Rapid Fire
Rapid Fire Current Affairs
- 24 Aug 2023
- 4 min read
GeM Achieves INR 1 Lakh Crore GMV in Record 145 Days
Government e-Marketplace (GeM) has reached a significant milestone, crossing Rs. 1 lakh crore in Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) within just 145 days in FY 2023-24. GeM is also integrated with e-Gram Swaraj for Panchayat-level procurement.
- Government e-Marketplace (GeM) is an online public procurement portal developed to streamline the acquisition of goods and services by government departments, agencies, and public sector undertakings.
- Launched in August 2016 as part of the "Digital India" initiative, GeM aims to enhance transparency, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness in public procurement while promoting the use of digital technology.
Read more: Government e-Marketplace
Tejas LCA Successfully Fires Indigenous ASTRA Missile
Recently, Tejas, the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) launched the ASTRA indigenous Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile off Goa's coast.
- The ASTRA missile, a state-of-the-art creation aimed at engaging and neutralizing highly agile supersonic aerial targets.
- It is designed and developed by Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and other laboratories of DRDO.
- The LCA programme is a project initiated by the Government of India in 1984 to develop and produce a light combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force and Navy.
- It is managed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA)
Dr. Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao
Dr. Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao, the world-renowned statistician who pioneered several fundamental statistical concepts, passed away at the age of 102 (22th August 2023).
- C.R. Rao was born on September 10, 1920, in Bellary district, Karnataka in a Telugu family.
- He pioneered several fundamental statistical concepts such as the Cramer–Rao inequality and Rao–Blackwellization.
- Cramer-Rao lower bound, provides a means for knowing when a method for estimating a quantity is as good as any method.
- Rao–Blackwellization provides a means for transforming an estimate into a better—in fact, an optimal—estimate. Together, these results form a foundation on which much of statistics is built.
- The Rao-Blackwell process has been applied to stereology, particle filtering, and computational econometrics, among others, while the Cramer-Rao lower bound is of great importance in such diverse fields as signal processing, spectroscopy, radar systems, multiple image radiography, risk analysis, and quantum physics.
- Dr. Rao was awarded India’s highest honours the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan in 1969 and 2001, respectively.
KVIC Launched Khadi Rakshasoot for Raksha Bandhan
- Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) launched 'Khadi Rakshasoot'(Khadi-Rakhi) to commemorate Raksha Bandhan.
- KVIC is a statutory body established under the Khadi and Village Industries Commission Act, 1956.It functions under the Ministry of MSMEs.
- The Rakshasoot was created by dedicated spinner sisters from across rural India who spin multiple threads on the charkha.
- The Rakhi is entirely natural and free of any chemical additives, with some being made from sacred cow dung and seeds of basil, tomato and brinjal.
- The conception behind its making is rooted in the notion that, when disposed of into the earth, it will sprout up into basil, tomato, and brinjal plants.
- The 'Khadi Rakshasoot' is being introduced as a ‘Pilot Project’ initiative available exclusively at Khadi Bhavan in New Delhi.
