03 July 2025
(Current Affairs Notes - Prelims)

From Loneliness to Social Connection

• A report by the WHO (World Health Organisation) Commission on Social Connection.

• It highlights the impact of social isolation and loneliness on health, well-being, and society.

C-FLOOD

• A web-based platform providing 2-day advance flood forecasts up to village-level.

• It offers flood inundation maps and water level predictions to aid disaster preparedness.

• Jointly developed by

• Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Pune

• Central Water Commission (CWC)

• Department of Water Resources, Ministry of Jal Shakti

• National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC)

• C-FLOOD presently cover Mahanadi, Godavari, and Tapi river basins.

Critical Minerals Initiative

• By the Quad (United States, Japan, India, and Australia).

• To strengthen cooperation on securing and diversifying reliable supply chains, and electronic waste critical minerals recovery & reprocessing.

• Critical minerals are naturally occurring elements or compounds. These are classified as critical due to high demand, diverse applications, supply risks, etc.

Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FRI)

• It was launched in May 2025 by Digital Intelligence Unit (DIU) of Department of Telecommunications (DOT).

• FRI classifies a mobile number to have been associated with Medium, High, or Very High risk of financial fraud.

• Recently, RBI directed banks to integrate the FRI into their systems for prevention of cyber-crime and financial frauds.

PARAKH

• Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH)

• It seeks to set norms, standards, guidelines related to student assessment.

• It was setup as a National Assessment Centre in 2023 in National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

• Recently PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan Dissemination Portal was launched.

Nutritional Intake in India Report

• It is based on the Household Consumption Expenditure Surveys of 2022-23 & 2023-24.

• Key findings

  • • Average per capita per day calorie intake (in 2022-23 and 2023-24)

      • • Rural: 2233 Kcal and 2212 Kcal respectively

        • Urban: 2250 Kcal and 2240 Kcal respectively

    • Cereals continue to be the most important source of protein.

    • With an increase in the Monthly Per Capita Consumption Expenditure (MPCE), the average calorie intake also increases.

• The report was released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) recently.

Operation MED MAX

• Conducted by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

• For cracking down on illegal pharmaceutical drug trade.

Forest Advisory Committee (FAC)

• A statutory body under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.

• Its role is to examine proposals for non-forestry use of forest land and give recommendation to the Government of India.

• Recently, FAC recommended to streamline the forest clearance process for major industry and infrastructure projects in or near forest land.

Green Climate Fund

• It is mandated to support developing countries raise and realise their Nationally Determined Contributions.

• It was established at COP 16 of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Cancun, 2010.

• HQ: Songdo, Incheon City, Republic of Korea

• Recently, GCF has approved over USD 120 million for new projects.

Male Mahadeshwara (MM) Hills Wildlife Sanctuary

• Located in Southeast Karnataka.

• It is dominated by dry deciduous forests and patches of semi-evergreen, shola forests at higher altitudes and scrub forests in fringe zones.

• It forms connecting corridor between Biligiri Ranganatha Swamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary and the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary.

• Soligas and Lingayats are the dominant communities in the MM Hills.

• Recently, five tigers were found dead in Male Mahadeshwara (MM) Hills Wildlife sanctuary.

Ghana

• Capital: Accra

• A country located in Western Africa, on the coast of the Gulf of Guinea.

• Prime meridian passes through Ghana.

• Mount Afadjato (Afadja) is its highest point.

• Ghana is one of the world's largest producers of gold and cocoa.

• Recently, Indian PM was conferred with Ghana’s highest civilian honour “Officer of the Order of the Star of Ghana”.