Current Affair 1:

Global Innovation Index 2023

 

News:

Index started in 2007 and is published annually.

India retains 40th rank out of 132 economies in the Global Innovation Index 2023 rankings published by the World Intellectual Property Organization.

India has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023.

See below ranking and all indicators of Index:

Current Affair 2:

National Service Scheme (NSS)

 

The National Service Scheme (NSS) is a Central Sector Scheme of Government of India, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports.

National Service Scheme was launched on 24th September, 1969 by the then Education Minister Dr. V.K. R.V. Rao in 37 universities with 40,000 NSS Volunteers covering all States.

It provides opportunity to the student youth of 11th & 12th Class of schools at +2 Board level and student youth of Technical Institution, Graduate & Post Graduate at colleges and University level of India to take part in various Government led community service activities & programmes.

The primary objective of developing the personality and character of the student youth through voluntary community service. ‘Education through Service’ is the purpose of the NSS. NSS has now spread over 657 Universities and 51 +2 Councils/Directorates, covering 20,669 Colleges/ Technical Institutions and 11,988 Senior Secondary School.

 

Current Affair 3:

How a financial lease work?

 

News:

A Financial Lease is an agreement whereby the lessor conveys to the lessee in return for a payment or series of payments the right to use an asset for an agreed period of time. Basically, the lessor takes the asset on behalf of the lessee and gets compensated by the rental payments that are paid by the lessee during the days of the lease. The ownership of the asset is with the lessor, but the lessee gets exclusive right to use the asset in the way desired. For accounting purposes, the lease provides the lessee with economic characters of ownership of the asset.

Lessor = Leasing Company = Finance Company = HSBC Unit registered in IFSC which is a deemed foreign entity

Lessee = Air India Fleet Services Ltd.

Asset = Airbus A350-900 aircraft

How a Finance Lease Works?

A finance lease is essentially a commercial rental agreement where the following steps take place:

1. First: Lessee selects an asset that they require for a business.
2. Second: Lessor, generally a finance company, purchases the asset.
3. Third: The lessor and lessee enter into a legal Agreement in which the lessee gets the right to use asset during the agreed upon lease.
4. Fourth: The lessee makes regular payments for the use of the asset.
5. Fifth: The lessor recovers the cost of the asset plus interest.
6. And lastly at the end of the lease agreement, the lessee has the option to acquire ownership of the asset.

Financial Lease is a kind of debt instrument and comes under External Commercial Borrowing (ECB). So, basically Air India Fleet Services Ltd. has taken ECB from HSBC Unit registered in IFSC which is a deemed foreign entity.

Current Affair 4:

How do we know if the water is polluted?

 

Important points. Read everything mentioned below.

Water pollution or water quality can be measured across an extensive range of parameters. The five basic water quality parameters are dissolved oxygen, temperature, electrical conductivity or salinity, pH and turbidity.

Dissolved oxygen is the amount of oxygen dissolved in water – essential for the survival and growth of most aquatic organisms. This is a key indicator of water quality and the potential of the water body to support aquatic life and ecosystems.

The temperature of the water affects water chemistry and functions of aquatic organisms, such as metabolic rates of organisms, timing of reproduction, migration etc.

Conductivity is the ability of the water to conduct electricity – an outcome of dissolved salts in the water that break into positively and negatively charged ions.

Salinity is a measure of the amount of salts in water; dissolved salts increase both salinity and conductivity, hence, the two are related. Salts and other dissolved substances have a critical influence on aquatic biota. Every kind of organism has a typical salinity range that it can tolerate.

The pH is a measure of how acidic or alkaline the water is. Several chemical reactions that are necessary for aquatic organisms to survive and grow, require a very narrow pH range. At extreme ends of the pH scale (highly acidic or highly alkaline), physical damage to the organisms’ gills, exoskeletons and fins can occur. Changes in the pH also affect a water body’s toxicity.

Turbidity is a measure of the amount of suspended particles in the water. Algae, suspended sediment, and organic matter particles all contribute to turbidity. Suspended particles diffuse sunlight and absorb heat. The effects of this include increased temperature of the water body, reduced light available for algal photosynthesis and the clogging of fish gills. Moreover, once the sediment settles, it can foul gravel beds and smother fish eggs and benthic insects.

Other parameters of concern are nitrogen and total coliform.

Nitrogen is a nutrient that occurs naturally in both fresh and salt water. It is essential for plant growth in an aquatic ecosystem. However, when large amounts of nitrogen are introduced into an aquatic ecosystem (e.g.: due to fertiliser runoff), it can cause excessive algal growth. In a process known as ‘eutrophication’, the algae use up the oxygen for photosynthesis, depleting the oxygen available to aquatic organisms. This reduces the dissolved oxygen in the water body and can suffocate and kill the organisms within.

The presence of total coliform bacteria, faecal coliform bacteria and E. coli suggests that a water body has been contaminated by faecal matter (e.g.: through untreated sewage discharge). They are also called ‘indicator bacteria’ because they are easier to test for compared to other pathogens and can therefore reveal the extent of contamination of a water body.

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of India measures the quality of lakes and ponds across the aforementioned parameters and some others: temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, biological oxygen demand, nitrates and nitrites, faecal coliform and total coliform.

For example:

The parameter recorded the most extensively with minimal gaps in the 2019 CPCB data on ponds and lakes was that of ‘dissolved oxygen’.

 

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