GK Express of 09/01/2026

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🌟 “The only way to achieve the impossible is to believe it is possible.” 🌟

🚀 Efforts today will turn into results tomorrow. 🚀

📚 Current Affairs Coach

1. Kalai -II Hydropower Project 

The environmental clearance (EC) for the 1,200-MW Kalai-II hydropower project on the Lohit River in Arunachal Pradesh (AR) has triggered concerns over serious omissions in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), particularly regarding the critically endangered white-bellied heron.

2. Statue of Sacrifice

Andhra Pradesh government is planning to construct a 58-foot statue of Potti Sriramulu, being built in Amaravati to honor his pivotal hunger strike for Andhra statehood, with a planned inauguration on March 16, 2026, coinciding with his 125th birth anniversary, as part of a larger memorial complex called the Potti Sriramulu Smruthi Vanam. 

3. XPoSat Mission

ISRO successfully launched XPoSat (X-ray Polarimeter Satellite), India's first dedicated scientific satellite to measure the polarization of X-ray emissions from celestial sources like black holes and neutron stars. This makes India the second country after the US to launch such a specialized mission.

📖 Know Your English

Word: Obfuscate

Meaning: To make something obscure, unclear, or unintelligible; to bewilder.

Synonyms: Confuse, Blur, Complicate, Muddle.

Example: The politician used complicated legal jargon to obfuscate the truth about the scandal.

🚆 HISTORY COACH

👆 Click a question to see the answer

1. Who presided over the Surat Session of the Indian National Congress in 1907 where the party split?

➡️ Rash Behari Ghosh. The session turned violent, leading to the split between the Moderates and the Extremists, known as the 'Surat Split'.

2. Which rock edict of Ashoka mentions the casualties of the Kalinga War?

➡️ Rock Edict XIII. It describes Ashoka's remorse over the massive slaughter in the Kalinga War and his subsequent conversion to Buddhism.

3. Who founded the 'Tattvabodhini Sabha' in 1839?

➡️ Debendranath Tagore. It was established to propagate the truths of Vedanta and published the journal 'Tattvabodhini Patrika'.

🚆 BANKING AND FINANCE COACH

👆 Click a question to see the answer

1. What does the term 'Green Banking' refer to?

➡️ It refers to banking practices that promote environmentally friendly and sustainable initiatives, such as paperless banking and financing renewable energy projects.

2. Which committee recommended the establishment of NABARD?

➡️ B. Sivaraman Committee (1979). NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) was established on July 12, 1982, to boost the rural economy.

3. What is the full form of 'UDGAM' portal launched by the RBI?

➡️ Unclaimed Deposits - Gateway to Access inforMation. It was launched to help members of the public search for their unclaimed deposits across multiple banks in one place.

🚆 ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY COACH

👆 Click a question to see the answer

1. What is an 'Ecotone'?

➡️ An Ecotone is a transition area between two biological communities, where two communities meet and integrate. Examples include marshlands (between dry and wet ecosystems) and mangroves.

2. The 'Montreux Record' is a register associated with which convention?

➡️ The Ramsar Convention. It is a register of wetland sites on the List of Wetlands of International Importance where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur.

3. Which gas is primarily responsible for the 'Greenhouse Effect'?

➡️ Carbon Dioxide (CO2). While Water Vapor is the most abundant greenhouse gas, CO2 is the most significant long-lived greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere derived from human activities.

💡 Did You Know?

🇮🇳 Village Without Doors

Shani Shingnapur, a village in Maharashtra, is famous for the fact that no house in the village has doors, only door frames. The residents believe that Lord Shani punishes anyone attempting theft.

🌍 The Deepest Point

The Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench is the deepest known point in Earth's oceans, located about 10,935 meters (35,876 feet) deep. If Mount Everest were placed into the trench, its peak would still be underwater.

❓ Question of the Day

Which Finance Commission is currently constituted in India?

Answer: 16th Finance Commission. The government constituted the 16th Finance Commission with Dr. Arvind Panagariya as its Chairman. It will make recommendations for a period of five years commencing on April 1, 2026.

✍️ Answer These Questions

1. Who was the first Governor-General of Bengal?

2. Which layer of the atmosphere contains the Ozone layer?

➡️ Submit your answers using the form below:

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