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• Tiger Triumph – 24 is a bilateral tri-Service Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Exercise between India and USA.

• Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (located at Thumba in Thiruvananthapuram) has developed it to help astronauts on Gaganyaan mission.
  • Gaganyaan project envisages demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km.

• Benefits
  • Monitor health of astronauts and provides information of blood pressure, heart rate etc.
  • Seamless communication link by keeping crew connected with onboard computer and ground-based stations
  • Helps in maintaining a log on mission in multiple formats including voice records, texts and images.

• Tobacco Board authorizes 100 million kg crop size for Karnataka during 2024-25.

• About Tobacco Board (HQ: Guntur, Andhra Pradesh)
  • It is statutory body constituted in 1976 under Tobacco Board Act, 1975.
  • Function: Export promotion of all varieties of tobacco and its allied products, and production, distribution, and regulation of Flue Cured Virginia tobacco.
  • Ministry: Dept. Of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
• In 2021, India stands as 2nd largest country in production and 4th largest exporter of unmanufactured tobacco in world.

• Paytm has recently received third-party application provider license from National Payments Corporation of India.

• About TPAP: 
  • It is an entity that provides UPI-compliant apps e.g., Mobile wallets and merchant apps to end-user customers to facilitate UPI-based payment transactions.
  • TPAP participates in UPI through a Payment Service Provider (PSP) bank.
    • PSP is a banking platform. It connects to UPI platform to offer UPI payment services to itself and TPAPs.
  • Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is a real-time payment system developed by NPCI.

• Air Quality Report 2023 is released by Swiss organisation IQAir.

• Key Findings: 
  • India had the third worst air quality after Bangladesh and Pakistan.
  • New Delhi has been ranked as the World's most Polluted Capital City.
  • Bihar’s Begusarai has emerged as the world’s most polluted metropolitan area.
  • More than 1 billion people in India experience PM2.5 concentrations exceeding the WHO’s recommended levels of 5 µg/m³.
  • Only Seven countries met the WHO annual PM 2.5 guideline. 
  • French Polynesia is identified as least polluted.

• In a bird survey held by IISER-Tirupati in Papikonda National Park (Andhra Pradesh), more than 200 bird species have been sighted. 

• About Papikonda National Park (PNP)
  • Located in northern Eastern Ghats, is spread over the Papi Hills and straddles the Godavari river.
  • It is an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area. 
  • A unique dwarf breed of goat known locally as the “kanchu mekha” originates in this region. 
  • Forest type: Dry Mixed Teak Forests,  dry mixed deciduous forests, and moist mixed deciduous forests
  • Fauna: Gaur, Tiger, Leopard, Hyena, sambar, barking deer, Black-bellied Tern etc.

• Elon Musk defends ketamine use, says it is ‘beneficial’ for investors.
• Ketamine is a dissociative anaesthetic (produces trance-like state) that has some hallucinogenic effects.
• Usage
  • As pain relief, depression, treatment of suicidal ideation, and epileptic states.
  • Makes patients feel detached from their pain and environment.
• Side effects: overdose can cause unconsciousness and dangerously slowed breathing.
• Ketamine has been included as psychotropic substance under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.

• Report by a team of European scientists identified more than 16000 chemicals in plastics — from food packaging to toys to medical devices.
  • Previously United Nations Environment Programme had identified around 13,000 plastic chemicals.
• Among these chemicals, more than a quarter are thought to be hazardous to human health and environment.
• Important Plastic Chemicals: Diethylhexyl phthalate, Bisphenol A(BPA), Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), Dechlorane Plus, etc.

Potti Sriramulu (1901 - 1952)

• Recently, birth anniversary of Potti Sriramulu was observed. 
• He was an ardent Gandhian, eminent social reformer & activist.

• Key Contributions: 
  • He took part in the Indian Independence Movements such as Salt Satyagraha (1930), Individual satyagraha (1940), Quit India movement (1942) etc. 
  • He undertook three fasts, during 1946 to 1948, in support of Dalits to enter temples.
  • He died after 58 days of fasting in support of creating a separate Andhra from Madras Presidency.  He is revered as 'Amarajeevi' for his supreme sacrifice for the cause of people of Andhra.

• Ethical Values: Leadership, courage etc.