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Fourth Health Index released by NITI Aayog - 01 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Recently, the NITI Aayog released its fourth
Health Index.
- The fourth round of Index took into account the period
2019-20 as reference year.
- NITI Aayog prepared this report in collaboration with the
Ministry of Health & Family Welfare as well as with the technical
assistance from the World Bank.
- According to NITI Aayog’s health index, Kerala has emerged
as the top performer with respect to overall health performance among larger
states.
- On the other hand, Uttar Pradesh has been ranked the last.
- However, Uttar Pradesh topped in terms of incremental
performance since it registered the highest incremental change in reference year
2019-20 as compared to the base year 2018-19.
- Tamil Nadu emerged as second while Telangana emerged as the
third best performers, on health parameters.
- Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra have been ranked among top
five.
- Bihar is the second and Madhya Pradesh is the third worst
performers, on health parameters.
- In smaller states category, Mizoram became the best
performer in overall performance and incremental performance.
- Among Union Territories, Delhi and Jammu & Kashmir have
been ranked among bottom UTs with respect to overall performance.
- However, they
emerged as leading performer with respect to incremental performance.
- In terms of health performance, Kerala emerged as the best
state, for the fourth time.
- Kerala and Tamil Nadu were top two performers with highest
reference year (2019-20) index score, in terms of overall performance.
- However,
they have been ranked twelfth and eighth in terms of incremental performance.
- Telangana secured the third place in terms of overall
performance as well as incremental performance.
- Rajasthan was the worst performer, in terms of overall
performance and incremental performance.
- Among smaller states, Mizoram & Tripura registered
strong overall performance.
Global Environment and Climate Action Citizen Award - 01 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Global Environment and Climate Action Citizen Award was
presented in Dubai.
- The prestigious Global Environment and Climate Action
Citizen Award was presented to Surat’s noted industrialist Viral Desai.
- Viral Desai is popularly known as Greenman, because of his
love for the environment.
- Sanskruti Yuva Sansthan presented the ‘Bharat Gaurav Samman’
to Viral Desai and other winners, at Dubai’s Atlantis, The Palm.
- 28 prominent personalities from 11 countries, namely the
United Kingdom, the United States, France, New Zealand, and Malaysia, were
felicitated with the prestigious awards.
- Viral Desai was the only Indian to won honour for climate
action.
Other Awardees :- Motivational speaker Padma Shri Gaur Gopaldas
- Polo player Ashvini Kumar Sharma
- Akshaya Patra Foundation’s chairman Padma Shri Madhu Pandit
Dasa
- Instrumentalist Padma Bhushan Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt
- Padma Shri Ramkishore Chhipa
- Nirbhaya’s mother Asha Devi
- Investor banker Saket Mishra and others.
Global Environmental Citizen Award : A Fact File- It is an environmental award, established by “Harvard
Medical School Centre for Health and Global Environment”.
- It is bestowed
annually to an individual who is working to restore and protect global
environment.
- Center for Health and the Global Environment
- It is located at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
- The center works with the mission to help people in understanding that our
health depends on the health of environment.
- It was founded in 1996, for
promoting a understanding of human health consequences because of global
environmental change.
Aarati Krishnan appointed SEBI Member Of MF Advisory Panel - 01 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Aarati Krishnan, a BusinessLine Editorial Consultant, has
been appointed to the Securities and Exchange Board of India's Advisory
Committee on Mutual Funds.
- The committee, which is chaired by Usha Thorat, a former
Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, advises SEBI on mutual fund
regulation in order to ensure investor protection, industry development, and
disclosure requirements.
- It makes
recommendations for how to make the legal framework for mutual funds more
transparent and simple for investors and constituents.
- The committee consists of 24 members, including CEOs of
major mutual fund companies, academics, exchanges, consumer interest groups,
fund trustees, rating agencies, distribution firms, and the media.
- The company was
founded on April 12, 1992.
- It's headquarters located at Mumbai.
Vikram Misri appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor - 01 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Vikram Misri, a diplomat, has been appointed to the national
security council secretariat as deputy national security adviser.
- Misri, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer from the 1989
batch, was appointed after nearly three years as India's ambassador to China.
- He worked at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
headquarters and the Prime Minister's Office in various capacities.
- Misri will
report to Ajit Doval, the national security adviser. Rajinder Khanna, Pankaj
Saran, and Dattatray Padsalgikar are the deputy NSAs at the moment.
- Misri has also worked in Indian Missions throughout Europe,
Africa, Asia, and North America.
- India's new envoy to China, Pradeep Kumar Rawat, has already
been appointed by the government.
Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements 2021 - 02 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The central government released the “Atal Ranking
of Institutions on Innovation Achievement (ARIIA) 2021” award list.
- Top position was achieved by IIT Madras.
- It topped the
ranking as the most innovative educational institute in India in technical
category.
- IIT Madras won this recognition for the third consecutive
time.
Top 10 institutions:- IIT
Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Roorkee, IIT Kanpur, IIT Kharagpur, Indian Institute of
Science (IISc) and IIT Hyderabad.
- Under the “University & Deemed to be University (Govt.
& Govt. Aided) (Technical)” category, Punjab University and Delhi Technical
University were at top position.
- Under this category, Kalinga Institute of
Industrial Technology Khordha achieved the first position while Chitkara University
achieved the second position.
- Under ‘Colleges/Institutes (Govt. & Govt. Aided)
(Technical)’ category, College of Engineering in Pune and PSG college of
Technology won the awards.
- Under “non-technical institutions” category, Indira Gandhi
National Open University (IGNOU), Delhi and Indian Institute of Management
(IIM), Kozhikode won the awards.
ARIIA- ranks- ARIIA ranks are announced in 9 separate categories,
including Centrally funded technical institutions such as IITs, NITs, State
standalone technical colleges, State Universities, Private standalone technical
colleges, Private universities and non-technical government colleges.
- It is a joint initiative of Ministry of Education and AICTE,
that systematically rank higher educational institutions across India on
indicators like start-up, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship Development amongst
students and faculty.
- Under the initiative, institutions are evaluated on
parameters such as number of registered students & faculty start-ups,
patent filing & granted, fund generation by incubated start-ups, etc.
- Its first edition was launched in 2018.
World’s longest Metro line opened in Shanghai - 02 Jan 22
Highlights:
- World’s longest Metro Line was opened
in China’s Shanghai Province.
- With this inauguration, Shanghai uphold its rank as the city
with the largest Metro network worldwide.
- The city opened two new metro lines - Line 14 and Phase One
of Line 18.
- With this, the total length of metro network in Shanghai has
extended to 831 km. It continues to be the longest network across the world.
- The opening of two new lines has increased the total number
of fully automatic metro lines in Shanghai to five, having an operating length
of 167 km.
- Now, there are 20 metro lines and 508 stations in Shanghai.
Out of 508 stations, 83 are transfer ones.
- Shanghai is located on the southern estuary of Yangtze
River.
- The city is the most populous urban
area in China as well as the most populous city in the world.
- The
city is a global center for finance, research, business & economics,
manufacturing, education, science & technology, tourism, culture &
transportation.
- Port of Shanghai is the busiest container port of the world.
Sahitya Akademi Award 2021- Winners - 02 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Tthe Sahitya Akademi announced its
prestigious “Sahitya Akademi Awards, Yuva Puraskar as well as Bal Sahitya
Puraskar” for 2021 in various languages.
- The Sahitya Akademy Award 2021 was given in 20 Indian
languages.
- Namita Gokhale received it in English for her novel titled
‘Things to Leave Behind’.
- Other winners include:
- Anuradha Sarma Pujari (Assamese)
- Bratya Basu (Bengali)
- Daya Prakash Sinha (Hindi)
- Wali Mohd Aseer Kashtawari (Kashmiri)
- Khalid Hussain (Punjabi)
- Vindeshwari prasad Mishr “Vinay” (Sanskrit) etc.
- Winner of Gujarati, Manipuri, Maithili, and Urdu languages
will be announced later date.
- Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar 2021
- The Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar 2021 was given in 22
Indian languages.
- Megha Majumdar won this award for her debut book ‘A
Burning’, which was published in 2020. This book is about struggles of life in
India.
- Megha Majumdar was born in India, but now lives in New York
and works as an Editor in chief- Books at Catapult Story.
- Other winners of the award include:
- Abhijit Bora (Assamese)
- Gourob Chakraborty (Bengali)
- Drashti Soni (Gujarati)
- Himanshu Vajpai (Hindi)
- Mahesh Dahal (Nepali)
- Swetapadma Satapathy (Sanskrit) etc.
- Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2021
- The Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2021 was given in 22 Indian
languages.
- Anita Vachharajani won the award in the English language.
