This is the current affairs of 28 & 29 July 2023. Here are 12 questions and answers of daily current affairs for better preparation of competitive exams for government jobs.
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1. When is the world nature conservation day celebrated?
a. 29 July
b. 28 July
c. 27 July
d. 26 July
Answer: b. 28 July
Theme 2023
– Forests and Livelihoods: Sustaining People and Planet
– This day is celebrated with the aim of creating awareness among people about the importance of natural resources.
– Due to technological development and modern lifestyle, there is an imbalance in the environment.
– The occurrence of natural disasters around the world is an indication of the same.
– Along with Asia, for the first time, Europe and America are also experiencing the wrath of severe heatwaves.
– The emission of greenhouse gases, which comes from burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas, and oil, is making the heatwave more dangerous.
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2. According to the report of WMO and Copernicus Climate Change Service, which of these was the hottest month in the last 1 lakh 20 thousand years?
a. May 2022
b. June 2023
c. July 2023
d. August 2022
Answer: c. July 2023
– The newspaper “The Hindu” has declared it as the hottest day in human civilization.
– According to climate scientists worldwide, July 2023 is the hottest month in human history.
– Due to the increase in temperature, three continents – North America, Europe, and Asia are under the grip of a heatwave.
Who announced the hottest month?
– The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service announced in a report that in the first three weeks of July, many heat records were broken.
– The temperature has exceeded 50 degrees Celsius in several countries.
– Scientists say that such heat levels have not been experienced in the past 120,000 years.
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3. Fulfill the announcement of United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres – the age of global warming is over, now the age of ……….. has come?
a. Global Ice
b. Global Boiling
c. Global Cold Wind
d. Global Flood
Answer: b. Global Boiling
– After the report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made an announcement.
– He said, “The era of global warming is over. Now, the era of global boiling has begun. Climate change is here. It is extremely dangerous. However, this is just the beginning; it can be controlled. We can stop the rise in global temperature. But for that, we need to take immediate action.”
July 2023’s Alarming Temperature:
– According to the calculations by the Copernicus Climate Change Service and WMO, in the first 23 days of July, the average global temperature was 16.95 degrees Celsius (62.5 degrees Fahrenheit).
– This is approximately 0.6 degrees Celsius (about 1.08 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than the previous record of the hottest month in July 2019.
– Whereas the hottest day was recorded on July 06 with a global average temperature of 17.23 degrees Celsius.
Why is the heat increasing?
– The continuous increase in the global average temperature is due to pollution.
– Pollution prevents a significant portion of the sun’s heat from escaping back, trapping it in the Earth’s atmosphere.
– This pollution works like a greenhouse around the Earth, severely impacting the climate.
– Due to El Niño, even more intense heat is being felt.
In the next 5 years, the global temperature could rise by up to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
– According to WMO, in the next five years, the temperature will be 1.5 degrees Celsius warmer compared to the pre-industrial revolution era.
– This poses a risk of the complete melting of the Arctic Ocean’s ice in the coming years, leading to the submergence of many coastal cities.
– The increasing temperature will have a devastating impact on the Indian subcontinent. India may have to face dire circumstances, as was evident in 2015 when a heatwave claimed the lives of 2,500 people.
The situation of heat in the world in July 2023:
– According to a report by BBC, around 113 million people in the United States are under the grip of a heatwave.
– Advisories have been issued for Florida, California, and Washington due to the heatwave.
– The U.S. National Weather Service has warned people not to take any risks with their health.
– On July 15, the temperature in Arizona state, U.S., reached 48 degrees Celsius.
– The U.S. weather department reported that Death Valley in California reached a scorching 54 degrees Celsius.
– Death Valley is one of the hottest places in the world.
Asia – Temperature reaches 52 degrees Celsius in China
– On July 17, a temperature of 52 degrees Celsius was recorded in Sanbao, Xinjiang, China.
– Before this, the highest temperature was recorded in Aiding, China, in 2015, reaching 50.3 degrees Celsius.
