Syllabus

• Prelims – Current Event

Context: Chennai-based space startup AgniKul Cosmos launched a single-stage technology demonstrator rocket — Agnibaan SOrTeD (suborbital technological demonstrator) — from Sriharikota.

Background:-

• Founded in 2017 by Srinath Ravichandran, Moin S P M, and S R Chakravarthy, AgniKul became the first Indian firm to sign an agreement with Isro in December 2020. This pioneering agreement was facilitated under the IN-SPACe initiative, granting AgniKul unprecedented access to Isro’s expertise and cutting-edge facilities. The company is one of the highest-funded space startups in India and has raised $42 million so far.

Key takeaways

• India made history in the space sector on Thursday with the first launch from a private launchpad of the country’s second privately built rocket and the first using a combination of gas and liquid fuel.
• SOrTeD uses the world’s first single-piece 3D-printed engine, designed and built indigenously.
• This launch is also considered historic because the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has not yet successfully flown a semi-cryogenic engine, in which a mix of liquid and gas is used as a propellant.
• Agnibaan also has the unique distinction of having been launched from India’s first private launchpad Dhanush, established by AgniKul.
• The key purpose of this mission is to serve as a test flight, demonstrate in-house and home-grown technologies, gather crucial flight data, and ensure optimal functioning of systems for AgniKul’s orbital launch vehicle, the ‘Agnibaan’.
• The Agnibaan rocket is a customisable, two-stage launch vehicle that can carry up to 300 kilogram (kg) of payload to orbits nearly 700 kilometre in altitude, the company said.
• The startup is looking at flying an orbital mission towards the end of 2024–25 and is working with customers on flights starting regularly in the calendar year 2025.
• It was in November 2022 that a private company, Skyroot Aerospace, successfully developed and operated the launch vehicle Vikram-S on a sub-orbital flight from Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, becoming the first player to do so.

Source: Business Standard

Syllabus

• Prelims – HISTORY

Context: On May 31, we celebrated the 300th birth anniversary of the Maratha queen Ahilya Bai Holkar — a great administrator and visionary with a spiritual inclination.

Background:

• “The reign of Ahilyabai, of Indore in central India, lasted for thirty years. This has become almost legendary as a period during which perfect order and good government prevailed and the people prospered. She was a very able ruler and organizer, highly respected during her lifetime, and considered as a saint by a grateful people after her death.” – Jawaharlal Nehru (The Discovery of India/1946)

About AHILYABAI HOLKER

• Rajmata Ahilyabai Holkar was the Holkar Queen of the Malwa kingdom. She is regarded as one of the most visionary female rulers of India.
• Born on 31 May 1725, in the village of Chondi in Jamkhed, Ahmednagar (Maharashtra), Ahilya hailed from a very humble background. Her father Mankoji Rao Shinde was the village head, and he taught her to read and write.
• As a young girl, the combination of her simplicity and strength of character caught the attention of Malhar Rao Holkar, the Lord of the Malwa territory. He was so impressed with the young Ahilya that in 1733 when she was barely eight years old, he got her married to his son Khanderao Holkar.
• Twelve years after her marriage, her husband Khanderao died during the siege of the Kumher Fort.After the death of her husband, Ahilyabai was stopped by her father-in-law from committing sati. Instead, he took her under his wing and trained her in military and administrative matters.
• Her father in law, Malhar Rao passed away in 1766, and in the following year, she lost her son, Male Rao.
• Keeping in mind the welfare of the kingdom and her people, she petitioned the Peshwa to allow her to take over the reign of Malwa. Although some of the nobles objected to this, she still had the support of the army.
• In 1767, the Peshwa granted Ahilyabai permission to take over Malwa. She ascended the throne and became the ruler of Indore on 11 December 1767. For the next 28 years, Maharani Ahilyabai ruled over Malwa in a just, wise, and knowledgeable manner.
• Under Ahilyabai’s rule, Malwa enjoyed relative peace, prosperity, and stability, and her capital, Maheshwar, was turned into an oasis of literary, musical, artistic, and industrial pursuits.
• Ahilyabai also established a textile industry in Maheshwar, which today is very famous for its Maheshwari sarees.
• Her most notable contribution was the renovation and repair of the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple in 1780. The ‘Philosopher Queen’ as she is famously known, passed away on 13th August 1795 at the age of seventy.
• Her legacy still lives on and the various temples, Dharamshalas, and public works undertaken by her stand as a testimony to the great warrior queen she was.

