07-04-23 Daily-Himachal Pradesh-HPPSC Current Affairs

Now, the has decided on raising willow species in nurseries including Kashmir willow and planting the same in the forest area. So far, the state government has ensured the planting of 3.40 lakh trees of various species under willow plantation.

He said that based on study and survey now the proper site selection, raising of mixed plantations and planting of good quality seedlings of willow species is being done in Lahaul valley. He said that HFRI under a research project funded by ICFRE is working on development of disease free and disease resistant clonal varieties of willow since 2016 in Lahaul-Spiti district and the same varieties would be available for multiplication within a year.

The Rajya Sabha approved the Competition Amendment Bill, 2023, aimed at modernizing the two-decade-old anti-trust law to align with changes in the economy. The Competition Amendment Bill, 2023 aims to modify the Competition Act, 2002, which authorizes the Competition Commission Of India (CCI) to prevent practices that adversely impact competition and consumer interests.

India has developed a country-level mathematical model that estimates the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) cases in the country. The model allows for TB incidence and mortality estimate data to be available by March each year, months before the World Health Organization (WHO) releases its annual estimates in October. The model, which draws from data such as an individuals infection and disease status, healthcare utilization, and treatment outcomes, was presented at the 36th Stop TB PARTNERSHIP Board meeting in Varanasi. The Indian model estimated the TB incidence rate in India to be 196 in 2022, lower than the WHOs estimate of 210 and suggested 3.20 lakh TB mortality absolute numbers in 2022, lower than WHOs estimated 4.94 lakhs

India has made significant efforts to increase the National TB Elimination Program coverage and generate more evidence. Laboratory Services have been scaled up and decentralized with high-quality rapid diagnostic tests. In addition, India has introduced a daily regimen for first-line treatment of tuberculosis, integrating the regimens in the public and private sectors to ensure universal access to TB care. Patients with drug-resistant TB have been provided with injection-free, shorter, and better second-line treatment. The use of Nikshay, a tracking system for patients, has helped to improve the treatment outcomes of all types of patients in both the public and private sectors, including those who may have otherwise been lost to follow-up.

The well-known Gond painting of Madhya Pradesh has been granted the coveted Geographical Indication (GI) tag, which safeguards and acknowledges the work of tribal artists and requires approval from a committee for non-tribal artists to use the art. A GI tag is a symbol used on items that are exclusively produced in a specific geographical region and have characteristics or a reputation that are associated with that location. This tag is applied to a variety of goods, including food products, handicrafts, industrial items, <a href="https://exam.pscnotes.com/Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture products, and alcoholic beverages. The GI Tag certifies that only the registered and authorised user is permitted to use the name of the popular product

The Gaj Utsav-2023 was inaugurated at the Kaziranga by the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu. During her speech, she highlighted the significant bond between nature and humanity, which is regarded as sacred. India has always identified itself with a culture of respecting nature. Our country has a unique connection between nature and culture, where both have been intertwined and nourishing each other. Elephants have been held in high esteem in our tradition, and are considered a symbol of prosperity. As the National Heritage Animal of India, safeguarding elephants is an essential element of our national duty to conserve our national heritage.

The Gaj Utsav 2023 is a significant event in India that commemorates the 30th anniversary of Project Elephant, a flagship conservation initiative launched by the Indian government in 1992.

The event aims to promote awareness about the conservation of elephants and their habitats, reduce human-elephant conflicts, and ensure the welfare of captive elephants.

According to data from the Moscow Exchange, the yuan accounted for 23.6% of Russias Foreign Exchange turnover in the first quarter of 2023, while the dollars share was 22.5%. This marks the first time the yuan has surpassed the dollar in Russias currency market

The rise of the yuan in Russia is part of a broader trend of increasing acceptance of the Chinese currency in international trade and finance. China has been actively promoting the internationalization of the yuan, encouraging its use in cross-border transactions and investing in to support its use in global markets