GK & CA
Collection of weekly GK & CA since year 2016.
February, 2021
5012
Massive iceberg breaks off from Antarctica
A. giant iceberg (North rift), more than 20 times the size of Manhattan, just split off from Antarctica's Brunt Ice Shelf. This dramatic breakup comes after a major crack formed on the shelf in November 2020 and continued to grow until the 'berg finally broke off (Source: India Today)
5011
Khajuraho Dance Festival
The Khajuraho Dance Festival, organised by the Madhya Pradesh Kala Parishad,[1] is a one-week festival of classical dances held annually beside the Khajuraho temples in Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh state The festival is conducted in February from the 20th to the 26th. (Source; Wikipedia)
5010
Saudi Arabia rules women can join armed forces
Saudi Arabia announced on Wednesday it will allow women in the ultra-conservative kingdom to serve in the armed forces as it embarks on a broad programme of economic and social reforms. (Source: The Hindu)
Sun, 28 Feb, 20215009
Kalanamak rice
Kalanamak is a scented rice. It derives its name from black husk (kala = black; the suffix ‘namak’ means salt). It is quite popular in Himalayan Tarai of eastern UP, India, and known as the scented black pearl of UP. It was also featured in the book 'Speciality rices of the world' by Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (Source: Wikipedia)
Sun, 28 Feb, 20215008
Repairability Index
The repairability index represents part of France’s effort to combat planned obsolescence, the intentional creation of products with a finite life-span that need to be replaced frequently, and transition to a more circular economy (Source: Wired.com - Why France’s New Tech ‘Repairability Index’ Is a Big Deal)
Sun, 28 Feb, 20215006
Sharif Chacha
Mohammed Sharif, popularly known as Sharif Chacha, is an Indian bicycle mechanic and social worker from Uttar Pradesh. Known for performing last rites for over 20000 unidentified and unclaimed dead bodies. Conferred with Padma Shri in 2020 for his contribution in social work ( Wikipedia/yourstory)
5005
Barak 8
Barak 8 also known as LR-SAM or as MR-SAM is an Indo-Israeli surface-to-air missile (SAM) - jointly developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), DRDO, Rafael and other companies. Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) produces the missiles. (Source: Wikipedia)
Sun, 21 Feb, 20215004
Selfie from Mars rover
NASA scientists on Friday presented striking early images from the picture-perfect landing of the Mars rover Perseverance, including a selfie of the six-wheeled vehicle dangling just above the surface of the Red Planet moments before touchdown. (Source: Indian Express)
5003
INS Karanj
NS Karanj is the third submarine of the first batch of six Kalvari-class submarines for the Indian Navy. It is a diesel-electric attack submarine based on the Scorpène class, designed by French naval defence and energy group DCNS and manufactured by Mazagon Dock Limited. (Source: Wikipedia)
5001
Serosurveys
Seroprevalence studies (or serosurveys) estimate the share of the population that test positive for antibodies using serology tests. The presence of a specific antibody in a sufficiently high concentration will suggest that the tested person was previously infected. (Source: Indian Express)
Sun, 14 Feb, 20215000
Urja Ganga Gas Pipeline Project
Urja Ganga gas pipeline project was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. A pipeline of length 2540 km is under construction from the states of Uttar Pradesh to Odisha. The scheme is directed to provide piped cooking gas to the households of Varanasi and to neighbour states. (Source: Wikipedia)
Sun, 14 Feb, 20214999
Mandarin duck made an appearance in Assam's Tinsukia
The mandarin duck (Aix galericulata) is a perching duck species native to the East Palearctic. The Mandarin duck made an appearance in Assam's Tinsukia last week after more than a century. (Source: Indian Express)
4998
Arjun tank
The main battle tank developed by DRDO, for the Indian Army.
The Arjun features a 120 mm main rifled gun with indigenously developed armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding-sabot ammunition, one PKT 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun, and a NSVT 12.7 mm machine gun. (Source; Wikipedia)
4996
Golden Chariot
The Golden Chariot is a luxury tourist train that connects the important tourist spots in the Indian states of Karnataka, Goa, Kerala & Tamil Nadu as well as Pondicherry, depending on the selected itinerary. It is named after the Stone Chariot in the Vitthala Temple at Hampi (Souce: Wikipedia)
4995
Biden administration backs US Moon shot
President Joe Biden has endorsed the effort to return to the Moon that was initiated under his predecessor Donald Trump. The plan would see the next man and the first woman land on the lunar surface in the next few years. (Source: bbc.com)
Sun, 07 Feb, 20214994
Avalanche
An avalanche (also called a snowslide) is an event that occurs when a cohesive slab of snow lying upon a weaker layer of snow fractures and slides down a steep slope. Avalanches are typically triggered in a starting zone from a mechanical failure in the snowpack
4993
A glacial break in the Tapovan-Reni area
A glacial break in the Tapovan-Reni area of Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district has damaged the Rishiganga power project, resulting in flooding in the Rishiganga, Dhauli Ganga and Alaknanda rivers (Source: Indian Express/India Today)
4992
Pfizer’s vaccine application for India been turned down
The Subject Expert Committee under CDSCO that looked into Pfizer's proposal and presentation did not recommend that the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) approve the application at present. (Source: Indian Express)
Sun, 07 Feb, 20214990
Chabahar port project
Chabahar Port is a seaport in Chabahar located in southeastern Iran, on the Gulf of Oman. It serves as Iran's only oceanic port. In its latest push to develop the port project, India handed over two 140-tonne cranes for loading and unloading equipment to the Iranian government (Source: The Hindu)
4989
Building Back Better
Building Back Better (BBB) is a United Nations program - strategy aimed at reducing the risk to the people of nations and communities in the wake of future disasters and shocks.The BBB approach integrates disaster risk reduction measures into the restoration of physical infrastructure, social systems and shelter (Source: Wikipedia)
Mon, 01 Feb, 20214988
Bangladesh army in Indian Republic Day parade
In a first, a contingent of the Bangladesh Armed Forces participated in the Republic Day parade 2021, commemorating 50 years of the country's Liberation War and establishment of diplomatic ties with India -
third foreign participation, France and the UAE before (Source: Indiatoday).
4987
Aung San Suu Kyi
Aung San Suu Kyi is a Burmese politician, diplomat, author, and a 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. The first and incumbent State Counsellor of Myanmar, she is also the leader of the National League for Democracy and played a vital role in the state's transition from military junta to partial democracy (Source: Wikipedia)
Mon, 01 Feb, 2021