She was awarded for her children’s book titled ‘Amrita Sher-Gil: Rebel With A
Paintbrush’.
- Other winners include:
- Mrinal Chandra Kalita (Assamese)
- Sunirmal Chakraborty (Bengali)
- Devendra Mewari (Hindi)
- Majeed Majazi (Kashmiri) etc.
- The Sahitya Akademi Award
- It is a literary honour in India, conferred annually by the
Sahitya Akademi. Award is conferred on writers of most outstanding books of
literary merit, which are published in any of 24 major Indian languages and 22
languages which are listed in the Eighth Schedule of Indian Constitution. The
award was established in 1954.
Union Education Minister launched the 'Padhe Bharat' - 03 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Union Education Minister Dharmendra
Pradhan launched the 'Padhe Bharat' 100-day Reading Campaign on 1 January.
Detailed Analysis:- The Padhe Bharat Campaign was launched to help students
improve their academic performance.
- It is a significant step toward improving learning levels
because it fosters creativity, critical thinking, vocabulary, and the ability
to express oneself verbally and in writing.
- It will assist children in making connections with their
surroundings and real-life situations.
- The campaign will cover children in Balvatika from
kindergarten to eighth grade.
- On January 1, 2022, the Padhe Bharat campaign
began.
- It will take place over the course of 100 days, or 14 weeks.
On April 10, 2022, it will come to an end.
- The campaign was launched with the goal of involving all
stakeholders, including children, educational administrators, teachers,
parents, the community, and others, at both the national and state levels.
- One activity has been designed per week for each group as
part of the 100 days campaign, with the goal of making reading enjoyable and
creating a lifelong association with the joy of reading.
- A comprehensive guideline on the Reading Campaign, as well
as an age-appropriate weekly calendar of activities, has been prepared by the
Ministry.
- All of the guidelines were developed in collaboration with
states and union territories.
- The goals and vision of the "foundational
Literacy and Numeracy mission" have also been aligned with the reading
campaign.
- The campaign will also emphasize Indian languages such as
mother tongues, regional languages, and local languages.
- In order to achieve this goal, the campaign has been linked
to "International Mother Tongue Day," which takes place on 21
February.
Water Taxi Service to be launch in Mumbai - 03 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Mumbai's much-anticipated Water Taxi Services are expected
to begin in January 2022.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to launch the water
taxi service in the first week of January 2022.
- There are three operators
available right now.
- After their catamaran is certified fit, the fourth operator
will join. Following Nitin Gadkari's appointment as Shipping Minister, work on
the Water Taxi Services project was accelerated.
- The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT), Maharashtra Maritime Board,
and City & Industrial Development Corporation have collaborated on the
Water Taxi Service project (CIDCO).
- Mumbai Water Transport Project service will most likely connect the Domestic Cruise
Terminal at Ferry Wharf with the terminals in Belapur and Nerul.
Several operators have been given the following routes:- International Cruise Terminal to Elephanta Domestic Cruise
Terminal (DCT) to Karanjade, Rewas, and Dharamtar.
- DCT to Belapur, Vashi, Nerul, Airoli, Khanderi Islands &
JNPT
- The most important route will be DCT to JNPT and Navi
Mumbai.
- DTC to Navi Mumbai fares will range from Rs 1200 to 1500 per
passenger, while DTC to JNPT fares will be around Rs 750.
- At the moment, the fares are extremely high. Once operators
have a large catamaran, rates will be reduced.
- The ferry from DCT to Navi Mumbai will take 30 minutes, and
the ferry from DCT to JNPT will take 15-20 minutes.
- These services are available for 300 to 330 days out of the
year. It will not, however, function in extremely heavy rains.
- Previously, the Gateway of India was connected to Navi
Mumbai by catamaran, and Girgaum to Juhu by catamaran.
- However, the services were terminated in 1994. The
Mumbai-Mandwa route is currently served by speedboats, catamarans, and
launches.
- It is also launched to connect Mumbai to Uran, Rewas, Mora,
Mandwa, and Elephanta Caves via launche
Energy Transition Advisory Committee established - 04 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas established the
Energy Transition Advisory Committee.
- Tarun Kapoor, the former Secretary of the
Petroleum Ministry, is in charge.
- It will concentrate on increasing the proportion of clean
energy sources in the country's energy mix, such as hydrogen, biofuel, nuclear,
geothermal, and tidal.
Detailed Analysis:- To assist India in meeting its 2070 net-zero emissions goal.
Creating a road map for the energy transition (within 6 months).
- To develop a step-by-step plan for transitioning from fossil
fuels to renewable energy.
- India announced its goal of achieving net-zero emissions by
2070 during the Leaders Summit on Climate Change.
- To accomplish this, oil companies were told to develop plans
aimed at increasing their clean energy portfolio.
- These plans will be reviewed by the committee.
- It will also
make recommendations. In addition, the committee will make recommendations for
the plans' development.
- The committee will provide guidance to the oil companies as
they begin to implement their transition plans.
- Hindustan Petroleum, Indian Oil, and Bharat Petroleum, for
example, recently announced a joint venture to build 22,000 charging stations.
- Of all the clean energies, the committee will concentrate on
biofuel and green hydrogen.
- It will devise strategies for enhancing its supply
chains.
- The biofuel plans will concentrate on establishing a
long-term biomass supply chain.
- It will also concentrate on improving the
country's biofuel infrastructure.
- India intends to build 5,000 biogas plants in the near
future.
- These initiatives are being implemented because India is
looking for ways to increase domestic fuel production. And the only way to do
so is to increase biofuel production.
- The committee will concentrate on increasing the country's
green hydrogen production.
- This has been given precedence over all other committee
functions.
- The committee will also focus on developing a strong green hydrogen
value chain.
- The committee's Green Hydrogen plan will greatly aid India's
National Hydrogen Mission (NHM).
- The mission was announced in the budget for
2021-22.
- The National Hydrogen Mission (NHM) aims to produce hydrogen
from renewable sources. Green hydrogen had been prioritized in India's climate
change and energy security plans.
- Oil companies will be given transition plans by the
committee.
- It will assist the transportation sector in making the transition to
clean energy.
One Nation-One Grid-One Frequency - 04 Jan 22
Highlights:
- As part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, PowerGrid
Corporation Limited commemorated the achievement of "One Nation One
Grid."
- On this occasion, Free health check-ups and medical camps
were organized across 70 locations.
- India's total multi-transmission capacity is currently
around 1,12,250 MW. By 2022, it is expected to increase to around 1,18,740 MW.
- By transferring power from resource-centric regions to
load-centric regions, synchronization of all provincial grids will aid in the
most efficient use of natural resources.
- It will also result in the establishment of a thriving
electricity market in India, which will facilitate power trading.
- National Grid India History
- Grid management in India began in the 1960s on a regional
basis. Grids were initially connected to form a regional grid.
India's five grid-based regions:- Northern Grid
- Eastern Grid
- Western Grid
- North Eastern Grid and
- Southern region.
- It is noted that , in October 1991, the North Eastern and Eastern Grids were
linked.
- In March 2003, the Western Grid and the North Eastern Grid were linked.
- The North and East grids were connected in 2006. As a
result, four regional grids, the Northern, Eastern, Western, and North Eastern
grids, were interconnected to form a single-frequency central grid.
- With the commencement of the 765kV Raichur-Solapur Power
line in 2013, the Southern Region was linked to the Central Grid.
- With this, the goal of 'ONE NATION'-'ONE GRID'-'ONE
FREQUENCY' was met.
Jawaharlal Nehru Road Now Called Narendra Modi Marg - 04 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Ganga Prasad, the Governor of Sikkim, has announced a new
road, Narendra Modi Marg.
- From the 4th mile of Kyongsala, the Governor looked down on
the road under Kabi Lungchok.
- The alternative to Jawahar Lal Nehru Marg is this street.
Border Roads Organization constructed the National Monument on National Highway
310.
- Indian tourists will
have an easier time getting to the Nathula Border.
- The Border Roads Organization built the stretch, which has
cut the distance between Gangtok and Tsomgo Lake by 15 kilometers.
- The proposal to change the name of the road after the prime
minister was passed unanimously in the gram sabha on December 20
- According to
IK Rasaily, the village council head of 51 Kyongasala GPU.
- The Border Roads Organization built the stretch, which has
cut the length between Gangtok and Tsomgo Lake by 15 kilometers.
- Rasaily explained that it is a small gesture to give thanks
to the PM, who made free vaccines and rations available during the COVID-19
pandemic.
Jhansi Railway Station Renamed Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station - 04 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Jhansi Railway Station in Uttar Pradesh has been renamed
'Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station.'
- Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, has
announced that the Jhansi Railway Station in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, has been
renamed "Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station" in honor of Rani
Laxmibai.
- Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, made
the announcement.
- The UP government has released a notice to this effect, and
the railways have begun preparatory work to implement the change.
- Mughalsarai Railway Station was previously known as Pt. Deen
Dayal Upadhyaya Junction, and Faizabad Railway Station was known as Ayodhya
Cantt.
- The railway station's station code will be changed in the
future.
- The renaming will likely boost tourism in the area, as well
as benefit the Bundelkhand region.
- The railway station will be named after Rani Laxmibai after
some formalities are completed. According to Manoj Singh, the Jhansi railway
station will be renamed the Veerangana Laxmibai railway station.
- Faizabad was renamed Ayodhya, Allahabad was renamed
Prayagraj, and Mughalsarai station was renamed Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction by
the Yogi government.
World Braille Day is observed On January 4 - 05 Jan 22
Highlights:
- World Braille Day is observed on January 4, 2022, like every year.
- It has been designated as World
Braille Day around the world on 4th of January, since 2019.
- The purpose of the day is to recognize blind
people's right to access braille and to raise awareness about the importance of
braille as a form of communication in the full realization of blind and
partially sighted people's human rights.
- The day commemorates the birth anniversary of Louis Braille,
the man who invented Braille - a system of writing for people with visual
impairments.
- He was born on January 4, 1809, in the northern
French town of Coupvray.
- Braille is a tactile portrayal of alphabetic and numerical
symbols, as well as musical, mathematical, and scientific symbols, using six
dots to portray each letter and number.
- Blind and partially sighted people use Braille, named after
its man who invented in 19th century France, Louis Braille, to read the same
books and periodicals that are printed in a visual font.
- As stated in article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities, braille is crucial for the implementation of
education, freedom of expression and opinion, and social inclusion.
Kochi Water Metro Project Gets First-Ever Electric Boat - 05 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Kochi Metro Rail Limited received the first
battery-powered electric boat manufactured for the Kochi Water Metro Project in
Kerala.
- The fully air-conditioned boat is one of 23 being
manufactured for the 747-crore Kochi Water Metro project by the Cochin Shipyard.
Detailed Analysis:- The Kochi Water Metro system would include 78 ships that
will connect 38 ports over 76 route kilometers.
- The 100-passenger water metro boat is powered by batteries.
- The battery can be charged in 10 to 15 minutes while the
passengers are boarding.
- According to KMRL, this is the first time a centrally
managed integrated water transportation system with a large fleet has been
powered by a battery.
- The Kochi Metro Rail Limited has built 23 battery-powered electric boats for the
water metro project.
- The first boat was handed over to the KMRL in the presence
of its MD Loknath Behra and his wife Madhumita Behra at a ceremony held at the
shipyard here.
- The boat was given the name Muziris by Madhmita Behra.
Richard Leaky Kenyan Conservationist Passes Away - 05 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Richard Leaky, a renowned Kenyan conservationist and fossil
hunter, has died on 2 January 2022.
- Richard Leakey, a well-known Kenyan politician,
conservationist, and fossil hunter, has died.
- The discovery of 'Turkana Boy' in
1984 is credited to the legendary paleoanthropologist, and it led to able to
introduce of proving that the human race evolved in Africa.
- Turkana boy is the most full human ancestor Skelton ever
discovered.
- The study of human evolvement through fossil and archaeology
records is known as paleoanthropology.
- Leakey is also known for spearheading anti-ivory campaigns
in order to save the African elephant population.
- Richard Erskine Frere Leakey FRS was born on December 19,
1944, in London, England.
- Kenyan paleoanthropologist, conservationist, and politician
Richard Erskine Frere Leakey Leakey worked in Kenya for a number of years,
mostly in archaeology and nature conservation institutions.
- He was the Director of Kenya's National Museum, the founder
of the non-governmental organization WildlifeDirect, and the Chairman of the
Kenya Nature Conservation Service.
- In an educational collaboration with Stony Brook University,
where he had been an anthropology professor, Leakey co-founded the Turkana
Basin Institute.
- Until his death, he was the chair of the Turkana Basin
Institute.
War Veteran Vice Admiral S H Sarma Passes Away - 06 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Vice Admiral S H Sarma, a veteran of the Indian Navy's 1971
war, has died on 3 January.
- Vice Admiral S.H. Sarma, a veteran of the Indian Navy's 1971
Indo-Pak war, has died at the age of 100.
- During the war in 1971, he was the Flag Officer Commanding
the Eastern Fleet.
- In the 1971 war, India defeated Pakistan, resulting in the
formation of Bangladesh.
- Vice Admiral Sarma turned 100 years old on December 1st of
last year. In addition, he recently attended the Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav in
Delhi.
- During the 1971 war, Sarma was the Flag Officer Commanding
the Eastern Fleet.
- In the 1971 war, India defeated Pakistan, resulting in the
formation of Bangladesh.
World Day of War Orphans observed on Jan 6 - 06 Jan 22
Highlights:
- On January 6, the World Day of War Orphans is observed to
raise awareness about the sufferings of children who have lost their parents as
a result of the War.
- Children are among the most marginalized and marginalized
groups in any conflict.
- Children who have been wounded in a gun battle or who have
been kept separate from their families require special attention in order to
recover from their war wounds, return to school, and resume a normal life.
- The French organization SOS Enfants en Detresses created the
World Day of War Orphans to help children who have been orphaned by war.
- An orphan is defined as a "child under the age of 18
who has lost both parents to any cause of death," according to the United
Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- Several awareness programs are held on World War Orphans Day
to raise awareness about the trauma that orphaned children face.
- For many children around the world, the coronavirus pandemic
has resulted in issues such as food insecurity and access to basic health and
sanitation facilities.
- The World Day of War Orphans is observed to raise awareness
of the issues that such children face, as well as to remind the international
community of its responsibility to ensure that such children have equal access
to health and educational opportunities.
First LNG Terminal In Karnataka - 06 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The state of Karnataka has inked an agreement with the
Singapore-based LNG Alliance Company to build the state's first LNG terminal in
Mangalore.
- In partnership with the New Mangalore Port Trust, the first
LNG terminal will be built in Karnataka (NMPT).
- The government has invested Rs 2,250 crore in the terminal's
construction.
- Around 200 individuals will be directly employed as a result
of this project.
- The terminal will be built as part of the Union Government's
strategy to expand the alternative fuel sector in order to achieve net-zero
carbon emissions by 2070.
LNG Port Terminals: A Fact File- LNG port terminals are purpose-built facilities.
- They are
built to accommodate huge LNG carrier ships that load, transport, and unload
LNG. LNG terminals are usually built next to a gas liquefaction and storage
facility (for export) or a gas regasification and storage plant (import).
- The
Following are the LNG Port terminals in India,
- The Konkan LNG Private Limited terminal is situated in
Dabhol, Maharashtra, and has a 5-million-tonne-per-year capacity.
- The Dahej Terminal, operated by Petronet LNG Ltd, is
situated in Gujarat. The terminal has a 15-million-tonne-per-year capacity.
- Shell Limited's Hazira Terminal is situated in Gujarat and
has a capability of 5 million tonnes per year.
- Petronet LNG Ltd's Kochi Terminal has a capability of 5
million tonnes per year.
JC Chaudhry sets Guinness World Record In Numerology - 07 Jan 22
Highlights:
- JC Chaudhry, one of India's top numerologists, has set the
first-ever Guinness World Record in Numerology.
- He also set the first world record for the year 2022, by
teaching about ancient science to over 6000 numerology enthusiasts from the
United States, the United Kingdom, the Middle East, and India.
Detailed Analysis:- For this achievement,
the Guinness World Record London office has created a new category called
"Numerology."
- CNPL (Chaudhry Nummero Pvt Ltd) and the Indian Institute of
Numerology organized the event to raise awareness of numerology, which is used
in ancient societies such as Greece, Egypt, China, Chaldea, and India.
- what is Guinness World Record ?
- Guinness World Records, also known as The Guinness Book of Records
from 1955 to 1999 and The Guinness Book of World Records in prior United States
editions, is an annual reference book that lists world records in both human
achievements and nature extremes.
- The book was launched in August 1955 in Fleet Street, London,
by twin brothers Norris and Ross McWhirter, who were inspired by Sir Hugh
Beaver.
- By Christmas 1955, the first edition had dominated the
best-seller list in the United Kingdom.
- The book was published internationally the next year, and as
of the 2022 edition, it is in its 67th year of publication, with over 53,000
records in its database, and has been published in 100 countries and 23
languages.
