UPSC Quiz – 2024 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz 27th June 2024

·       At end-March 2024, India’s external debt was US$ 663.8 billion, an increase of US$ 39.7billionover its level at end-March 2023.

·       The external debt-to-GDP ratio declined to 18.7 percent end-March 2024 from 19.0 percent at end-March 2023.

The Valuation effect due to the appreciation of the US dollar vis-à-vis the Indian rupee and other major currencies such as the yen, euro, and SDR amounted to US$ 8.7 billion.

·       Valuation effects are the change in value of assets held abroad with regard to the value of domestic assets held by foreign investors.

·       Excluding the valuation effect, external debt would have increased by US$ 48.4 billion instead of US$ 39.7 billion at end-March 2024 over end-March 2023.

·       At end-March 2024, long-term debt (with an original maturity of above one year) was placed at US$ 541.2 billion, recording an increase of US$ 45.6 billion over its level at end-March 2023.

·       The share of short-term debt (with an original maturity of up to one year) in total external debt declined to 18.5 percent at end-March 2024 from 20.6 per cent at end-March 2023.

·       Similarly, the ratio of short-term debt (original maturity) to foreign exchange reserves declined to 19.0 percent at end-March 2024 (22.2 per cent at end-March 2023).

·       US dollar-denominated debt remained the largest component of India’s external debt, with a share of 53.8 percent at end-March 2024, followed by debt denominated in the Indian rupee (31.5 percent), yen (5.8 percent), SDR (5.4 percent), and euro (2.8 percent).

·       Outstanding debt of both government and non-government sectors increased at end-March 2024 over the level a year ago.

·       The share of outstanding debt of non-financial corporations in total external debt was the highest at 37.4 percent, followed by deposit-taking corporations (except the central bank) (28.1 percent), general government (22.4 percent) and other financial corporations (7.3 percent).

·       Loans remained the largest component of external debt, with a share of 33.4 percent, followed by currency and deposits (23.3 percent), trade credit and advances (17.9 percent) and debt securities (17.3 percent).

·       Debt service (i.e., principal repayments and interest payments) increased to 6.7 percent of current receipts at end-March 2024 from 5.3 percent at end-March 2023, reflecting higher debt service.

·       It is the flagship initiative of the union Ministry of Defence.

·       It aims to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation and technology development in Defence and Aerospace by engaging Industries including MSMEs, start-ups, individual innovators, R&D institutes and academia.

·       It has partnered with leading incubators in the country to provide handholding, technical support and guidance to the winners of iDEX challenges.

Funding:

·       iDEX will be funded and managed by a ‘Defence Innovation Organization (DIO)’ which has been formed as a ‘not for profit company as per Section 8 of the Companies Act 2013 by the two founder members, i.e. Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) – HAL & BEL.

·       It functions as the executive arm of DIO, carrying out all the required activities, while DIO will provide high-level policy guidance to iDEX.

·       Under iDEX, financial support is provided to Start-ups/MSMEs/individual innovators and Partner Incubators through DIO.

·       It has launched 11 editions of the Defence India Start-up Challenge and recently unveiled the Acing Development of Innovative Technologies with iDEX (ADITI) scheme to promote innovations in critical and strategic defence technologies.

·       It was the recipient of the Prime Minister Award for Public Policy in Innovation Category in 2021 and is currently engaged with over 400 start-ups and MSMEs.

·       It is a bilateral administrative agreement to provide logistical support that facilitates access to each other’s military facilities, in exchange of fuel and other provisions.

·       Among the three services, the Indian Navy has been the biggest beneficiary of these administrative arrangements signed with several countries, improving its operational turnaround and increasing interoperability on the high seas.

·       The agreements have been a win-win for both the parties involved.

·       By signing the RELOS, India and Russia are scaling up their military-to-military cooperation for real-time combat situations.

Significance of Agreement

·       A logistics pact facilitates mutual logistical support during various military operations, training, port calls, including peacekeeping missions, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), and joint military exercises.

·       It involves critical services like refuelling, maintenance, and supply provisions, enhancing interoperability.

·       It enhances access to Russian military facilities, especially in the Arctic region.

·       Unlike typical lightning that travels from cloud to cloud or cloud to ground, gigantic jets extend upward, connecting the top of thunderstorms to the ionosphere.

·       Gigantic jets are incredibly powerful, carrying up to 100 times the electrical charge of a typical lightning bolt.

·       The Oklahoma gigantic jet, one of the most studied examples, moved an estimated 300 coulombs of electrical charge into the ionosphere.

·       This discharge includes cooler plasma streamers (around 400 degrees Fahrenheit) and extremely hot structures called leaders, which can reach temperatures over 8,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

·       They have potential implications for space technology and communication systems.

·       Their powerful discharges could affect satellites in low-Earth orbit, potentially causing signal degradation and performance issues.

·       A rare gigantic jets was recently witnessed over Himalayas and it is not confined to oceans.

·       It is an apex body for the formulation, coordination, development and promotion of research on scientific lines in Ayurveda and Sowa-Rigpa system of medicine.

·       The activities are carried out through its 30 Institutes located all over India and also through collaborative studies with various Universities, Hospitals and Institutes.

The research activities of the Council include:

·       Medicinal Plant Research (Medico-Ethno Botanical Survey, Pharmacognosy and Tissue Culture)

·       Drug Standardization and Pharmacological Research,

·       Clinical Research, Literary Research & Documentation and

·       Tribal Health Care Research Programme.

The initiatives of CCRAS are:

·       AYUSH-64 and ‘SMART 2.0’

·       Studentship Program For Ayurveda Research Ken (SPARK)

The National Institute of Indian Medical Heritage (NIIMH) operates under CCRAS.