Bank’s Certificates of Deposit issuance increased nearly 3-time in FY24 as compared to FY22.

About Certificates of Deposit (CDs)

• CDs are negotiable, unsecured money market instrument, issued by a bank as a promissory note against funds deposited with it for a maturity period up to one year.
• Issued by: Scheduled Commercial Banks; Regional Rural Banks; Small Finance Banks, and All-India Financial Institutions. 
• CDs shall be issued in minimum denomination of ₹5 lakh & in multiples of ₹5 lakh thereafter.
• Tenor: Minimum 7 days and maximum 1 year.

The Awards were presented to Surat, Jabalpur, & Agra (category 1), Firozabad, Amravati, & Jhansi (category 2), Raebareli, Nalgonda, & Nalagarh (category 3). 

About Swachh Vayu Survekshan Awards

• Initiative of the Environment Ministry ranks cities on the implementation of activities approved under city action plan & air quality in 130 National Clean Air Program (NCAP) cities.
• Criteria: solid waste management, road dust control, industrial emissions, etc. 
• 3 categories: Given annually on International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies (September 7th)  to top 3 cities based on population as under-
  • Category-1 ( 10 Lakhs+)
  • Category-2 (3 - 10 Lakhs)
  • Category-3 (under 3 Lakhs)

Water spinach now reached the door of the farmers with the technology developed by the Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR).

About Water spinach 

• Native to tropics and subtropics, this semi-aquatic perennial plant is believed to have been the first domesticated in Southeast Asia.
• Benefits
  • Rich in folic acid (vitamin B9); Contains medium levels of beta carotene, calcium, vitamin E and C.
  • Helps prevent neural tube defects in unborn children.
  • Being rich in iron, it’s beneficial for people with anemia.
  • Has great potential as a purifier of aquatic habitats.

Recently, More than 100 cases of malnourished children among Sahariya tribe have been reported from Baran district of Rajasthan.

About Sahariya Tribe

• Sahariyas are one of the PVTGs that are mostly inhabited in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
  • PVTGs are tribal communities that show either a declining or stagnant population, use of pre-agrarian technology, economic backwardness, and low literacy.
• Generally reside in separate basti in the village, called Saharana.
• Economic activities: Agriculture (primarily rainfed), collection of minor forest produce, etc. 

BepiColombo has completed its latest flyby of Mercury. It will begin to orbit in 2026.

About BepiColombo 

• Launched: 2018.
• BepiColombo, a joint European-Japanese mission, consisting of two spacecraft riding together to Mercury to orbit and to study the planet.
  • The European Space Agency's Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) will study the planet's surface and interior.
  •  The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MIO) will study the planet's magnetic field.
• Only two other spacecraft have visited Mercury: NASA's Mariner 10 and MESSENGER.

Two NASA astronauts remain on the International Space Station due to a faulty propulsion system.

• It includes Helium leaks  which also affected past missions like ISRO’s Chandrayaan 2.

Helium

• It is an element in Group 18 (noble gases) of the periodic table.
• Second lightest element, after hydrogen.
• Colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas.
• Lowest boiling and freezing points of any known substance.
• Use in Rockets: It pressurizes fuel tanks to ensure a steady flow of fuel and it is also used in cooling systems. 
• Leak Vulnerability: Due to small atomic size, it can escape through tiny gaps or seals.

India's 1st silicon Carbide manufacturing facility to be set up in Odisha.

Silicon Carbide (SiC)

• Also known as carborundum, it is an exceedingly hard, synthetically produced crystalline compound of silicon and carbon.  
• Properties: Excellent thermomechanical characteristics, including high thermal conductivity, excellent mechanical properties, excellent resistance to wear and oxidation. 
• Applications: semiconductor devices, mechanical seals, structural ceramics, heat exchangers, optical mirrors, ballistic armor, etc.

Redevelopment of Nilgiri Moutain Raliway stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme threatens its historical and architectural value.

About Nilgiri Mountain Railway

• First proposed in 1854 and completed in 1908, it is a 46-km long metre-gauge single-track railway in Tamil Nadu.
• It showcases late 19th century technology with unique rack and pinion traction for steep gradients.
• In 2005, UNESCO declared it as a World Heritage Site as an extension to the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. It has since then been a part of the greater heritage site of the Mountain Railways in India.
  • Other heritage mountain railways in India include Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and Kalka Shimla Railway.