Europe – Temperature exceeds 45 degrees Celsius in several countries
– The European Space Agency has issued alerts regarding the heat in Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Poland. The temperature in Spain reached 45 degrees Celsius.
On what basis is the claim of the highest temperature in a hundred thousand years being made?
– The work of recording temperature data began 174 years ago, so another method was used to obtain data for temperatures before that time.
– Scientists have climate data for thousands of years (1000 years) through samples of tree bark, ice cores, and stalagmites.
– This data is considered the foundation of understanding the scientific climate system.
– After the Industrial Revolution, humans contributed rapidly to global warming.
– Robert Rohde, a prominent scientist at Berkeley Earth, was among the first scientists to state that this week the global temperature is rising.
Challenging claims of the hottest day in a hundred thousand years:
– Some scientists argue that the estimation of temperatures before the invention of the thermometer is based on “paleoclimate proxies.”
– These proxies are biological and chemical indicators that are either significantly warmer or colder than a specific baseline temperature.
– Such baseline records are typically available only from modern times when thermometers were in use.
– These methods are called “proxies” because they do not directly measure temperature but rather reflect physical, biological, and chemical processes responding to temperatures either warmer or colder than the reference point.
– To make the paleoclimate proxy technique practical, the processes that produce the proxies were operated then much like they do today.
– For hundreds of thousands of years, proxies are usually buried in ocean and lake sediments.
– They can only record temperature discrepancies, i.e., variations from the baseline, on a century-scale time frame.
– Scientists claim that determining the hottest day in 100,000 years or even estimating the daily temperature for a specific day or month in the past year is scientifically impossible unless we have temperature measurements using thermometers.
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4. Which female cricketer was suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for two matches of the Asian Games?
a. Harmanpreet Kaur
b. Smriti Mandhana
c. Shefali Verma
d. Richa Ghosh
Answer: a. Harmanpreet Kaur
– Harmanpreet Kaur is the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team, and she has been suspended for two matches. It means she won’t be able to play in two matches.
– In the third One Day International (ODI) against Bangladesh on July 22, she had knocked the stumps with her bat and expressed disagreement with the umpire’s decision.
– Due to this, Harmanpreet has been found guilty of a Level-2 breach of the ICC Code of Conduct.
– ICC issued this order on July 25, 2023, imposing a ban on Harmanpreet along with a 50% match fee fine.
– Additionally, she has been given three demerit points as part of the penalty.
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5. Cambodia’s prime minister announced his resignation in July 2023, name him?
a. Hun Manet
b. Hun Sen
c. Khmer Rouge
d. None of These
Answer: b. Hun Sen
– Hun Sen said that he will step down from the position of Prime Minister within three weeks and hand over the position to his eldest son, Hun Manet.
– Hun Sen has been Cambodia’s undisputed leader for 38 years.
– His son, Hun Manet, is the chief of Cambodia’s armed forces.
– Recently, in the elections held, he registered his first victory in the parliament.
– However, Western countries and human rights organizations have alleged election manipulation. It is alleged that the main opposition in the elections was suppressed.
Cambodia:
– Capital: Phnom Penh
– Monarch/King: Norodom Sihamoni
– Prime Minister: Hun Sen
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6. When is the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons observed?
a. 28 July
b. 29 July
c. 30 July
d. 31 July
Answer: c. 30 July
Theme of the Year 2023
– Reach Every Victim of Trafficking, Leave No One Behind
– This day is declared by the United Nations.
– It is observed to raise awareness about the plight of victims of Human Trafficking and to promote the dissemination and protection of their rights.
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7. Which railway station received UNESCO’s Asia Pacific Cultural Heritage Award ‘Award of Merit’?
a. Byculla Railway Station, Mumbai
b. Raja Ki Mandi Railway Station, Agra
c. Charbagh Railway Station, Lucknow
d. Piplani Railway Station, Bhopal
Answer: a. Byculla Railway Station, Mumbai
– This award was announced in November 2022.
– Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw received this award on 24th July.
Byculla Station
– Byculla is a railway station on the Central Line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway.
– The station is a Grade-I heritage structure.
– Byculla was one of the original stations when the Bombay-Thane railway was inaugurated in April 1853.
