Jeevan Pramaan or Digital Life Certificate for Pensioners Scheme

• It seeks to address the problem by digitizing the whole process of securing the life certificate.
• It aims to streamline the process of getting this certificate and making it hassle free and much easier for the pensioners.
• Pensioners of Central Government, State Government or any other Government organization can take benefit of this facility.
• The scheme works under the aegis of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

Blue Diamond Dispute

• It started with the theft of jewellery and other valuable gems from the palace of Prince Faisal bin Fahd, the eldest son of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia, in 1989.
• A Thai worker employed as a servant at the palace, stole precious gems worth $20 million from Prince Faisal’s home, which also included a rare 50-carat blue diamond, which is still missing.
• The ensuing diplomatic repercussion was thus named after the gem.
• So it is a dispute between the country of Thailand and Saudi Arabia.

Famines

• Famine is declared in an area when severe hunger is already widespread, and when people have started dying of starvation because they do not have enough nutritious food.
• According to the United Nations, the affected area must meet three conditions:
  • At least 20% of the population is facing extreme food shortages.
  • At least 30% of children are suffering from acute malnutrition.
  • At least 2 people out of every 10,000 inhabitants are dying each day due to starvation, or a combination of severe hunger and illness.
• The decision to declare a famine is generally made jointly by the government and the United Nations.
• The declaration of famine carries no binding obligations on the United Nations, the government or other U.N. member states.
• However, it serves to focus global attention on the situation and galvanise resources to provide emergency aid.

Orion Spacecraft

• NASA’s Orion spacecraft will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel, and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.
• Orion will launch on NASA’s new heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System.
• It is named after one of the largest constellations in the night sky.
• On Artemis I, an uncrewed Orion will venture thousands of miles beyond the Moon over the course of about 6 weeks.
• The mission will pave the way for flights with astronauts beginning with Artemis II.

National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL)

• It handles most of the securities held & settled in dematerialized form in the Indian capital market.
• The enactment of Depositories Act in August 1996 paved the way for establishment of NSDL.
• It works under the aegis of the Securities and Exchanges Board of India, the Ministry of Finance.
• NSDL aims at ensuring the safety and soundness of Indian marketplaces by developing settlement solutions that increase efficiency, minimize risk and reduce costs.
• NSDL plays a central role in developing products and services that will continue to nurture the growing needs of the financial services industry.