Addapedia Odisha | Daily Current Affairs | 06 May 2024 | Download PDF

• The Centre has started an Integrated Pensioners’ Portal in collaboration with Bank of India.
• The portal combines the pension processing and payment services of five banks into a single window.

Key points:

• • The platform has been launched to digitalise pension services and enhance the welfare of pensioners.
• Retirees can access:

• • Monthly pension slips, 
  • Check the status of life certificates,
  • Submit Form 16, and 
  • View statements of arrears paid.
• The pension portals of SBI, Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, and Canara Bank have also been integrated with the Bhavishya portal.
• The portal is designed to ensure complete digitisation of the pension processing and payment system.
• The portal’s primary objective is to achieve transparency and efficiency in pension-related services.
• The portal has a Bhavishya platform and CPENGRAMS, an online complaint redressal system.

• An Atlas V rocket is set to launch with two veteran astronauts, Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams.
• They will be inside a crew capsule called Starliner, built by Boeing.

Key points:

• This is the third test flight of the Starliner and the first with astronauts on board.
• The astronauts are destined for the International Space Station (ISS) in low-earth orbit.
• If successful, the U.S. will have two spacecraft capable of launching astronauts to space for the first time in its history.
• The Starliner is a spacecraft that transports astronauts in space.

• The Goods & Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) has been initiated by the Centre with the appointment of retired Justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra as its President.
• The tribunal aims to help businesses resolve various disputes efficiently.

Key points:

• Justice Mishra, former Chief Justice of the High Court of Jharkhand, will hold the post for a period of 4 years or until he attains the age of 70 years, whichever is earlier.
• The Centre plans to set up 31 GSTAT benches across the country, with one Principal Bench in Delhi.
• Uttar Pradesh will have the highest number of benches (three) among all states. Other larger states will have two benches each.
• The Principal Bench will handle inter-State disputes, while Benches in States will handle all other issues, including rates.
• GST Tribunals are envisioned as specialised bodies to handle disputes related to GST, providing a timely and efficient resolution mechanism.

• Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has committed to investing billions of dollars in the development of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI).

About AGI:

• Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) refers to a type of artificial intelligence that can understand, learn, and apply knowledge across a wide range of tasks, much like a human. 
• It integrates cognitive abilities like reasoning, problem-solving, planning, and learning.
• Unlike narrow AI, which is designed for specific tasks (e.g., facial recognition, internet searches), AGI can generalize its intelligence across unfamiliar tasks.
• AGI adapts to new environments and tasks without needing additional programming.

• 75 delegates from 23 countries are in India to observe the Indian General Elections as part of the International Election Visitors’ Programme (IEVP).
• The event was inaugurated in New Delhi by CEC Shri Rajiv Kumar and ECs Shri Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu.

About IEVP:

• The International Election Visitors’ Programme (IEVP) is a flagship program of the Election Commission of India for international cooperation and engagement with the Election Management Bodies (EMBs) of other countries and International Organizations. 
• It provides participants with a broad picture of the Indian election process, new initiatives in voter facilitation, the transparency and accessibility of the electoral system.

• Ranjit Majhi, an advocate for implementing the Forest Rights Act (FRA), received the prestigious Shambhavi Puraskar 2024 on Friday.
• The award is instituted by the Bansidhar and Ila Panda Foundation (BIPF) and recognizes Majhi’s efforts in empowering 112 villages in Odisha’s Sundargarh district with Forest Land Rights, alongside his environmental protection endeavors.

• The grand event marking the 11th edition of the Shambhavi Puraskar honored Majhi with a cash award of Rs 2.5 lakh.

About BIPF

• Bansidhar and Ila Panda Foundation (BIPF) was established in 2011 to implement sustainable and scalable interventions in the areas of health, education, livelihood, and water and sanitation, undertaken by the Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys Ltd., also known as IMFA
• Shambhavi Puraskar 2023 was awarded to Dr. Md. Imran Ali also known as Odisha’s Anti Drug Champion.

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to Maha Cement Company concerning the establishment of a cement grinding unit on forest land in Bairi village, Barchana block, Jajpur district.
• The NGT has instructed both Maha Cement and the state government to submit their responses within four months.

NGT:

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) was established under the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010 to handle cases related to environmental protection and conservation.
• Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel serves as the Chairperson of the NGT.
• With the establishment of the NGT, India became the third country in the world to set up a specialized environmental tribunal.
• The Tribunal is not bound by the procedure laid down under the Code of Civil Procedure 1908, but shall be guided by principles of ‘natural justice’.

Do you know?

• Cement Corporation of India Limited (CCI) is the only cement manufacturing Public Sector Undertaking of Government of India and incorporated in 18 January 1965, Headquartered in New Delhi.

Also Read Roles and Powers of NGT

• A recent fire outbreak in part of the Bonai forest was brought under control on Wednesday, as stated by the district forest officer (DFO) Lalit Patra. The Bonai forest, one of the largest ranges in the Sundargarh district.
• The district has a total of 4,662 sq km of dry deciduous forests with Bonai, Rourkela and Sundargarh forest divisions accounting for 2,029 sq km, 913 sq km and 1,720 sq km respectively. 

Forest fires:

There are three basic types of fires:

• Crown fires
• Surface fires
• Ground fires

Forest fires prone states in India

• Himachal Pradesh
• Uttarakhand 
• Assam
• Madhya Pradesh
• Maharashtra
• Tripura
• Mizoram
• Odisha

Mizoram has had the highest number of wildfire incidents in the last two decades, with more than 95% of its districts being forest fire hotspots.

Also Read National Master Plan for Forest Fire Control by MoEFC

• The Forest department has reported the arrival of at least 165 Indian Skimmers at the sand bed of Mahanadi river in Kakhadi, Athagarh, for nesting and egg-laying purposes.
• Khuntuni forest range officer Nilamadhab Sahu informed that approximately 82 eggs have been laid by the skimmers, with 35 having hatched thus far.

Migratory birds:

• Indian Skimmers (Panichiri birds) have been migrating from Southern Asia to the sand bed of Mahanadi river in Kakhadi for mass nesting over the past four years, recognizing the site as a safe breeding ground.
• Skimmers create shallow depressions in the sand for laying their eggs, with the nesting process taking approximately 25 to 30 days.
• According to the source, total population of the endangered Panichiri birds is around 4,000 in the world. 
• Previously, the birds congregated at the banks of the Mahanadi river near Mundali barrage under Chandaka Wildlife Division. However, habitat loss, degradation, pollution, and human disturbances have threatened this site.

All rights are reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of Adda247.