Daily Current Affairs Quiz 3rd February 2024

” Notes:members of a hindutva group recently breached the archaeological survey of india (asi)-protected martand sun temple, a historic hindu temple near anantnag in the kashmir valley. built in the 8th century by king lalitaditya muktapida, it blends kashmiri, gupta, chinese, gandhara, roman, and greek architectural styles. spanning 32,000 sq. ft., the stone temple features an 86-column courtyard, a 60-ft vimana with intricate carvings, and 84 smaller shrines. sultan sikandar shah miri is believed to have demolished it in the 14th century.”

” Notes:a ringed juvenile black-crowned night heron, found dead at a local pond in imphal, was banded in china’s beijing. the black-crowned night heron, nycticorax nycticorax, is a medium-sized heron with a stocky build, weighing 727-1014 grams and measuring 58-66 cm in length. recognizable by its black crown, gray body, and red eyes, it’s a migratory species inhabiting wetlands. opportunistic feeders, they mainly consume fish. the species is classified as “least concern” on the iucn red list.”

” Notes:aryna sabalenka of belarus won the 2024 australian open women’s singles title. sabalenka defeated china’s zheng qinwen 6–3, 6–2 to win her second consecutive grand slam title. sabalenka is the first woman to win back-to-back australian open titles since victoria azarenka in 2012 and 2013.”

” Notes:sports development and youth welfare minister udhayanidhi stalin announced the ‘kalaignar sports kit’ initiative, distributing sports equipment in 12,000 village panchayats to commemorate m. karunanidhi’s birth centenary. the scheme begins on february 7 in tiruchi, tamil nadu and aims to support young athletes. udhayanidhi emphasized the government’s commitment to promoting sports, paralleling the provision of books for education. he praised khelo india 2023 for identifying and nurturing over 5,400 talented athletes across various disciplines, enhancing india’s international competitiveness.”

” Notes:the us government recently shut down china-backed hacking group “volt typhoon,” active since at least 2021. specializing in espionage and targeting critical infrastructure, volt typhoon utilized stealth, living-off-the-land techniques, and preinstalled utilities. the group compromised small office/home office devices, maintaining persistence with stolen credentials. known for routing traffic through hacked network equipment, such as home routers, volt typhoon made detection challenging.”

” Notes: Radha raturi, a senior ias officer of the 1988 batch, has been appointed as Uttarakhand’s first woman chief secretary. she replaces Sukhbir singh sandhu and is the first woman to hold this top administrative post in the state. raturi has an extensive administrative career, having served in undivided uttar pradesh and uttarakhand. initially aspiring to be a journalist, she eventually joined the ias, succeeding in her third attempt at the upsc exam.”

” Notes: astronaut lora o’hara on the international space station captured alpenglow near the hindu kush. this natural phenomenon occurs during sunrise or sunset, casting rosy, reddish, or orange hues on mountain slopes. alpenglow’s colors vary due to the sun’s angle and atmospheric conditions. vibrancy depends on sun location, light angle, clouds, humidity, and particulates. the phenomenon rapid changes make it a captivating spectacle during the twilight hours.”

The union minister of environment forest and climate change shri bhupender yadav has issued indias first ever snow leopard population assessment report the four-year scientific exercise coordinated by the wildlife institute of india estimated approximately 718 snow leopards in the wild

” Notes: india has proposed the “maratha military landscapes of india” for unesco world heritage list recognition in 2024-25. developed between the 17th and 19th centuries, these military landscapes showcase an exceptional fortification system envisioned by maratha rulers. the network of forts, spanning the sahyadri mountain ranges, konkan coast, deccan plateau, and eastern ghats, integrates distinctive landscapes. notable components include salher fort, shivneri fort, raigad, vijaydurg, and others. the maratha military ideology, dating from the 17th century, continued until peshwa rule in 1818 ce.”

The ministry of finance published a report titled the indian economy a review in january 2024 the report was released a few days before the union budget 2024-25 was presented to parliament on february 1 the ministry of finance is made up of five divisions