In November 2022, these places were announced for awards:
– Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya Museum – Award of Excellence
– Stepwells of Golconda (Bavadiyan of Golconda), Hyderabad – Award of Distinction
– Domakonda Fort (Telangana) – Award of Merit
– Bhaykhala Station (Mumbai) – Award of Merit
UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards 2022:
– Since the year 2000, UNESCO has been presenting these awards in the Asia-Pacific region for the conservation of heritage values and structures.
UNESCO:
Headquarters – Paris, France
Established – 1945
Director-General – Audrey Azoulay
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8. As per the report tabled in the Parliament, RBI allowed banks to open vostro accounts in how many countries for trading in rupees?
a. 18
b. 19
c. 21
d. 22
Answer: d. 22
– The government has stated in Parliament that RBI has granted permission to 20 banks operating in the country to open Vostro accounts with partner banks from 22 countries to promote the local currency.
– These banks will be able to use Vostro accounts for trade settlement and conduct trade in Indian Rupees.
– This will assist exporters and importers in creating and making payments in their respective local currencies.
Countries where Vostro accounts can be opened:
– Bangladesh, Belarus, Botswana, Fiji, Germany, Guyana, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Oman, Russia, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Uganda, and the United Kingdom.
Vostro Account
– A Vostro account is an account held by a domestic bank in a foreign bank, but the currency or currency in this account is of the domestic bank.
– When an Indian importer makes a payment to a foreign trader in Indian Rupees, the amount is deposited in this Vostro account. Similarly, when an Indian exporter needs to receive payment in Indian Rupees for their goods and services, the amount will be debited from this account. Afterward, it will be deposited into the exporter’s regular account.
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9. When is World Hepatitis Day observed?
a. 28 July
b. 29 July
c. 30 July
d. 31 July
Answer: a. 28 July
Theme 2023
– One life, one liver
– World Hepatitis Alliance established this day in 2008.
– Inflammation of the liver is commonly referred to as hepatitis.
– Hepatitis is a broad infectious disease caused by hepatitis viruses A, B, C, D, and E.
– It can lead to liver fibrosis, cirrhosis, or liver cancer.
– The message of this day’s theme is that humans have only one life and only one liver.
– Hepatitis can destroy both of them. Your liver silently performs over 500 vital functions every day to keep you alive.
– According to WHO estimates, around four crore people in India are chronically infected with hepatitis B, and 60 lakh to 1.2 crore people are chronically infected with hepatitis C.
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10. Who has been appointed by Asian Paints as the new chairman of the company?
a. Uttam Singh
b. Sudhir Narayan
c. R Seshasayee
d. Deepak Satwalekar
Answer: c. R Seshasayee
– Asian Paints has appointed R. Seshasayee as the Chairman of the company’s Board of Directors from October 1, 2023.
– He will remain as the Chairman of the Board and the company until the end of his term on January 22, 2027.
– The company made this announcement on July 25, 2023.
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11. Who became India’s 83rd Chess Grandmaster?
a. Vuppala Prraneeth
b. Sayantan Das
c. Pranesh M
d. Aditya S Samant
Answer: d. Aditya S Samant
– In the 2023 Billches M.T.O. Tournament, they achieved the title of Grandmaster while playing.
– They are 17 years old.
– 83rd Grandmaster: Aditya S. Samant
– 82nd Grandmaster: Vuppala Praneeth
– 81st Grandmaster: Sayantan Das
– 80th Grandmaster: Vijyanesh N.R.
– 79th Grandmaster: Pranesh M.
– 78th Grandmaster: Kaustuv Chatterjee
Who was the first Indian Grandmaster?
– Viswanathan Anand
– He achieved the title in 1988.
– He is a five-time World Champion.
2023 FIDE World Champion: Ding Liren
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12. When is International Friendship Day celebrated?
a. 28 July
b. 29 July
c. 30 July
d. 31 July
Answer: c. 30 July
Theme 2023
– Sharing the human spirit through friendship.
– The United Nations General Assembly adopted International Friendship Day in the year 2011.