Source: Indian Culture

Syllabus

• Prelims & Mains – ECONOMY

Context: According to the latest data released by the government, foreign direct investment (FDI) equity inflows in India decreased by 3.49 per cent in FY24 to $44.42 billion. Reduced investments in sectors such as services, computer hardware and software, telecom, auto, and pharma, are being attributed as the primary reasons for the slump.

Background:

• Foreign investment, including FDI equity inflows, is needed to supplement domestic resources and finance the current account deficit. FDI inflows are a good indicator of a nation’s appeal as a long-term investment destination.
• The total FDI, which includes equity inflows, reinvested earnings, and other capital, saw a slight decrease of 1 per cent to $70.95 billion in FY24, down from $71.35 billion in FY23, as reported by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

Key Takeaways

• The FDI inflows into the manufacturing sector in FY24 are one of the lowest in the past five years, according to the provisional FDI data published in the RBI annual report.
• The manufacturing sectors received $9.3 billion FDI in FY24, which was 17.7 per cent less than the $11.3 billion inflows in FY23. In FY22, the manufacturing sector received $16.3 billion in FDI.
• Computer services received $4.9 billion during the financial year 2023-24, down from $5.6 billion in FY23.
• The decline in financial services was more significant, with FDI inflows dropping by 35 per cent to $4.4 billion.
• Retail and trade experienced a 22.7 per cent decrease in FY24, amounting to $4.1 billion.
• FDI inflows in communication services fell by 17.8 per cent in FY24.
• Conversely, FDI in electricity transmission and generation surged by two-thirds, rising from $3.3 billion in FY23 to $5.5 billion in FY24.
• Singapore remained the largest source of FDI into India in FY24, contributing $11.8 billion, although this was $5.4 billion less than the previous year.
• It was followed by  Mauritius ($7.97 billion), the United States ($4.99 billion), Netherlands ($4.92 billion), Japan ($3.18 billion), the United Kingdom ($1.21 billion), the United Arab Emirates ($2.92 billion), Cyprus ($806 million), Germany ($505 million), and Cayman Islands ($342 million).
• FDI inflows from Mauritius increased by 31% in FY24. This rise followed the new tax treaty with Mauritius, effective from April 1, 2017, which eliminated several tax benefits and prompted investors to shift their base to Singapore for channelling FDIs into India.
• The fall in FDI equity inflows can be attributed to two reasons – globally, investible funds have fallen and interest rates have hardened. Several sectors, including IT (information technology) and startups are seeing saturation of investment.
• Maharashtra continued to be the most favoured destination of investors, receiving $15.11 billion worth of investments, although inflows declined 2 per cent.
• This was followed by Karnataka with $6.57 billion in FY23 from $10.42 billion a year ago.

Source: Business Standard

Syllabus

• Prelims – GEOGRAPHY

Context: U.S. pledged $135 million in aid to Moldova for energy security and to counter Russian disinformation as the Western-leaning nation struggles to blunt Moscow’s push for influence that has been buoyed by recent successes in its war in neighboring Ukraine.

Background:

• There are also signs Russia may be considering new actions in Moldova, where it has 1,500 troops stationed in the disputed territory of Transnistria, and is behind anti-Western moves that the U.S. believes run counter to Moldovan aspirations to join the European Union.

About Moldova

• Moldova is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, on the northeastern corner of the Balkans.
• The country spans a total of 33,483 km2 and has a population of approximately 2.5 million as of January 2023.
• Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south.

• The unrecognised breakaway state of Transnistria lies across the Dniester river on the country’s eastern border with Ukraine.
• Moldova is a unitary parliamentary representative democratic republic with its capital in Chișinău, the country’s largest city and main cultural and commercial centre.
• Moldova is the second poorest country in Europe by GDP per official capita after Ukraine and much of its GDP is dominated by the service sector.
• Moldova is a member state of the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the GUAM Organization for Democracy and Economic Development, the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, and the Association Trio.

Source: Hindu

Syllabus

• Prelims – Environment

Context: Delegates to the ongoing KAZA 2024 Heads of State Summit in Livingstone, Zambia, renewed calls this week for member states to pull out of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (or CITES) which has repeatedly denied them permission to sell off their abundant ivory and other wildlife products.

Background:

• The Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area spans five southern African countries: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The KAZA TFCA was formally established on 18th of August 2011 when the Heads of States of the five governments signed its Treaty in Luanda, Angola.

