• SCOVA (Standing Committee on Voluntary Agencies) was established in 1986 by the Department of Pension & Pensioners' Welfare with the objective of facilitating dialogue between pensioners' welfare associations and government ministries/departments.
• SCOVA has 15 non-official members.

• Launched: 2015
• Objective: To ensure “Har Khet Ko Pani” and efficient management of water resources
• Implemented: Under Jal Shakti Ministry

Key Components:

• Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP): To complete pending irrigation projects

• Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP): To develop small irrigation resources to deliver water to farms
• Approval: In December 2021, the implementation of PMKSY from 2021-22 to 2025-26 got approval by the government

• Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA): Launched in 2019, this campaign aims to promote rainwater harvesting and water conservation activities.
• 'Jal Sanchay Jan Bhagidari' Initiative: Launched by the Prime Minister on September 6, 2024, in Surat, Gujarat, this initiative focuses on ensuring the conservation of every drop of water through collective efforts.
• Jal Shakti Kendras (JSK): Established in various districts across the country with active community participation to strengthen water resource management.

• Statewise Registration:
• Uttar Pradesh: Over 8.38 crore registrations
• Bihar: Over 2.97 crore registrations
• West Bengal: Over 2.64 crore registrations

Sectorwise Registration:

• Agriculture Sector: Over 15.99 crore registrations

• Domestic Workers: Over 2.89 crore registrations
• Construction Sector: Over 2.77 crore registrations
• Launch: On 28 August 2021 by the Government of India to create a national database of workers in the unorganized sector

• The bill integrates the Indian Railway Board Act of 1905 and the Railways Act of 1989 into a unified framework.

Recent Achievements of Indian Railways:

• 34,000 kilometers of new railway tracks have been laid in the past 11 years.
• Over 45,000 kilometers of railway tracks have been electrified.
• 91% reduction in railway accidents, with the number of fog safety devices increasing from 90 to 26,000.
• A plan has been introduced to construct waiting halls at 60 major stations for better crowd management.

• Loco pilot: Currently 2,162 women are employed in this role, while 10 years ago this number was about 371, which shows a five-fold increase.
• Train manager (guard): 794 women are employed in this position
• Station master: 1,699 women are employed in this role, which shows a nearly five-fold increase in the last decade
• Office staff: 12,362 women are engaged in administrative work
• Supervisor: 2,360 women are employed in this position
• Trackman: 7,756 women are contributing to track maintenance
• Ticket checker: 4,446 women are employed in this role

• Duration: 17 March 2025 to 15 June 2025.
• Procurement Centres: 6,500 procurement centres will be set up across the state

• Capital: Port Louis
• Currency: Mauritian Rupee (MUR)
• System of Government: Parliamentary Democracy
• Independence: 12 March 1968 (from Britain)
• The Parliament of Mauritius is called the "National Assembly"

• The official residence of the President is "State House", located in Port Louis
• Prime Minister: Dr. Navinchandra Ramgoolam
• President: Prithvirajsingh Rupun

• Indian players: Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Varun Chakravarthy, Axar Patel
• New Zealand players: Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner (captain), Matt Henry, Glenn Phillips
• Two Afghanistan players: Ibrahim Zadran, Rashid Khan

• A maximum of 400 artists will be awarded this scholarship per year
• Age limit: Between 18 and 25 years
• Applicants must have received at least 5 years of training from a guru or institute
• Each selected artist is given a scholarship of Rs 5,000 per month for a period of 2 years, disbursed in four equal six-monthly instalments

• Purpose: Detect, identify, track, and neutralize unauthorized, hostile, or potentially dangerous drones and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)

Chief of Defence Staff (CDS):

• Formed: In 2019 on the recommendations of Lt. Gen. D.B. Shekatkar Committee
• First CDS: 2019 – General Bipin Rawat
• General Rawat died: 2021, in a helicopter crash
• General Anil Chauhan became the second CDS of India: 2022

• 28 April 2019: INS Imphal was launched
• Induction into Indian Navy: December 2023
• It is the third of the four indigenous destroyers of Project 15B (Visakhapatnam class)
• INS Imphal is named after the city of Imphal, the capital of Manipur, which commemorates the historic Battle of Imphal (1944) during World War II.

• Objective: To prevent criminal activities such as illegal fishing, smuggling, human trafficking, maritime piracy, and drug trafficking in the maritime boundaries of both countries.
• Inception: The 'Bongosagar' naval exercise was first conducted in the year 2019.

• Best Film: 'Laapata Ladies'
• Best Direction: Kiran Rao ('Laapata Ladies')
• Best Actor in Lead Role (Male): Kartik Aaryan ('Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3')
• Best Actress in Lead Role (Female): Nitanshi Goyal ('Laapata Ladies')
• Best Actor in Supporting Role (Male): Ravi Kishan ('Laapata Ladies')
• Best Actress in Supporting Role (Female): Janaki Bodiwala ('Shaitan')

• Best Performance in a Negative Role: Raghav Juyal ('Kill')
• Best Music Director: Ram Sampath ('Laapata Ladies')
• Best Lyricist: Prashant Pandey ('Sajni' - 'Laapata Ladies')
• Best Singer (Male): Jubin Nautiyal ('Duaa' - 'Article 370')
• Best Singer (Female): Shreya Ghoshal ('Ami Je Tomar' 3.0' - 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3')

• Born: 9 November 1948
• Key Role: Special Grade Vocal Artist in Annamacharya Project of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) (1978-2006)
• Honors: Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, TTD Asthana Scholar, Ahobilamatham Asthana Scholar
• Annamacharya played an important role in popularizing Kirtan.

• Capital: Ottawa
• Largest city: Toronto
• Currency: Canadian dollar (CAD)
• Parliament: Bicameral (House of Commons and Senate)

• National sport: Ice hockey
• Canada has the longest coastline in the world.
• It is surrounded by three oceans (Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic)

• Full Name: Savitribai Jyotirao Phule
• Birth: 3 January 1831
• Birth Place: Maharashtra, Naigaon in Satara district
• Husband: Jyotirao Phule (Social Reformer)

• Work: India's first female teacher, social reformer, poet
• In 1848, along with her husband Jyotirao Phule, she opened the first school for girls in Pune
• Major works: "Kavya Phule" (1854) and "Baavankashi Subodh Ratnakar"