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One Liners 03-04-2025
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Geography
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Zojila Pass
Border Road Organization (BRO) has recently opened Zojila Pass in record time after a mere closure for 32 days.
- Located on – Srinagar-Kargil-Leh highway (NH-1) at a height of 11,650 feet, which connecting Kashmir Valley to Ladakh.
- It is one of the most critical and challenging high-altitude passes in the world.
- It remains closed for almost half of the year due to heavy snowfall.
- Historical background – It was the site of the Indo-Pakistan War of 1947-48.
- Operation Bison – The pass itself was captured by the Indian Army on 1st November 1948.
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Japan's Nankai Trough Megaquake Warning
Japan has recently issued warnings regarding a potential "megaquake" in the Nankai Trough, Japan.
- Megaquake magnitude – It indicating a magnitude of 8 or greater.
- Location – The Nankai trough is located off Japan's southwest Pacific coast, extending approximately 900 km.
- It's a subduction zone where the Philippine Sea Plate is subducting beneath the Eurasian Plate.
A subduction zone is a geological area where 2 tectonic plates collide, with one plate sliding beneath the other.
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Polity & Governance
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India Strengthens Pharmaceutical Quality Control through various measures.
- Drug and Cosmetics Act, 1940 – It empowers drugs inspectors to randomly sample drugs for quality checks.
- CDSCO drug alerts – The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) publishes lists of Substandard, spurious, misbranded, or adulterated drugs under Drug Alert.
- SUGAM (System for Unmanned Gateways Approval of Manufacturers) Labs portal – It automates the entire workflow for testing of Medical Products (Drugs, Vaccine, Cosmetics & Medical devices).
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Sahakar Pragya Scheme
Cooperatives are benefitted all over the country under Sahakar Pragya Scheme.
- Launched in – 2020.
- Launched by – Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare.
- Nodal Ministry – Ministry of Cooperation.
- Objective – To focuses on developing professionalism in primary cooperatives in agriculture and allied sectors.
- It designs and conducts need-based programmes for personnel of assisted cooperatives and its own officials.
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Stray Dogs
The Animal Birth Control (ABC) Programme are being implemented by the local bodies.
- Nodal Ministry – Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
- ABC Programme – To regulate the population of stray dogs.
- It is the only rational and scientific solution to the overpopulation of the street dogs and controlling incidence of Rabies.
- Article 246(3) – It outlines the preservation, protection & improvement of livestock, as well as the prevention of animal diseases, veterinary training and practice, fall under the jurisdiction of State Governments.
- Articles 243(W) & 246 – Local bodies are mandated to control the stray dog population.
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Agriculture
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AI & IoT (Internet of Things) in Indian Agriculture
- Kisan e-Mitra – A voice-based AI chatbot providing support for the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme in 11 regional languages, handling daily queries and assisting millions of farmers.
- National Pest Surveillance System – It utilizes AI and Machine Learning to detect pest infestations.
- Crop mapping & monitoring – AI-based analytics using field photographs and satellite data enables precise crop mapping and crop-weather matching.
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Environment
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India's Decarbonisation in Steel Sector
Recent measures of Indian Government to decarbonise the steel sector.
- Green Steel Taxanomy – The Ministry of Steel has established a Taxonomy for Green Steel, defining standards for low-emission steel production.
- National Green Hydrogen Mission – It is a pilot projects using hydrogen in steel production.
- National Solar Mission – It promotes solar energy use and reducing carbon emissions.
- Vehicle Scrapping Policy – It is associated with rules that facilitate the dismantling and recycling of End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) and recovering valuable materials.
End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) Rules, 2025, mandates Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for vehicle producers.
- Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) – It provides a market-based mechanism for carbon emissions reduction.
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Science
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Anemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) Strategy
Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare has recently updated about the status of Anemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) Strategy.
- Objective – To combat anemia in children and women, including pregnant and lactating mothers.
- Methods to combat anemia – Using a life-cycle approach and 6 interventions includes,
- Iron and Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation, deworming, intensified behavioral change communication, anemia testing & treatment, IFA-fortified food provision, and addressing non-nutritional causes.
- Financial support – The government distributes fortified rice, enriched with iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12, through various welfare schemes nationwide.
6X6X6 strategy aims to reduce anemia among 6 beneficiaries age groups through implementation of 6 interventions and 6 institutional mechanisms.
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SAFE Agromet Project
The ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS) has recently appreciated ISRO and other space agencies for the successful implementation of the SAFE Agromet Project.
- AFSIS – It is a project led by Thailand, with support from ASEAN, China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.
- It aims to develop satellite-derived Agromet data in comparison with in-situ data.
- SAFE (Space Applications for Environment) – It is a multilateral project, led by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
- Aim – To provide high-quality space-based agrometeorological (agromet) information including extreme events such as flood or drought for end-users to evaluate rice crop growth.
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Miscellaneous
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BSNL's Customer Service Month: "Connecting with Care"
BSNL announces April 2025 as Customer Service Month.
- Objective –To focus on enhanced customer experience across India.
- It prioritizes improving mobile network quality, FTTH (Fiber to the Home)/ broadband reliability, leased circuits/MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) reliability, billing transparency, and faster grievance redressal.
- Customer engagement – BSNL will actively collect feedback through its website, social media, customer forms, and direct outreach.
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