide and can house up to seven astronauts.
- The Starliner has an innovative, weldless structure and is reusable up to 10 times with a six-month turnaround time.
- It also features wireless internet and tablet technology for crew interfaces.
- It can be fit atop an Atlas V rocket, operated by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
Koothandavar Festival:
Koothandavar festival at Koovagam in Tamil Nadu plays out a tale of marriage and widowhood, all in a day.
- Koothandavar festival takes place in Koovagam of Tamil Nadu.
- It is the annual event, steeped in tradition, garners global attention for its unique celebration of the transgender identity.
- In a Tamil version of the Mahabharata, a character called Aravan offered himself as sacrifice for the Pandavas’ triumph in war.
- It is said he had a boon of marriage before his sacrifice but no woman wanted to marry him as it would mean widowhood.
- It is said Lord Krishna married Aravan after taking the form of Mohini.
- Lore has it that Lord Krishna grieved for Aravan as a widow.
- The focal point of the festival, Lord Aravan’s sacrificical ritual.
- On the 17th day of the ceremony, transwomen from far and wide congregate to wed Lord Aravan.
Paliyar Tribes : Demand
A recent research carried out on ‘Paliyar Tribals in Kodaikanal and Theni areas’ urged the State government to take necessary and immediate steps to uplift the Paliyar tribes as well as the other such Adivasi communities.
- Paliyar Tribe has been derived from the word ‘Palaniyan’ , which in Tamil language means a man from Palani.
- They are and have been known by multiple names such as the Paliyans, Pazhaiyarares and Panaiyars.
- They are distributed in the districts of Madurai, Thanjavur, Pudukkottai Tirunelveli and Coimbatore of Tamil Nadu.
- They speak Tamil and use the Tamil script for both inter-group and intra-group communication.
- Traditionally, the Paliyars were hunters and gatherers, residing in the forests of the Western Ghats.
- The tribal people offer prayers to the Vanadevadai in the interior forest.
- They also worship god Karuppan by visiting a remote area of the forest along with the families.
- The Paliyar tribes never burned the dead bodies.
- They had the customary practices of burying the dead bodies in an area near to their residential area on the western side.
New President Of The Goods & Services Tax Appellate Tribunal :
The Appointment committee of Cabinet has approved the appointment of Sanjaya Kumar Mishra, former Chief Justice, Jharkhand High Court as President GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) for 4 years
- Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal represents a specialised authority formed to resolve GST-related disputes at the appellate level.
- It is established under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act) to hear various appeals under the said Act and the respective State/UT GST Acts.
- It will have one Principal Bench located at Delhi and 31 State benches located at various locations across States.
- It consists of the President (Head), a Judicial Member, and 2 Technical Members (one from the state and another from the Centre).
- Further, there may be state benches consisting of two Judicial Members, a Technical Member (Centre) and a Technical Member (state).
Blue Corner Notice : CBI
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is likely to issue a Blue Corner notice against a person who fled abroad after allegations of sexual abuse.
- Blue Corner Notice is a part of Interpol’s elaborate system of colour-coded notices, which enable countries to “share alerts and requests for information on wanted persons/crimes worldwide”.
- This sharing of critical crime-related information is crucial for tackling internationally spread out criminal activities.
- There are seven types of notices — Red Notice, Yellow Notice, Blue Notice, Black Notice, Green Notice, Orange Notice, and Purple Notice. Each has a different implication.
- Red Notice: To seek the location and arrest of persons wanted for prosecution or to serve a sentence.
- Yellow Notice: To help locate missing persons, often minors, or to help identify persons who are unable to identify themselves.
- Blue Notice: To collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a criminal investigation.
- Black Notice: To seek information on unidentified bodies.
- Green Notice: To provide warning about a person’s criminal activities, where the person is considered to be a possible threat to public safety.
- Orange Notice: To warn of an event, a person, an object or a process representing a serious and imminent threat to public safety.
- Purple Notice: To seek or provide information on modus operandi, objects, devices and concealment methods used by criminals.
Artificial General Intelligence:
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, expressed his commitment to invest billions of dollars towards the development of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI).
- Artificial General Intelligence refers to a machine or a software that can perform any intellectual task that a human can do.
- This includes reasoning, common sense, abstract thinking, background knowledge, transfer learning, ability to differentiate between cause and effect, etc.
- It aims to emulate human cognitive abilities such that it allows it to do unfamiliar tasks, learn from new experiences, and apply its knowledge in new ways.
- The main difference between AGI and the more common form of AI, also known as narrow AI, lies in their scope and capabilities.
- Narrow AI is designed to perform specific tasks such as image recognition, translation, or even playing games like chess—at which it can outdo humans, but it remains limited to its set parameters.
- AGI can redefine diagnostics, treatment planning, and personalised medicine by integrating and analysing vast datasets, far beyond the capabilities of humans.
- AGI could automate various processes and enhance the overall decision-making, offering real-time analytics and market predictions with accuracy.
Swing Trading:
The Indian stock market has been witnessing volatility amid the ongoing Lok Sabha elections and swing trading has been trending on the internet.
- Swing Trading is a style of trading where investors keep their positions for longer than a single day, typically holding onto stocks for several days or weeks.
- Its goal is to capture gains in a stock’s value as it swings up and down.
- A swing trader will look for stocks with high volume (a lot of trading activity) and volatility (price movement).
- The entry into a swing trade involves setting up stop-loss orders (to limit potential losses) and target prices (to capture profits) based on support and resistance levels.
- Swing traders buy at support (lower price level) and sell at resistance (higher price level) anticipating the stock’s price to swing back and forth within these bounds.
- The primary goal is to profit from short- to medium-term fluctuations in stock prices.
- Traders aim to enter and exit positions quickly, typically holding stocks for 2 days to a few weeks.
- Swing traders capitalise on both upward and downward movements in the market, seeking to take advantage of trends and momentum.
