Current Affairs 21 March 2023

ANS : D 

• World Down Syndrome Day is observed annually on March 21.

• The day aims to raise awareness about the healthcare and inclusion of people with this condition.
• A person with Down’s syndrome has an extra chromosome, which is a disorder that is present at birth.
• The UN General Assembly passed a resolution in November 2011 declaring the date as International Down Syndrome Day.
• The purpose of the day is to develop an awareness about Down syndrome and provide support for people whose lives are impacted by it.
• The triplication (trisomy) of the 21st chromosome, which causes Down syndrome, is unique, which is why the United Nations chose March 21 as World Down Syndrome Day.

ANS : B 

• Nepalese Wicketkeeper-batsman Aasif Sheikh has been declared the winner of the 2022 Christopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricket Award.

• The Award is presented every year by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), UK in conjunction with the BBC.
• The Award was created in 2013 by MCC and the BBC in memory of former MCC President and BBC Test Match Special commentator Christopher Martin-Jenkins.

ANS : C 

• The 2023 Swiss Open badminton tournament started in Basel, Switzerland on 21 March 2023.
• The tournament will be played till 26 March 2023.
• Indian shuttler PV Sindhu will begin her campaign against local wildcard Jenjira Stadelmann.
• The BWF World Tour is divided into six levels, namely World Tour Finals, Super 100, Super 750, Super 500, and Super 300. 

ANS : D 

• Singapore Changi Airport has again topped Skytrax’s ranking of the world’s best airports, which was revealed at the 2023 World Airport Awards ceremony.
• This is the 12th time it has won the title, awarded annually by the UK-based airline and airport research firm.
• Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar, and Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Japan, ranked second and third, respectively.
• The World’s Top 10 Airports for 2023:
  • Singapore Changi Airport
  • Hamad International Airport
  • Tokyo International Airport (Haneda)
  • Incheon International Airport
  • Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport
  • Istanbul Airport
  • Munich Airport
  • Zurich Airport
  • Narita International Airport
  • Madrid-Barajas Airport

ANS : B 

• Hima Das won the 200m race in 23.79 seconds, while long jumper Ancy Sojan won with a best effort of 6.49m in the Indian Grand Prix-1 athletics event on 20 March 2023.
• Hima beat Aishwarya Kailash Mishra (24.81) of Maharashtra and VK Vismaya (24.82) of Kerala to take the women’s 200m gold.
• Sojan with a best effort of 6.49m, just past the 6.45m mark laid down as the Asian Games qualifying standard.

ANS : C 

• Li Shi Feng defeated fellow Chinese shuttler Shi Yu Qi to win the men’s singles title at the All England Open badminton championships, in March 2023.
• South Korea’s An Se Young won the women’s title beating Tokyo 2020 Olympics gold medallist Chen Yu Fei of China.
• Kim So-yeong and Kong Hee-yong of South Korea won the women’s doubles, and Indonesian pair Fajar Alfian and Muhammad Rain Ardianto won the men’s doubles.
• All England Open Badminton Championships 2023 was held in Birmingham.
• The All England event, with more than 155 matches and over 50 hours of badminton, contributes towards potential Olympics qualification.

ANS : C 

• At 41 years and 166 days, Zlatan Ibrahimovic beat the previous record for oldest scorer held by Alessandro Costacurta, who was 41 years and 25 days. 
• Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Serie A club AC Milan and the Sweden national team.
• Ibrahimovic is renowned for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, powerful long-range shots, and excellent technique and ball control.
• He is regarded as one of the greatest strikers of all time and is one of the most decorated active footballers in the world, having won 34 trophies in his career.

ANS : D 

• A task force will be set up for formulating a framework to determine logistics costs in the country.
• It was decided in a workshop organised by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
• The task force members would include representatives from NITI Aayog, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER).
• It will be established for formulating a logistics cost framework in a time-bound fashion.
• The workshop on logistics cost framework was organised in partnership with Asian Development Bank (ADB).
• The government is going by certain estimates which suggest that logistics cost in India stands at about 13-14 per cent of the country’s GDP.
• The government has rolled out a national logistics policy and PM Gati Shakti initiative to boost competitiveness of industry and cut logistics cost.

ANS : A

• Carborundum Universal Limited (CUMI) has signed a licensing agreement for the transfer of technology (LAToT) with DRDO’s Research Centre Imarat (RCI) laboratory.

• It has been signed to manufacture ‘Ceramic Radomes (GELCAST Process) Technology’ used in missile systems.
• Ceramic radome technology is considered state-of-the-art missile technology around the world. 
• Since missiles undergo extremely high surface temperatures while travelling through the atmosphere, ceramic is considered the optimal radome material.
• The design of ceramic radomes for defence activities requires deep expertise and stringent testing at every stage to ensure reliability and accuracy.

ANS : A 

• NTPC REL has signed an MoU with Indian Army for setting up Green Hydrogen Projects in its establishments on Build, Own and Operate model.
• The intent is to reduce complex logistics, dependence on fossil fuels and to accelerate decarbonization.
• A joint identification of potential sites would be undertaken for setting up of green hydrogen projects for supplying electricity, in a phased manner.