SAAR Launched Smart Cities Mission - 07 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Smart Cities Mission was the driving force for SAAR's
creation. SAAR will document the Smart Cities Mission's projects as a part of
the Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav festivities.
- The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs is in charge of
implementing SAAR.
Detailed Analysis:- The National Institute of Urban Affairs and other leading
institutions in the country will join the ministry in implementing the project.
- This contains 15 of the world's best architectural schools.
- The institutes will keep track of the mission's preparation
and implementation.
- Students will be able to learn about urban development
processes realistically due to this.
- SAAR must first compile a list of 75 projects.
- The list
includes projects that are both creative and cross-sectoral.
- The project will capture the outcomes of the smart city
mission and its impact on the lives of city residents.
- Students from prestigious universities will travel to the
chosen smart cities to study the mission's operations.
- Data analysis, field inquiry, peer review of the first
draught, and research workshops are all part of this process.
- Following that, the students will present a study along with
recommendations.
- These documents will serve as a starting point for further
research.
- The goal of SAAR is to develop a database of urban initiatives.
- Despite adopting various innovative city initiatives and
being the PM's constituency, Varanasi has been excluded from SAAR.
- Varanasi has been chastised for it.
- This indicates that the
city's smart city initiatives are insufficient.
Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme - 07 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Under the PMFME Scheme, the Ministry of Food Processing
Industries has introduced six one-district product (ODOP) brands.
- PMFME is the acronym for Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of
Micro Food Processing Enterprises.
- Amrit Phal: It's amla juice for Haryana's Gurugram.
- It's
natural with lemon juice added. Amrit Phal is priced at Rs 120 for 500 ml.
- Cori Gold: Coriander powder was created for the Rajasthani
city of Kota. Because of its flavor, the product is one-of-a-kind. Cori gold
prices 34 rupees per gram.
- Kashmiri Mantra: Kashmiri red chiles are used to make this
product.
- It was created for the Jammu and Kashmir district of Kulgam.
- Seventy-five rupees buy 100 grams of the Kashmiri mantra.
- Madhu Mantra: It's a honey-like substance created for the
Uttar Pradesh district of Saharanpur. It's a honey with a variety of flora.
- Madhu mantra honey is gathered from bees that are allowed to fly freely.
- Five
hundred grams of Madhu mantra will set you back 185 rupees.
- Dilli Bakes, a bakery, created these whole wheat biscuits.
It's one-of-a-kind since it's created with jaggery rather than sugar. One
hundred seventy-five rupees get you 380 grams of whole wheat biscuits.
- Somdana as a brand: Ragi flour was created for Maharashtra's
Thane district.
- It's free of gluten. Calcium, fiber, and iron are abundant in
the Somdana. Somdana is priced at 60 rupees for 500 grams.
- The products are packaged distinctively and provide the
product longer shelf life.
- Independent expenditures are made to help firms promote
their sales through e-commerce platforms.
Punjab government established Mehtab Singh Gill Committee - 08 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Punjab government established a high-level team to probe
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's security lapse on 6 January.
- The Punjab government constituted the Mehtab Singh Gill
Committee in response to the security lapse.
- Mr. Gill has served as a judge in the past. Punjab's Home
Secretary is also a member of the committee.
- The committee has three days to
provide a report.
- The Security Breach is that Prime Minister arrived in
Bathinda on 5 January 2022 and was scheduled to fly to Hussainwala to attend
the National Martyrs Memorial.
- Due to the rain, plane transportation could not be
organized.
- As a result, the prime minister traveled to the memorial by car.
- Protesters obstructed his convoy on the way there. He was
also stuck in a flyover for 15 to 20 minutes.
- The Prime Minister was at the monument to inaugurate
development projects of Rs 43,000 crore.
- This includes the building of roads and hospitals.
- He was
also scheduled to speak to a group.
- The visit has been postponed.
Special Protection Group: A Fact File- It was founded in 1988 with the express purpose of
protecting the Prime Minister. SPG protects the PM both in India and overseas.
- It also safeguards
the Prime Minister's immediate family. THE SPG PROTECTED the PM's spouse,
children, and parents.
- Protection was offered at their home as well as anywhere
else. Protection was guaranteed for five years while in office and for another
five years after they left.
- The amending statute decreased the mandate. SPG safeguards
only the PM under the statute.
- SPG's rulebook is known as the Blue Book.
- It contains all of
the guidelines for PM protection.
- As per the Blue Book, the state police must plan a path in
the event of adversity, such as the one that has occurred recently.
- The state police had been informed about the protests by the
Intelligence Bureau.
- Despite all of these precautions, a security compromise
happened.
National Youth Festival 2022 host by Puducherry - 08 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi has chosen Puducherry to host
the 25th National Youth Festival.
- The 25th National Youth Festival will take place in
Puducherry from January 12 to 16, 2022.
- The celebration is part of the Azadi ki
Amrit Mahotsav, which commemorates the 75th anniversary of India's
independence.
- Around 7000 young people between the ages of 18 and 22 are
expected to attend the festival from all around the country.
- The event would be
attended by around 500 Puducherry youths.
- As part of the National Youth Week celebrations, the Indian
government hosts the National Youth Festival.
- It is organized with the goal of instilling in young people
the values of national cohesion, brotherhood, communal peace, courage, and
adventure.
- This goal is accomplished by bringing together young people
and encouraging them to participate in various activities.
- National Youth Festival began in 1995 as the main activity
of the National Integration Camp's agenda (NIC).
National Water Awards 2020 Announced - 09 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of Jal Shakti, has
announced the winners of the third National Water Awards for the year 2020.
- In the National Water Awards 2020, Uttar Pradesh has named
the Best State for Water Conservation.
- Rajasthan and Tamil
Nadu come in second and third, respectively.
- The award includes a citation, a
trophy, and a monetary prize.
- The finest district prize in the northern zone went to
Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, followed by Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar in
Punjab.
- The Jal Shakti Ministry established the National Water Award
in 2018 to honor and motivate individuals and organizations who excel in the
field of water resource management.
- In total, 57 awards in 11 categories have been announced.
- Best State, Best District, Best Village Panchayat, Best
Urban Local Body, Best Media (Print & Electronic), Best School, Best
Institution/RWA/Religious Organization for Campus Use, Best Industry, Best NGO,
Best Water User Association, and Best Industry for CSR Activity are among the
categories.
Category --------------- Winners- “Best State”- Uttar Pradesh
- “Best District” – North Zone, Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh
- “Best District”– South Zone, Thiruvanathapuram, Kerala
- “Best District”– East Zone, East Champaran, Bihar and Godda, Jharkhand
- “Best District”– West Zone, Indore, Madhya Pradesh
- “Best District”– North-East Zone, Goalpara, Assam,
- “Best Village Panchayat”– North Zone, Dhaspad, Almora, Uttarakhand
- “Best Village Panchayat”– South Zone, Yelerampura Panchayat, Tumakuru District, Karnataka
- “Best Village Panchayat”– East Zone, Telari Panchayat, Gaya District, Bihar
- “Best Village Panchayat”– West Zone, Takhatgadh, Sabarkantha, Gujarat
- “Best Village Panchayat”– North-East Zone, Sialsir, Sirchip, Mizoram
- “Best Urban Local Body”,- Vapi Urban Local Body, Gujarat
- “Best Media (Print & Electronic)”,- Mission Paani (Network 18)
- “Best School”- Govt. Girls Hr. Secondary School, Kaveripattinam, Tamil Nadu
- “Best Industry”- Welspun India Textile Ltd., Gujarat
- “Best Water User Association”- Panchgachiya MDTW WUA, Hooghly, West Beng
- “Best Industry for CSR activities”- Indias first Mobile Honey Processing Van
National E-Governance Conference to be held Madhapur, Hyderabad - 09 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public
Grievances (DARPG), State Government of Telangana, and Ministry of Electronics
and Information Technology will host the 24th National E-Government Conference.
- The conference will happen at Madhapur, Hyderabad, at the
Hyderabad International Convention Centre.
Theme: "India's Techade: Digital Governance in a Post-Pandemic
World".- Emerging technologies, universalization of public services,
ease of life through good governance, universalization of public services,
innovation – platformization, government re-engineering, and citizen
participation in government processes are the subtopics.
- It will help e-governance efforts gain traction.
- It gives businesses and government officials the chance to
show off their successful E-Government initiatives. This improves service
delivery from beginning to end.
- Through Digital India, the Indian government is digitizing
the country. E-Governance is critical for social development and promoting
economic inclusion.
- To combat cyber fraud, fake news, and other forms of
misinformation, it is critical to progress toward secure e-government.
- E-governance also aids in expense savings, service
simplicity, and real-time governance. Accountability and transparency are also
aided by it.