About KAZA-TFCA

• The Kavango-Zambezi Trans-Frontier Conservation Area (KAZA-TFCA) is a 520,000-square kilometre nature and landscape conservation area straddling five southern African nations that share common borders along the Okavango and Zambezi river basins.
• It includes a major part of the Upper Zambezi River and Okavango basins and Delta, the Caprivi Strip of Namibia, the southeastern part of Angola, southwestern Zambia, the northern wildlands of Botswana and western Zimbabwe.
• The centre of this area is at the confluence of the Zambezi and Chobe Rivers where the borders of Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe meet.
• It incorporates a number of notable national parks and nature sites, including Chobe National Park, Hwange National Park, and the Victoria Falls. The region is home to a population of approximately 250,000 animals, including the largest population of African Elephants in the world

Source: Down to Earth

Syllabus

• Mains – GS 3

Context: In 2023, world food prices dropped significantly from their 2022 highs. However, India’s food inflation remained high at 9.5% in December 2023, contrasting with global deflation of -10.1%.

Background:

• The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the international prices of commonly traded food commodities, was 13.7 percent lower last year than the 2022 average.

Factors contributing to the drop in Global Food Prices:

• Bumper harvests of major crops like wheat in 2023 led to a surplus in the global market. This abundance contrasts with concerns in 2022, when worries about supply disruptions due to the war in Ukraine, a major grain exporter, caused prices to spike.
• Despite the disruption of the Black Sea Grain Initiative in July 2023, both Russia and Ukraine have managed to maintain wheat exports. This continued flow of grain from the region has helped to alleviate some of the supply anxieties.
• The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization Vegetable Price Index saw the biggest drop in 2023, falling by 32.7%. This decline is due to a combination of factors, including improved vegetable oil supplies and a decrease in its use for biofuel production.
• High inflation and fears of an economic recession have dampened consumer demand in many parts of the world, including in major food-importing regions, leading to a decline in import demand for certain food commodities and putting downward pressure on global prices.

Reasons for experiencing High Food Inflation in India despite falling Global Food Prices:

• While global food prices fell, India’s food prices stayed elevated due to the limited transmission of international prices to domestic markets. India’s import dependence is significant only for edible oils (60% of consumption) and pulses.
• The Indian government-imposed bans on exports of certain food items like wheat, non-basmati white rice, sugar, and onions and provided import duty waivers on others, effectively reducing global market influences on domestic prices.
• Domestic production challenges like weather conditions affecting crop yields, particularly for cereals, pulses, and sugar, contributed to supply shortages and higher prices domestically. Cereal and pulse inflation stood at 9.9% and 20.7% year-on-year, respectively, in December 2023.
• Low stock levels for commodities like wheat and sugar further exacerbated price pressures.

Way Forward:

• Investing in agricultural infrastructure, technology, and research to improve crop yields and reduce production costs can boost supply and stabilise prices.
• Enhancing logistics, storage facilities, and distribution networks can reduce wastage and ensure a steady supply of food items to the market, mitigating price fluctuations.
• Promoting diversification by encouraging the cultivation of a variety of crops and supporting alternative farming practices can reduce reliance on a few commodities and balance market dynamics.
• Monitoring food prices regularly and implementing effective price regulation mechanisms can prevent price manipulation and ensure fair pricing for consumers and producers alike.
• Addressing climate change challenges through sustainable farming practices, water management strategies, and crop diversification can reduce production risks and enhance food security in the long term.

Source: PBS

Q1.) Consider the following statements about Kavango-Zambezi Trans-Frontier Conservation Area

1. It spans five southern African countries: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
2. It incorporates a number of notable national parks and nature sites, including Chobe National Park, Hwange National Park, and the Victoria Falls.

Which of the statements give above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Q2.) Consider the following countries

1. Maldova
2. Poland
3. Slovakia
4. Belarus

How many of the countries given above share borders with Ukraine?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. Only three
4. All four

Q3.) Consider the following statements about Ahilyabai Holker

1. She was the Holkar Queen of the Malwa kingdom.
2. Her notable contribution was the renovation and repair of the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple.
3. Her capital, Maheshwar, was an oasis of literary, musical, artistic, and industrial pursuits.

How many of the statements give above are correct?

1. One only
2. Two only
3. All three
4. None

Comment the answers to the above questions in the comment section below!!

ANSWERS FOR ’  31st  May 2024 – Daily Practice MCQs’ will be updated along with tomorrow’s Daily Current Affairs.st

Q.1) – b

Q.2) – c

Q.3) – a