TNPSC Current Affairs February 25, 2020

www.tnpsc.academy – TNPSC Current Affairs February 25, 2020 (25/02/2020)

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Topic: Latest Diary of Events

Central Excise Day – February 24

The day is celebrated annually to mark the enactment of the Central Excise and Salt Act, 1944. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) celebrated the Central Excise Day across the country.

Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) is a part of the Department of Revenue under the Union Ministry of Finance.

Key facts:

Earlier the Central Board of Excise and Customs was known as The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. The Customs and Central Excise/ Central GST department was established in the year 1855 by the then Governor-General of India, to administer customs laws.

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Topic: International Diary of Events

Saudi hosts G20 financial leaders

G20 meeting was held recently in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). Saudi Arabia is the first Arab nation to hold the G20 presidency. Theme: “Realizing Opportunities of the 21st Century for All”.

Focus areas:

Action plan to shield the world economy from the impact of Coronavirus Epidemic.

Discuss ways to achieve a fairer global taxation system for the digital era.

Discuss global economic outlook and possible policy responses to support growth and safeguard against downside risks.

What is G20?

An informal group of 19 countries and the European Union along with representatives of the IMF and the World Bank.

Represents about two-thirds of the world’s population, 85% of global gross domestic product, 80% of global investment and over 75% of global trade.

Genesis: Amid 2008 Financial Crisis the world saw the need for a new consensus-building at the highest political level. It was decided that the G20 leaders would begin meeting once annually.

Members:

The members of the G20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.

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Topic: Space and Technology, Latest Diary of Events

Artemis Program

United States space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that it will begin to accept applications for astronauts under its Artemis programme from March 2 to March 31, 2020.

Eligibility:

The space agency has listed several requirements in order to qualify for training under the Artemis programme: one must be a US citizen and have a master’s degree in a STEM (Science, technology, engineering and mathematics) field from an accredited institution.

Candidates must also have completed at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in jet aircrafts or have two years of related experience.

Another mandatory requirement is to pass NASA’s long-duration spaceflight physical test.

What is Artemis?

Artemis– Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of Moon’s Interaction with the Sun. It is NASA’s next mission to the Moon.

Objective: To measure what happens when the Sun’s radiation hits our rocky moon, where there is no magnetic field to protect it.

Artemis was the twin sister of Apollo and goddess of the Moon in Greek mythology.

Significance of the mission:

With the Artemis program, NASA will land the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024.

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Topic: Places in News, Latest Diary of Events

World’s largest cave fish discovered in Meghalaya

World’s largest species of cave fish has been discovered in Meghalaya’s Jaintia Hills. The cave fish is around one and a half feet in length and has no eyes and is white due to a lack of melanin pigmentation.

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Topic: Places in News, Latest Diary of Events

Yongle Blue Hole (YBH)

Carbon more than 8,000 years old lies deep inside a yawning sinkhole in the South China Sea.

About Yongle Blue hole:

It is the deepest known marine cavern. Located in the Xisha Islands of the South China Sea (SCS). It measures roughly 300 metres from top to bottom. Its waters are mostly isolated from the surrounding ocean and receive little fresh water from rainfall, making it a rare spot to study the chemistry of oxygen-deprived marine ecosystems.

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Topic: Mass Communication, Latest Diary of Events

SPICe+ web form

As part of the Government of India’s Ease of Doing Business (EODB) initiatives, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has notified a new Web Form christened ‘SPICe+’ (pronounced ‘SPICe Plus’) replacing the existing SPICe form.

What is it?

SPICe+ would be an integrated Web Form. It would offer 10 services by 3 Central Government Ministries & Departments (Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Ministry of Labour & Department of Revenue in the Ministry of Finance) and One State Government (Maharashtra).

It aims to save as many procedures, time and cost for Starting a Business in India and would be applicable for all new company incorporations.

The new web form would facilitate onscreen filing and real-time data validation for the seamless incorporation of companies.