- National Awards for E-Governance 2021
- The awards will be given out at the conference. The awards
will be given out in six different categories.
- The awards will be given out to 26 E-Governance initiatives.
- Excellence in government re-engineering for digitalization,
excellence in district-level e-governance, universalizing access to e-services,
good citizen-centric research, use of ICT in COVID-19 management, and
remarkable use of emerging technologies are the six categories.
India's first Mobile Honey Processing Van launched by KVIC - 09 Jan 22
Highlights:
- India's first "Mobile Honey Processing Van" was
launched by KVIC.
- Vinai Kumar Saxena, Chairman of the Khadi and Village
Industries Commission (KVIC), has inaugurated the country's first Mobile Honey
Processing Van in Ghaziabad's Village Sierra. KVIC's Multi-disciplinary
Training Centre in Panjokehra designed the Mobile Van in-house at a cost of Rs
15 lakh.
- In just 8 hours, this transportable honey processing device
can process up to 300 KG of honey.
- The van is also outfitted with a laboratory
facility that can measure the quality of honey in real-time.
- The Mobile Honey Processing Van is a significant step
forward in KVIC's Honey Mission, which aims to train beekeepers, provide Bee
Boxes to farmers, and assist rural, educated, and jobless youth in earning
additional revenue through beekeeping.
- The KVIC has come up with this unique idea to enable
beekeepers and farmers to earn fair rates for their honey output, in keeping
with the Prime Minister's dream of a "Sweet Kranti" (Sweet
Revolution) through honey production.
- KVIC has created the unique Mobile Honey Processing Van,
which will process beekeepers' honey in their homes, saving them the time and
expense of transporting the honey to processing plants in distant towns.
- While this will make beekeeping more profitable for small
beekeepers, it will also ensure that honey is pure and of the greatest quality.
Khelo India Games 2023 to be take place in Haryana - 10 Jan 22
Highlights:![]()
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- The Khelo India Games were created to bring India's sports
culture back to life.
- Due to the COVID situation, the 2021 Khelo India Games
have been postponed.
- It is now scheduled to take place in Haryana in January
2022.
- Anurag Singh Thakur, the Union Minister for Youth Affairs
and Sports will attend the games.
- Madhya Pradesh will host the Khelo India Youth Games in
2022-23.
- The Madhya Pradesh Cabinet finally enacted Bhopal as the host city for
the games.
- The cabinet also approved a 50-acre plot of land for the
construction of an international sports center.
- For the first phase, the Madhya Pradesh government set aside
Rs 176.59 crores.
- The International Sports Complex will cost Rs 15.56 crore to
operate and maintain.
- For the second and third phases, separate funds will be
granted.
- The sports stadium will be equipped with a 10,000-seat
hockey rink, a 4,000-seat football field, landscaping, parking, horticulture,
guardrooms, gates, internal service roads, street lighting, and sewage systems.
- During the first phase, an indoor sports complex would be
constructed in Bhopal's Nathu Barkheda hamlet.
- A cricket stadium will be
developed in the second and third phases.
Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas Celebrated on 9 January - 10 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) also known as Non-Resident
Indian Day commemorates the contribution of Indians living in other countries
to the development of their homeland.
- Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas is a day dedicated to the Indian
community living in other countries that occurs every two years.
- The people of India commemorate this day on January 9.
- The day is named after Mahatma Gandhi, the greatest Pravasi
and our nation's Father of the Nation.
- In 1915, he returned from South Africa and became the leader
of the Indian independence movement.
- As a result, the Ministry of External
Affairs (MEA) has commemorated this day every year from January 07-09 since
2003.
- This practice will bring Indians living abroad together to
contribute their knowledge, expertise, and talents on a common platform.
Oscar-Winning Composer, Marilyn Bergman, Dies at 93 - 11 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Marilyn Bergman, who wrote Oscar-winning songs with her
husband Alan Bergman, died on Jan 8 2022 at the age of 93 in her Los Angeles
home.
- She died of respiratory failure which was not related to
COVID-19.
- When she passed away, her 96-year-old husband and daughter
Julie Bergman were by her side.
- The Bergmans, who married in 1958 and specialised in
introspective ballads for film, television, and the stage that combined the
romance of Tin Pan Alley with the polish of contemporary pop, were one of the
most enduring, successful, and productive songwriting partnerships,
specialising in introspective ballads for film, television, and the stage.
- They collaborated with some of the world's best melodists,
including Marvin Hamlisch, Cy Coleman, and Michel Legrand, and were covered by
the likes of Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Aretha Franklin, and Michael
Jackson.
Urjit Patel Appointed Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank - 11 Jan 22
Highlights:
- AIIB’s Board of Directors has appointed Dr Urjit Patel to the position of Vice President for Investment Operations Region 1 -South Asia, the Pacific Islands and South East Asia.
- Patel, 58, was the 24th governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), succeeding Raghuram Rajan on September 5, 2016.
- Patel had abruptly resigned in December 2018 citing “personal reasons”.
- AIIB is a multilateral development bank that aims to improve economic and social outcomes in Asia. The bank currently has 104 members, including 17 prospective members from around the world.
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is on the board of governors of the bank.
- Below the President are five vice presidents - one being the position that Pandian held and is now being given to Patel.
Dr Urjit Patel: A Fact File- Patel also served as former Chair of the Governing Body of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi, a leading think tank on fiscal policy and tax matters.
- He was also Executive Director and member of the Management Committee of the Infrastructure Development Finance Company Ltd.
- A PhD in economics from Yale University, Patel has extensive experience in infrastructure and energy sectors.
- He is the recipient of the Wilbur Cross Medal from Yale University in 2019 and has authored many scholarly publications and papers in the areas of public finance, infrastructure, regulatory economics, monetary policy, global financial safety net, the economics of climate change and the theory of international trade.
- Under the ADB's Asia Pacific Vaccine Access Facility (APVAX) project, India
asked for loans from the AIIB and the ADB in October to purchase 667 million
doses of COVID-19 vaccines, with the ADB likely to lend $1.5 billion and the
AIIB roughly $500 million.
India's First Indigenous Aircraft Carrier Vikrant Started Another Phase Of Sea Trials - 12 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) 1,
which will be known as INS Vikrant when it joins the Indian Navy, began another
round of sea trials in advance for its August induction.
- The 40,000-tonne aircraft carrier, India's most advanced
warship, had a five-day maiden sea cruise in August and went through 10-day sea
testing in October.
- Navy spokeswoman Commander Vivek Madhwal also mentioned that
the IAC is now sailing to do intricate maneuvers to obtain specific readings of
how the ship operates in various scenarios.
- IAC Vikrant is moving out for the next phase of sea trials,
after two high-profile visits from India's President and Vice President in less
than two weeks.
Poet Maya Angelou becomes first Black Woman to feature on US Coin - 12 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Activist and Poet Maya Angelou has become the first black woman to appear on the US quarter, in a new version of the coin which was unveiled by the US Mint on January 10, 2022.
- The author of ‘I Know Why the Caged Birds Sings’, will also become the first figure commemorated through the American Women Quarters Program.
- It was signed into law in January 2021.
- As per the press release from the agency, the US Mint has started shipping the first coins with Maya Angelou’s likeness on the American Quarter, a 25 cent piece.
- Maya Angelou was born in Missouri in 1928.
- She was an essayist and poet who had worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X during the Civil Rights Movement.
16th India Digital Summit 2022 host by IAMAI - 13 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Internet And Mobile Association of India hosted the
two-day virtual event on January 11 and 12, 2022. (IAMAI).
- Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry,
spoke remotely at the 16th India Digital Summit in 2022.
- "Supercharging
Startups" was the summit's theme.
- The India Digital Summit is the
country's oldest digital industry event.
- The Minister introduced 'LEAP' as a path forward to further
enhance our Startup ecosystem during the occasion.
- "LEAP" is
the acronym for "Leverage, Encourage, Access, and Promote."
- On DPIIT, there are presently 58,379 start-ups, with around
one-third of them being digital.
- Significantly, India is ranked second in the world for the
number of online start-ups, with Bengaluru topping the list as one of the top
three start-up hotspots.
- Currently, the industry employs around 5.7 million people.
PayTM, Nykaa and Policy Bazaar are among the digital start-ups whose IPOs are
estimated to raise a total of INR 30,000 crore.
- There are currently 66 Unicorns and 30 Soonicorns in India,
with a combined value of INR 17.81 Lac Cr.
Raghuvendra Tanwar appointed as new Chairman of ICHR - 13 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The New Chairman of the Indian Council of Historical
Research (ICHR) was appointed.
- The New
Chairman of ICHR is Raghuvendra Tanwar.
