Centre extends deadline for laggard solar scheme

• PM-KUSUM Scheme was launched in 2019.
• The scheme envisages income generation for farmers from their infertile land with the establishment of solar power plants.
• Aim: To help farmers access reliable daytime solar power for irrigation, reduce power subsidies, and decarbonise agriculture.
• The Scheme consists of three components
  • Component A: 10,000 MW of solar capacity through the installation of small Solar Power Plants of individual plants of capacity up to 2 MW.
  • Component B: Installation of 20 lakhs standalone Solar Powered Agriculture Pumps.
  • Component C: Solarisation of 15 Lakh Grid-connected Agriculture Pumps
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE)

Current insight on the mechanisms of Cobra venom cytotoxins can help anti-venom therapy

• The Cytotoxins (CTXs) are an essential class of the non-enzymatic three-finger toxin family and are ubiquitously present in cobra venoms.
• These low-molecular-mass toxins, contributing to about 40 to 60% of the cobra venom proteome, play a significant role in cobra venom-induced toxicity, more prominently in dermonecrosis (local effects).
• Some CTXs are also responsible for depolarizing neurons and heart muscle membranes, thereby contributing to cardiac failures frequently observed in cobra-envenomed victims. Consequently, they are also known as cardiotoxins (CdTx).
• Interestingly, the proportion of cobra venom CTXs varies dramatically across different cobra species.
• Usually, venoms from African spitting cobras have a higher proportion of CTXs than the Asiatic cobra ones, indicating geographical variation in snake venom composition.

Cobra

• Cobras (genus Naja) are widely distributed over Asia and Africa.
• Cobra bites are responsible for large mortality and morbidity on these continents, including the Indian sub-continent.
• Cobra venoms are neurotoxic. However, they also exhibit local cytotoxic effects at the envenomed site, and the extent of cytotoxicity may vary from species to species.

Parliament is the essence of democracy and it is the North Star of democracy: Vice President

• The North Star is also known as Pole Star.
• It is a very bright star — around 2,500 times more luminous than the Sun.
• It is part of the constellation Ursa Minor and is around 323 light years away from the Earth.
• The North star is less than 1° away from the north celestial pole, almost in direct line with the Earth’s rotational axis.
• It appears to sit motionless in the northern sky, with all the other stars appearing to rotate around it.
• Its position and brightness have allowed humans to use it for navigation since late antiquity.
• The elevation of the star above the horizon gives the approximate latitude of the observer.
• Upon crossing the equator to the south, however, the North Star is lost over the horizon and hence stops being a useful navigational aid.

Ursa Minor

• It is one of the 48 constellations identified by the Greek astronomer Ptolemy in the second century.
• It is also called the Little Bear.

World Wetlands Day celebrated at all 75 Ramsar sites in India

• World Wetlands Day is observed on 2nd February every year all over the world to commemorate the signing of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance in 1971.
• India is a party to the Convention since 1982 and has so far declared 75 wetlands as Ramsar sites covering 23 states and Union Territories.
• At present, the state of Tamil Nadu has a maximum number of Ramsar sites (14), followed by UP which has 10 numbers of Ramsar sites.
• The 2023 theme for World Wetlands Day is Wetland Restoration.
• The theme of 2023 highlights the urgent need to prioritize wetland restoration. It is a call on an entire generation to take proactive action for wetlands, by investing financial, human and political capital to save the wetlands from disappearing and to revive and restore those that have been degraded.
• India has the largest network of Ramsar Sites in Asia, making these sites a critical ecological network for the conservation of global biological diversity and supporting human well-being.

The Incredible Story of How East African Culture Shaped the Music of Gujarat

• Dhamaal is a mix of Sufi and African (mostly East African) musical and dance
• It refers particularly to the spiritual practices of the Siddis of Gujarat.
• Usually, Dhamaal songs and dances are performed to celebrate the anniversary of the birth and death of spiritual leaders.
• They are performed in two ways
  • Dance Dhamaal: It is performed in both sitting and dance positions and the focus is more on the sounds of the instruments.
  • Baithaaki Dhamaal: is performed in the sitting position and the focus is more on the lyrics and less on the musical instruments.
• The spiritual songs that are sung during the Dhamaals are known as zikrs.

Siddis

• The term Siddi refers to Afro-Indians— Africans who mixed with Indians through marriage and relationships.
• They crossed the Indian Ocean and arrived in India during the 12th, 13th and 14th century
• They were transported by Islamic invaders and Portuguese colonisers as enslaved people, palace guards, army chiefs, harem keepers, spiritual leaders, Sufi singers, dancers and treasurers.
• In the present day, the majority of them are found in the west and southwest of India, in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana states

SpaceX may attempt Starship launch in March: Elon Musk

• Starship is a super-heavy-lift rocket and spacecraft built to carry immense cargo and numerous astronauts into deep space.
• Starship will be the world’s most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, with the ability to carry up to 150 metric tonnes to Earth orbit reusable and up to 250 metric tonnes expendable.
• Starship is the collective name for a two-component system consisting of the Starship spacecraft (which carries the crew and cargo) and the Super Heavy rocket.
• The rocket is made of stainless steel and runs on liquid methane.
• It is 164 feet (50 meters) tall and has a diameter of nine meters.
• Starship is intended to evolve into a fully reusable launch and landing system.
• The Starship launch system is powered by the Raptor engine, a reusable methalox staged-combustion engine.
• It is built by SpaceX, which is an American spacecraft manufacturer.

