Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 02 October 2021

SSC CGL Current Affairs

Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 02 October 2021

::NATIONAL::

Air Marshal Sandeep Singh takes over as Vice Chief of Indian Air Force

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu presents Vayoshreshtha Samman-2021 to senior citizens
The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu today urged India’s young start-ups to come up with innovative and out-of-box solutions to the everyday problems faced by the elderly. He said that taking care of the elderly should not be the responsibility of the government alone and each one of us should come forward and join this noble cause.
Addressing the gathering after presenting the National Award-Vayoshreshtha Samman-2021 in VigyanBhavan, New Delhi today, the Vice President said that he would prefer to call our senior citizens as ‘elders’ rather than ‘older persons’.
At the event, the Vice President launched the SACRED (Senior Able Citizens for Re-Employment in Dignity) portal to connect the senior citizens with job providers in the private sector. Referring to the LASI report-2020, he said that more than 50% of senior citizens are active and therefore, it is very important to provide gainful employment opportunities to them for a happy, healthy, empowered and self-reliant life. Highlighting that our elders are the vast repository of experience and expertise, he urged the private sector to join the new portal and get benefitted from the skills and experience of our senior citizens.
Shri Naidu also launched a National Helpline (Elder Line) during the award function. Noting that senior citizens are a highly vulnerable group, the Vice President lauded the helpline in bringing in an easy and efficient grievance redress mechanism to protect them. The helpline set up by the Government in collaboration with Tata trust will function 12 hours a day to resolve the grievances of senior citizens from across the country.
Shri Naidu praised the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on the initiatives for the welfare of elderly. “Your consistent efforts to ensure a dignified and comfortable life for the elders are indeed laudable,” he told the officials present. He also appreciated SAGE (Seniorcare Aging Growth Engine) portal designed by the Ministry to encourage entrepreneurs in the area of elderly care as a timely initiative.
It may be noted that the United Nations General Assembly had adopted a resolution to observe 1st October 1999 as the International Day of Older Persons and since then, the 1st day of October every year is celebrated as the International Day of Older Persons, worldwide. On this occasion, the Government of India confers ‘National Award-VayoshreshthaSamman’ on eminent senior citizens and institutions in recognition of their service towards elderly persons.

::INTERNATIONAL::

AUSINDEX: India-Australia biennial maritime exercise

Australia’s Northern Territory will host the biennial AUSINDEX maritime warfare exercises between the Royal Australian and the Indian navies this week, ahead of the two countries holding their first “2+2" Foreign and Defence Ministers meet in New Delhi.

Key Facts

This exercise will allow the Royal Australian Navy and Indian Navy in strengthening their “inter-operability” by sharing the best practices.
It will also help in developing a ‘common understanding of procedures for maritime security operations’.
AUSINDEX Maritime exercise are conducted in India and Australia alternatively.
The 4th edition is being conducted in the Northern Australia Exercise Area.
In the fourth edition, surface units of both countries will be included.
Units will exercise with HMAS Rankin, F-18 aircraft, Royal Australian Air Force P-8A, integral helicopters of Australian & Indian Navy and Collins Class Australian Submarine.
This exercise is aligned to the 2020 Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between both the countries.

::ECONOMY::

PM launches Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0

Prime Minister NarendraModi on Friday launched the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) 2.0 and Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0 at DrAmbedkar International Centre, New Delhi.
In his speech, the prime minister said that the goal of ‘Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0’ is to ensure ‘Garbage-Free’ cities. While the next phase of Mission AMRUT will focus on ‘increasing sewage and septic management, making cities water safe’ and ensuring that no sewage drains in rivers.
PM Modi lauded children and youth for being mindful of maintaining cleanliness.
“I am happy to note that our generation has taken the initiative to strengthen the cleanliness campaign. Toffee wrappers are no longer thrown on the ground but kept in pockets. Today, children remind elders not to spread litter,” he said.
The prime minister said that India is processing about one lakh tonnes of waste every day which was less than 20 percent when the campaign started in 2014.
As per the statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, “In line with the vision of the Prime Minister, SBM-U 2.0 and AMRUT 2.0 have been designed to realize the aspiration to make all our cities ‘Garbage Free’ and ‘Water Secure’. These flagship Missions signify a step forward in our march towards effectively addressing the challenges of rapidly urbanizing India and will also help contribute towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals 2030”
According to the press release, SBM-U and AMRUT have contributed significantly to improve the urban landscape during the last seven years. The government said that the two flagship Missions have augmented the capacity to deliver basic services of water supply and sanitation to the citizens.

::SCIENCE AND TECH::

Amazon India launches its Global Computer Science Education Program

Amazon is extending its computer science program, Future Engineer, to India, making the world’s second-largest internet market the fifth market where the firm offers the childhood-to-career community program.
The company said at a virtual conference on Tuesday that it will offer several educational materials, scholarships, internships and mentors to teach computer science courses — and the areas it encompasses such as robotics, artificial intelligence and machine learning — to students in India and also provide resources for teachers.
Through Future Engineer, the company partners with players such as Code.org to bring CS education opportunities to underserved and underrepresented children and young adults. Amazon said the program is primarily focused on students in grades six to 12.
“While a million students enroll in CS engineering courses annually in India, students from underserved and underrepresented communities contribute relatively small numbers. There are several reasons — low exposure to CS-related career opportunities, lack of inspirational role models in their community, and language barriers to access interesting curriculum formats. Also, government schools have limited resources to impart CS education,” the company said.
Amazon expects Future Engineer — which in India it said has been contextualized for the Indian teacher and student community and is being made available in several regional languages — to over 100,000 students in the country in more than 900 government schools across seven states within a year.
“We aim to bring the CS curriculum closer to these students in the languages of their comfort and choice, empower them with right skills and tools to be able to expand their career outlook. We hope students emerge more confident and skilled to be responsible creators of technology solutions and build a better future for themselves, and communities around them.”
The American e-commerce giant, which has invested more than $6.5 billion in India so far, has been exploring the education space in the country for a few years. Two years ago, it launched JEE Ready, an app aimed at helping students who are preparing for entry into India’s prestigious technology institutes. JEE Ready, which has since been rebranded as Amazon Academy, offers free online classes and analyzes students’ performance in mock tests.

::SPORTS::

India women's team played its first pink ball test

Australia and England played the first-ever pink-ball Test in women’s cricket between November 9 and November 12, 2017, at the North Sydney Oval. Though the match ended in a draw, it garnered a lot of attention from fans, former cricketers, and experts across the board.
There were three players, namely, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Beth Mooney, and Tahlia McGrath making their debut for Australia, while England had Fran Wilson and Sophie Ecclestone playing their first Test match.
Winning the toss and electing to bat first, England were all out for 280 in 116 overs. Opening bat Tammy Beaumont top-scored with 70 and found an able ally in skipper Heather Knight who chipped in with 62. Apart from Beaumont and Knight, there were no major contributions with the bat from England in the first innings. While Australia with the ball were brilliant as all the five bowlers used were able to pick up wickets. Ellyse Perry was the pick of the bowlers as she scalped 3-59 in 21 overs.