- Raghuvendra Tanwar, a Kurukshetra University professor
emeritus, has been named chairperson of the Indian Council of Historical
Research (ICHR).
- Tanwar's appointment is for three years, beginning on the
day he takes the position of Chairman and ending until additional orders are
issued.
- Tanwar, who began teaching at Kurukshetra University in
August 1977, has a stellar academic record, including two golds in MA History.
- The Indian Council of Historical Research's principal goal
and objective is to promote and direct historical research, as well as to
support and cultivate objective and scientific history writing.
- The primary goal of the ICHR's agenda has been to improve
the academic quality of the output of its activities.
- The Indian Council of Historical Research is a non-profit
organization dedicated to historical research.
- The Indian Council Historical Research was founded on March
27, 1972, with its headquarters in New Delhi.
Justice Ayesha Malik become Pakistans First Woman Supreme Court Judge - 14 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Ayesha Malik will become Pakistan's first female Supreme
Court judge.
- After a high-power panel authorized the promotion of Lahore
High Court judge Ayesha Malik to the Supreme Court.
- Pakistan is one step closer to installing the country's
first female Supreme Court judge. Malik's promotion was confirmed by the
Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), led by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, by a
majority of five votes to four.
- The JCP is convening for the second time to vote on Justice
Malik's promotion.
- Justice Malik's name was first presented to the JCP on
September 9 of last year, but the panel was evenly split, resulting in her
candidacy being rejected.
- Justice Malik was appointed to the Lahore High Court (LHC)
as a high court judge in March 2012, and she is now ranked number four on the
LHC's judge seniority list.
- If she is confirmed, she would serve as a Supreme Court
judge till June 2031, when she will retire at the age of 65.
- She will be Pakistan's most senior judge, with the
possibility of becoming the country's Chief Justice in January 2030.
India reached 46th spot in Global Innovation Index from 81st rank. - 15 Jan 22
Highlights:
- India's Global Innovation Index ranking has improved from 81
in 2015 to 46 now.
- The campaign that is going on in India regarding innovation
has the effect that India's ranking in the Global Innovation Index has improved
a lot.
- In 2015, India was at
number 81 in this ranking.
- Now, India is at number 46 in the Innovation Index,
- India has more than 1,000 universities, over 11,000 stand
alone institutions, over 42,000 colleges and lakhs of schools.
- With over 9,000 Atal Tinkering Labs and thousands of
Hackathons, we are encouraging our youth to solve today's problems with
innovation and technology.
Private companies to form India Edtech Consortium - 15 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The private companies in India have joined together to form
India EdTech Consortium.
- It was formed under the guidance of Internet Mobile
Association of India.
- It was launched after Government of India announced that
it is to launch as policy to regulate the edtech sector, that is education and
technology sector.
What is Edtech?- EdTech is Education and Technology. Before COVID-19, the
education and technology sector were performing normally.
- They were growing
steadily. The COVID induced lock down shut schools and colleges. Suddenly
modern choice, that is, remote learning became the only alternative.
- Four out
of every six edtech startup have succeeded in their respective field during
this phase.
Who are forming the Consortium?- It is mostly formed by the 1 billion USD companies.
- This includes
Unacademy, BYJU’s, upGrad, Lead School and Vedantu.
- These 1 billion USD
companies are generally referred to as Unicorns.
- Technically unicorns are
defined as those companies whose annual turnover is more than one billion USD.
- People are enrolling in courses without studying about the
courses completely.
- The edtech companies are not providing clear details about
the courses.
- This includes subjects included, fee structure, certificate, etc.
Some have even signed up for loans. Some of the edtech companies are forcing
parents to sign for the auto debit feature.
- Basically, the consortium is framing self-regulation.
- This
is being done to reduce the interference of the government in the sector’s
operating principles or rules and regulations.
- The parliament of India recently
debated about the malpractices in edtech companies.
- These practices are
undertaken to attract consumers.
- In December 2021, the Government of India
issued an advisory of dos and donts to guardians and students who are signing
up online courses offered by the edtech companies.
What is the plan of the consortium?- The consortium has launched a three page code. It stresses
on transparency, warnings of misleading ads.
- The educational institutions can
use their students’ success as promotion tool only with proper proof of
performance.
- The industrial players should compulsorily adopt codes issued by
Advertising Standards Council of India.
Pandit Birju Maharaj Passed Away - 16 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Pandit Birju Maharaj, a legendary Kathak dancer, has
perished on 17 January.
- Pandit Birju Maharaj, a legendary Kathak dancer, died at the
age of 83.
- He was affectionately known as Pandit-Ji or Maharaj-Ji by
his pupils and millions of followers were one of India's best-known artists.
- He was a winner of the country's second-highest civil award,
Padma Vibhushan. Birju Maharaj was a Kathak dancer's descendent, as were his
two uncles, Shambhu Maharaj and Lachhu Maharaj, as well as his father and
master, Acchan Maharaj.
- Birju Maharaj was a master vocalist who could do Thumri,
Dadra, Bhajan, and Ghazal.
- Five children, three daughters, and two sons, as well as
five grandchildren, survive him.
- He had a kidney problem and had been on dialysis for the
past month because of his high blood sugar.
- He most likely died of a heart
attack.
- On February 4, the Kathak maestro would have turned 84 years
old.
National Startup Day observed on January 16 - 16 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Every year the National Startup Day is celebrated on January
16.
- PM Modi has announced that Startups are the backbone of
India.
- This is why it is essential to celebrate the day.
- Also India is
celebrating Startup India Innovation Week between January 10, 2022 and January
16, 2022.
- The week celebrations are organized by Department of Promotion
Industry and Industrial Trade.
- This is the first time, India is celebrating the
day.
- In 2022, the National Startup Day is celebrated on six
themes.
- They are sustainable development, technology of future, from local to
global, building champions in manufacturing, nudging the DNA and growing from
roots.
- The National Startup Day, 2022 focused on data collection
mechanism in agriculture, healthcare through use of technology, creating
agricultural business hubs, tackling issues related to mental health, improving
health care related technologies, space sector and job identification.
- In 2013, only four thousand patents were approved.
- However,
in 2020-21, more than 28,000 patents have been registered. In 2013-14, 70,000
trademarks were registered.
- However, in 2020-21 more than 2.5 lakh trademarks
were registered.
- Areas where Startups play major role in the country
- Defence manufacturing, EV charging, infrastructure, chip
manufacturing and drone sector.
- The new drone policy of Indian Government
focuses on defence startups.
- The Indian Army, Navy and Air Force have placed
five hundred crore rupees worth order to the drone startups.
Role of Government of India:- The Government of India had introduced Standup India,
Startup India and Make in India to encourage the young and new entrepreneurs.
- The Government of India solved the issues around Angel Tax. Also, the tax
procedures have been simplified. GoI now allows self-certification and has
removed more than 25,000 compliances.
- Challenges faced by Startups in India
- Lack of availability of financial resources. Lack of access
to supporting infrastructure. Regulations related to intellectual property
rights, labour laws and dispute resolution.
National Award For E-Governance conferred to Mon District Administration of Nagaland - 17 Jan 22
Highlights:
- National Award for e-Governance 2020-21 (Silver) was
recently conferred to Mon District Administration of Nagaland.
- Award was presented at 24th National Conference on e-Governance
at Hyderabad.
- Award was handed over to Deputy Commissioner of Mon
district, Thavasselan K, by union Minister of State (MoS) Dr. Jitendra Singh.
Objectives:- The National Award for e-Governance was presented under the
category 6 of “Use of ICT in the Management of Covid-19” to Mon district. It
was aimed at recognizing the initiatives undertaken by district administration.
- Project titled “Technology in Aid to Administration” was
initiated in Mon district, for mitigating the hardships caused to public while
enforcing Covid-19 Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) to restrict the spread of
infections. This project is helping in reducing hardship of people, keeping
people safe from Covid and increasing effectiveness of administration.
- Other entries for the award
- A total of 231 entries were received from India in this
category. But only two districts were awarded.
- There were 1377 entries, with
top 26 initiatives awarded across six different categories.
- National Award for e-Governance
- National Award for e-Governance is presented to recognise
and promote excellence in implementation of e-Governance initiatives.
- It is
presented during the National conference on e-Governance.
- It is presented by
Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG).
- The
National Award for e-Governance was announced in December 2021. It comprises of
a trophy, certificate, and cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh
- The National Award for e-Governance is presented with following
objectives:
- To recognize achievements in e-Governance area.
- To raise knowledge on effective methods to design and
implement sustainable e-Governance initiatives.
- To encourage incremental innovations in e-Governance
solutions
- To promote and exchange experiences in solving problems,
mitigating risks and planning for success.