Scientists may have found a potentially sustainable planet nearby - WCIV

• It is a potentially habitable exoplanet 31 light-years away from Earth.
• It orbits a red dwarf star, Wolf 1069.
• Wolf 1069 b lies within its star’s habitable zone.
• Wolf 1069 b receives approximately 65% of the solar radiance that Earth receives.
• Wolf 1069 b is potentially a rocky world, at about 26 the mass of Earth and 1.08 the size.
• Its surface is cool, which makes it appear orange.
• Wolf 1069 b is tidally locked to its parent star, meaning one side is always in daylight, and the opposite side is always in darkness.
• It orbits the star within 15.6 days at a distance equivalent to one-15th of the separation between the Earth and the sun.

Dwarf star

• A dwarf star is any star of average or low luminosity, mass, and size.
• The colour of dwarf stars can range from blue to red, the corresponding temperature varying from high (above 10,000 K) to low (a few thousand K).

Centre likely to hike dearness allowance by 4% to 42%

• What is it? DA is a cost of living adjustment that the Government pays to public sector employees and pensioners.
• Why is DA paid? To curb the effect of inflation.
• How is DA calculated?
• It is calculated as a percentage of the basic salary.
  • DA for Central Government employees is calculated differently than that of public sector employees.
  • The formula to calculate the DA was changed in 2006 by the Government.
  • DA % for Central Govt Employees = {(All-India Consumer Price Index average (Base year 2001 =100) for the last 12 months -115.76)/115.76} x 100
  • DA % for Public Sector Employees = {(All-India Consumer Price Index Average (Base year 2001 =100) for the last 3 months - 126.33)/126.33} x 100
  • Since DA is based on the cost of living, this salary component is not fixed. DA varies from employee to employee based on their presence in the urban, semi-urban, or rural sectors.
• Taxability:
  • DA is fully taxable for individuals who are salaried employees.
  • It is compulsory to declare the tax liability concerning DA when filing an ITR.
• Types of DA:
  • Variable Dearness Allowance (VDA):
    • VDA applies to Central government employees.
    • It undergoes revision every six months based on the changes in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
  • Industrial Dearness Allowance (IDA):
    • IDA applies to the Public sector employees of the Central Government.
    • IDA is revised every quarter based on the changes in CPI.

Adani Enterprises calls off FPO, money to be returned to investors

• What is it? FPO is a process wherein a company already listed on a stock exchange issues new shares to existing investors or shareholders.
• It is also known as a secondary offering.
• Purpose:
  • FPO allows a company to raise additional funds through the issuance of new shares.
  • Companies use FPOs to diversify their equity base and raise capital for business.
  • This capital can be used for multiple purposes, such as to meet the company''s expenses, business expansion, debt reduction, etc.
• Types of FPO:
  • Dilutive FPO:
    • It is when a company issues additional shares and offers them to the public.
    • It increases the number of outstanding shares of the company.
    • As the number of shares increase, the earnings per share (EPS) decrease.
    • Funds raised from such an FPO are allocated for expansion activities or to pay debts.
  • Non-dilutive FPO:
    • It is when shares that are already in existence are issued to the public.
    • It is when existing shareholders, like directors or founders, sell their shares and offer them to the public.
    • Non-dilutive FPOs are used to change the shareholding ownership.
  • At-the-market offering:
    • It is a type of FPO in which a company offers secondary public shares on any given day to raise capital, mostly depending on the prevailing market price.
    • An at-the-market (ATM) offering gives the issuing company the ability to raise capital as needed.

Initial Public Offer (IPO)

• When a private company first sells shares of stock to the public, this process is known as an initial public offering (IPO).
• An IPO means that a company''s ownership is transitioning from private ownership to public ownership.

Deers maybe reservoir for old SARS-CoV-2 variants

White-tailed deer:

• They are the smallest members of the North American deer family.
• Scientific name: Odocoileus virginianus
• Distribution: They are found in North America from southern Canada through Central America.
• Habitat:
  • Includes areas along streams and rivers, mixed woodlands, farms, forests, and burned shrub fields.
  • Open areas are used only when thick shrubs or forests are nearby.
• Features:
  • It is tan or brown in the summer and grayish brown in winter.
  • It has white on its throat, around its eyes and nose, on its stomach, and on the underside of its tail.
  • Only male deer grow antlers, which are shed each year.
  • They are excellent runners. They can run at speeds of up to 30 miles an hour.
• IUCN Status: ‘Least Concern’