General Awareness for Competitive Exams: January 23, 2017

Themes for 68th Republic Day

A tribute to Lokmanya Tilak on his 160th birth anniversary, art and lifestyle of Kutch, model government schools of Delhi, Skill India and Beti bachao beti padhao are among the themes for the Republic Day tableaux this year.

Highlights: 

• A total of 23 tableaux would be on display at the ceremonial parade with 17 of them belonging to various states and Union Territories.
• Six tableaux from Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Ministry of Skill Development, Central Board of Excise and Customs, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research and Central Public Works Department (CPWD) will find their place at the 68th Republic Day on Rajpath.
• States registering their presence this year include Goa, Odisha, Delhi, Tripura, West Bengal, Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Gujarat, Lakshadweep, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir and Assam.
• The tableau by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship is based on the theme of 'Transforming India through Skill development', while that of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises will be based on Khadi and Village Industries Commission.
• Arunachal's Yak dance, Karnataka's folk dances, Tamil Nadu's dance 'Karakattam' and Tripura's tribal dance 'Hojagiri' will be represented in the tableau of the respective states, while Punjab will showcase "Jago Aiya".
• Jago is a festive dance which would take place the night before a Punjabi wedding.
• Delhi's tableau, which will be part of the parade after three years, has been set up as a model government school to portray the transformation in state-run schools and the recent initiatives taken by the government in the education sector.
• Lakshadweep, which is participating in the parade after 23 years, will portray itself as an unexplored destination for "adventure sport-nature tourism" with premier diving spots, rich eco-system, marine wealth, coral reefs, silver sandy beaches and pristine waters.
• The theme of Haryana's tableau is based on the popular "Beti bachao beti padhao" campaign, while that of Goa will focus on the state's musical heritage.
• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna will be the theme of the tableau of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research's tableau will showcase 38 national laboratories.
• 'Green India-Clean India' will be the theme of CPWD's tableau.

China commissions 31st stealth warship

China has commissioned its 31st stealth warship as it got its battle group under its first aircraft carrier ready amid tensions with the US and other nations over its assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea.

The People's Liberation Army Navy has commissioned its 31st Type-056 class corvette, marking a new addition to the world's largest fleet of modern corvettes.

Highlights:

• With a maximum speed of 52 km/h, the ship features good manoeuvrability, a high-level of automation and stealth capability, and is capable of hitting aircraft, ships and submarines.
• The CNS Ezhou with a hull number of 513 was delivered to the East Sea Fleet in a naval base in East China's Fujian province.
• The ship will perform coastal patrol, fishery escort, anti-submarine and anti-ship operations.
• It is the second ship that has been commissioned to the PLA Navy since the start of 2017, following the CNS Kaiyangxing, a Type-815A class electronic reconnaissance ship, which now belongs to the North Sea Fleet.
• Russia has the world's largest corvette group that consists of about 80 vessels, but most of them were built in the 1980s and 1990s and cannot compete with the Type-056 in terms of technology and equipment, the report quoted defence observers as saying, adding that China's fleet is now the biggest force of modern corvettes of all navies.

Delhi airport bags CSR award

GMR Group-led consortium Delhi International Airport Ltd. (DIAL) has bagged the prestigious Golden Peacock Award for Corporate Social Responsibility in the aviation transport sector for 2016.

What

• The award was presented at a special presentation ceremony during the 11th International Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility.
• The award reaffirms our commitment towards achieving exemplary results for our society while following the best practises.
• The Golden Peacock Awards were founded by the Institute of Directors, India, in 1991 and are globally regarded as a benchmark of corporate excellence.
• The National Quality Award Scheme was instituted to encourage total quality improvements in both manufacturing and service organisations in India.
• Over 325 responses were received for the annual awards this year, of which 191 shortlisted applications were subjected to a three-tier assessment process for final selection.
• Earlier, DIAL also won the 6th EPC World Awards for its contribution in the infrastructure and construction sector.
• The Delhi airport has been adjudged as the world's no. 1 airport in ACI ASQ survey in the 25-40 million passengers per anum category for two consecutive years from 2014.