World First Deaf T20 Cricket Championship to be in 2023 - 17 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The AISCD has been granted permission to host the first
World Deaf T20 Cricket Championship in 2023.
- The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf (ICSD)
has given the All India Sports Council of the Deaf permission to hold the first
World Deaf T20 Cricket Championship in Kerala from January 10 to 20, 2023.
- This championship was supposed to take place in 2020-21, but
owing to a coronavirus outbreak, it was delayed first to 2022, then to 2023.
- The tournament is projected to attract at least eight
countries, and it will be the first time that such an international event is
staged in India with the consent of the ICSD."
- The AISCD is the only deaf national sports federation
recognized by the Centre, and the ICSD is the only international organization
recognized by the International Olympic Committee as the ruling body of the
deaf sports movement and Deaflympics.
- The International Committee of Deaf Sports is a non-profit
organization that promotes deaf sports around the world Founded in 1924.
- The International Committee of Sports for the Deaf has its
headquarters in Maryland, USA, and its president is Rebecca Adam.
First DTC Electric Bus flagged off at Delhi - 18 Jan 22
Highlights:
- On January 17, 2022, the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal flagged off the first electric bus of the Delhi Transport Corporation.
- The E -buses are to run on 27- km long route.
- These buses were manufactured
by the JBM Auto Limited.
- These electric buses are low floor buses.
- They are fully air
conditioned.
- These buses were acquired under the Faster Adoption and
Manufacturing of Hybrid and electric Vehicles in India, that is, FAME – II.
- The
first fleet of 300 buses is ready. First a few electric buses are to run from
Pragati Maidan to IP Depot.
- It is a 27- km long route.
- It will cover places
like ITO, Safdarjung and Ashram on its way.
- This is a prototype.
- This is being
flagged off to check how long the batteries in the bus last.
- It will also check
for technical problems. After this test run, the rest of the buses in the fleet
will be added.
- The Delhi Government has planned to release fifty more
electric buses by February 2022. The target is to add fifty electric buses per
month. In the pipeline set earlier, the Delhi Government will launch 2,300
electric buses. Of these, 1,300 are to be procured by the DTC. The rest of the
thousand is to operate under the cluster scheme.
- The Delhi Government is to install charging stations in the
bus depots.
- The charging stations are to be built in phased manner.
- Apart from the charging stations, the Delhi Transport
Corporation will also build hybrid bus depots. These depots are a combination
of CNG (compressed natural gas) buses and electric buses. They are to be
established in Bawana, Hasanpur, Rajghat depot and Subhash Place depot.
- The Delhi Government decided to run electric buses in the
region in 2018. In future, the Kejriwal Government has decided to convert all
the government run buses into electric buses.
Government of India announced National Start-up Awards 2021 - 18 Jan 22
Highlights:
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- Government of India announced the winners of “National
Start-up Awards 2021” and felicitated 46 start-ups for their contribution in
their respective sectors.
- Government also conferred an incubator and an accelerator
with the award during this ceremony.
- This marked the second edition of National Start-up Awards.
- Applications were invited from 15 sectors and 49
sub-sectors, ranging from agriculture to animal husbandry and from enterprise
technology to fintech.
National Start-up Awards 2021: A fact File- National Start-up awards seek to recognise start-ups
contributing towards economic dynamism by encouraging innovation and injecting
competition.
- It focuses on following start-ups.
- That build innovative products or solutions
- That are scalable enterprises, with high potential of wealth
creation or employment generation
- That demonstrates measurable social impact.
- In fintech category’s financial inclusion sub-sector,Bengaluru-based Naffa Innovations Private Limited was declared the winner.
- The
start-up, also called ToneTag, was founded in 2013.
- It provides for mobile
payments using sound and near-field communication (NFC), without using
internet.
- Another winner in fintech category’s insurance sub-sector,
Umbo Idtech Private Limited won the award.
- This start-up was founded in 2018.
- It has built a full-stack platform, enabling omnichannel insurance distribution
for its clients.
- In Robotics sub-sector, Sagar Defence was declared the
winner.
- It was founded in 2015 by Mridul Babbar and Nikunj Parashar.
- The
start-up builds autonomous navigation systems, aerial vehicles and unmanned
marine.
- In the women-led start-up category, Jaipur-headquartered
Frontier Markets was honoured.
- It was founded in 2011 by Ajaita Singh.
- It is a
social commerce platform that focuses on rural India.
Yonex-Sunrise India Open won byLakshya Sen - 19 Jan 22
Highlights:
- India’s Lakshya Sen secured his maiden Super 500 title by
winning “Yonex-Sunrise India Open”, on January 16, 2022.
- Badminton World Federation (BWF):
- He secured the title with a stunning straight-game victory
over reigning world champion from Singapore, Loh Kean Yew in the men’s singles
final.
- 20-year-old Lakshya had earlier claimed his maiden world
championships medal with a bronze in Spain in December 2021.
- He produced a fine performance of 24-22 21-17 in the summit
clash.
- In the doubles’ final, top doubles pair of Satwiksairaj
Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won against three-time world champions Mohammad
Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan from Indonesia.
- The pair become India’s first men’s
team to win the Yonex-Sunrise India Open.
- The world no 10 Indian pair had won
its first Super 500 tournament in 2019 in Thailand.
- India Open is an annual badminton event, held in
India since 2008.
- It is a BWF World Tour Super 500 Grade international
badminton tournament.
- The event was inaugurated in 2007 in Hyderabad, however
the it was cancelled amid Hyderabad bombings.
- The first three editions of the
India Open were designated as Grand Prix Gold events.
- It was upgraded to BWF
superseries tournament in 2011.
- In between 2011-2019, the event was held annually
at the Siri Fort Sports Complex in New Delhi.
- India open is categorised as one
among seven BWF World Tour Super 500 events by BWF since 2018.
World Employment and Social Outlook Report released - 19 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The International Labour Organisation (ILO) released its
report titled “World Employment and Social Outlook”.
- In the report, ILO has
projected global unemployment of 207 million in 2022.
- Global unemployment will reach to 207 million in 2022.
- It is
almost 21 million more than 2019.
- Total hours worked in 2022 will be about 2% below than the
pre-pandemic level.
- There will be deficiency of 52 million full-time equivalent
jobs in 2022.
- The 2022 outlook represents a substantial deterioration as
compared to outlook in June 2021.
- In June 2021, shortfall in working hours
relative to fourth quarter of 2019 was projected to decrease to less than 1% in
2022.
- According to ILO, every new covid-19 outbreak brings setbacks.
- Many gains in decent work prior to pandemic have been significantly impacted
upon.
- Pre-existing decent work deficits are decreasing the prospects of
sustainable recovery across several regions.
- As per ILO report, since the onset of recovery, employment
growth trends in low-income and middle-income countries have remained below to
trends in richer economies because of lower vaccination rates and tighter
fiscal space in developing countries.
- Developing nations experienced a higher level of inequality,
weaker social protection systems and more divergent working conditions.
- Projections to 2023, for all regions, suggests that a full
recovery will remain elusive.
- All regions are likely to face severe downside
risks in their labour market recovery because of ongoing impact of the
pandemic.
- ILO is a United Nations agency, that advances social and
economic justice by setting international labour standards, established
in October 1919, under the League of Nations.
- It is the first and oldest
specialised agency of the UN having187 member states.
- Its headquartered is in Geneva, Switzerland.
Keralas Kumbalanghi become India's First Sanitary-Napkin Free Village - 20 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Kumbalanghi in Kerala will be India's first village without
sanitary napkins.
- Kumbalanghi in Kerala is scheduled to be the first sanitary
napkin-free panchayat in the country.
- This action is part of the 'Avalkayi' initiative, which is
being carried out in the Ernakulam electoral district in collaboration with HLL
Management Academy's "Thingal Scheme" and Indian Oil Corporation.
- Menstrual cups will be supplied to women in Kumbalangi
village aged 18 and up as part of this campaign.
- Under it, 5000 menstruation cups will be supplied. The
Governor will also designate Kumbalangi village as a model village at the same
time.
- The Pradhan Mantri Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (PM-SAGY) is
funding the model village project. In addition, a new visitor information
center will be built in the village.
Kumbalangi:- Kumbalangi is an island town on the fringes of Kerala's
Kochi metropolis.
- It is a popular tourist destination known for its Chinese
fishing nets.
- It's roughly 12
kilometers from the city center, nestled among backwaters.
- The village is also India's first eco-tourism destination.
Social Activist Shanti Devi Passed Away - 20 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Shanti Devi, a social crusader who won the Padma Shri award,
has perished.
- Shanti Devi died on January 17 in Rayagada, Odisha. She was
88 years old.
- Shanti Devi, an
Odisha social worker and Padma Shri awardee known as the "Voice of the
Poor."
- Lugdi Devi was
another name for her. She was well-known for her commitment to helping the poor
and dedicated to helping in Maoist-affected districts of Odisha.
- On November 9, 2021, she earned the distinguished Padma Shri
honor from President Ram Nath Kovind.
- Shanti Devi, born in the Balasore area in 1934, began working
in the social sector at a young age.
- At 17, she wedded Ratan Das and moved to Koraput.
- Shanti Devi began her humanitarian activity by establishing
an ashram in Rayagada's Gobarapalli neighborhood.
- She strived to help native girls develop and receive an
education. She then moved to Gunupur, where she established her now-famous
ashram in 1964 and educated tribal females.
- Shanti Devi has established a new sanctuary for leprosy
patients in Jabarguda, in the Rayagada district's Padmapur block.
- Shanti Devi devoted most of her life to the holistic
development of tribal female children, including education, rehabilitation, and
vocational training for orphans and underprivileged youngsters.
- Shanti Devi received
the Jamunalal Bazaz Award and the Radhanath Rath Peace Award in addition to the
Padma Shri in 2021.
Jhulan Goswami has been designated Ambassador of the All Women Match - 21 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Jhulan Goswami has been named an ambassador for the Legends
League
- Cricket (LLC)'s Women Match Official Team.
- This was done in order to promote the LLC's Women's
Empowerment
- programs and enhance women's engagement in cricket.
- .com Current Affairs - Monthly Edition PDF
- (January 1 - January 31, 2022)
- For the League, the LLC formed an All-Women Match Official
Team.
- This is the first time an all-women official team has
officiated a men's league.
Legends League Cricket:- The Legends Competition Cricket (LLC) is a professional
cricket league for
- cricketers who have retired from the game.
- LLC will hold its first session on January 20, 2022, at the
Oman Cricket
- Stadium in Muscat, Oman.
- Indian Maharaja, Asian Lions, and World Giants are the
Legends League
- Cricket (LLC) 2022 teams.
India’s first UNDP Youth Climate Champion - 21 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Content creator and actress Prajakta Koli become India’s
first UN Development Programme (UNDP) Youth Climate Champion.
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
- She won the title under her partnership with the UNDP.
- Title has been conferred to her because of her contribution
towards mental health, girl child education and women’s rights through various
global social campaigns.
- What does this title mean to Prajakta?
- As a part of her responsibilities, Prajakta will now be
entrusted with interacting with young minds for raising awareness on issues
like global warming, climate crisis, biodiversity loss and their impacts,
because tremors of these issues are being felt by all sections of the society,
including poor and marginalized communities.
Prajakta Koli : A Fact File- Prajakta Koli is an Indian YouTuber and actress, known by
her YouTube Channel “Mostlysane”.
- She makes comedy videos, focusing mostly on
observational comedy related to daily life situations.
- Prajakta Koli has spoken up on issues such body shaming and
online bullying with ‘Shameless’ under her campaign #iPledgeToBeMe, in the
past.
- The campaign came into force on World Mental Health Day in 2016.
- She is a global ambassador for YouTube’s ‘Creators For
Change’ initiative.
- She is known to draw attention of people to trolling,
homophobia through “No Offence Campaign” and female subjugation.
- Her “No Offence Campaign” was showcased at the UN
headquarters in New York on International Tolerance Day.
- In 2018, she was a part of three initiatives and social
cause partnerships:
- First with YouTube for Social Impact Girl’s Education
campaign,
- Second with Instagram on their Safer Internet Week campaign
and
- Third with One.org for their Girl Education campaign.
- In 2019 she received an invitation from “Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation” for “annual Goalkeepers Summit”.
- In 2021, she joined Google’s Impact Challenge to provide
grants to non-profits who are addressing economic inequities faced by girls and
women.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP):- UNDP is a United Nations organization, established in 1965.
It is headquartered in New York City.
- The body help countries in eliminating
poverty and achieving sustainable economic growth as well as human development.
- It is the largest UN development aid agency, having offices across 170
countries.
Indonesians are relocating to Nusantara, a new capital in East Kalimantan - 23 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Indonesians are relocating to Nusantara, a new capital in East Kalimantan.
- East Kalimantan, or Jakarta, is a city on the island of
Borneo.
- In 2019, it was stated that the capital would be relocated here.
- President Joko Widodo made the announcement. Since 1949,
Jakarta has served as Indonesia's capital.
- Jakarta is confronted with environmental and financial
challenges. Jakarta is becoming increasingly polluted.
- It has constantly been recognized as one of the world's most
polluted cities.
- Jakarta is located on the Indonesian island of Java.
- Nusantara is located on the island of Borneo. The island of
Borneo is larger
- than the island of Java. Jakarta is currently densely
inhabited.
- This adds to the load that the Indonesian government is already
carrying.
- Jakarta is also sinking.
- The majority of Jakarta is
anticipated to be submerged by 2050.
- This is primarily due to Jakarta's proximity to multiple
rivers. These rivers are flood-prone regularly. Many areas in Jakarta dipped up
to 10.7 cm between 2019 and 2020.
- All government buildings, including the presidential palace,
international
- organization buildings, and foreign diplomatic buildings,
would be relocated to Nusantara.
- The idea will cost 33 billion dollars to implement. The
capital city will be built on approximately 2,56,142 hectares of land.
- Nusantara is the Indonesian word for the archipelago. It
encompasses philosophical, social, and historical considerations.
- Nusantara is a biodiverse island. Moving the capital to
Nusantara, according to environmentalists, will result in colossal deforestation.
- It will also put the region's forests and animals in
jeopardy.
Urjit Patel Appointed Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank - 24 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Urjit Patel Appointed
Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
- Mr. Patel will serve a three-year tenure as one of the
multilateral Development Bank's five vice presidents, succeeding former Gujarat Chief
Secretary D.J.
- Pandian, who led the AIIB's investment operations as well as
all sovereign and non sovereign loans in South and Southeast Asia as Vice
President.
- Since its establishment in Beijing in 2015, the AIIB has
granted more loans for
- India than any other member. China is the company's largest
stakeholder, followed by India. Its 104 members do not include the United States
or Japan.
- The AIIB has invested $6.7 billion in 28 projects in India.
- Apart from infrastructure, it has recently emphasised green
projects and assisting public health activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Under
the ADB's Asia
- Pacific Vaccine Access Facility (APVAX) project, India asked
for loans from the
- AIIB and the ADB in October to purchase 667 million doses of
COVID-19 vaccines, with the ADB likely to lend $1.5 billion and the
AIIB roughly $500 million.
Global Private Banking Awards 2021 - 24 Jan 22
Highlights:
- HDFC Bank is voted Best Private Bank in India at the Global
Private Banking Awards 2021.
- At the 'Global Private Banking Awards 2021,' organized by
Professional
- Wealth Management (PWM) in a virtual ceremony, HDFC Bank was
voted the 'Best Private Bank' in India.
- The Financial Times Group publishes PWM, a wealth management magazine.
- The prize was presented to assist in accelerating
significant trends, such as digitization, communication, and investment
in ESG initiatives (environmental, social, and governance).
- PWM received over 120 submissions for the Global Private
Banking Awards 2021, of which 16 judges judged from four continents.
- Professional Wealth Management (PWM), the world's premier
global business newspaper, focuses on private banks' expansion
strategies and the regional financial centers for which they function.
- HDFC Bank customers can choose from a product suite across all asset
classes for "optimal asset allocation" based on their risk
profiles and goals, according to HDFC Bank Private Banking, India's largest privately-owned
bank.
- The headquarters of HDFC Bank is located in Mumbai.
- HDFC Bank is a bank based in India. Sashidhar Jagdishan is
the CEO of
- HDFC Bank, founded in August 1994.
- Atanu Chakraborty is the Chairman of HDFC Bank
PASSEX Exercise In Arabian Sea - 25 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Indian Navy and the Russian Navy are participating in
the PASSEX exercise in the Arabian Sea.
- Highlights:
- The Indian Navy and the Russian Navy conducted PASSEX
exercises in the Arabian Sea port of Cochin.
- The Indian Navy's INS Kochi, a guided-missile destroyer
designed and built in India, took part in the test. RFS Admiral Tributs
represented the Russian Federation Navy.
- Two other Russian naval ships were also present: the Russian
Naval Missile Cruiser Varyag and the Russian Tanker Boris Butoma.
- The exercise would include tactical maneuvers, cross-deck
helicopter operations, and seamanship activities to demonstrate the two navies'
cohesiveness and interoperability.
- These exercises will include advanced exterior and
anti-submarine counterinsurgency exercises, weapon firings, seamanship
exercises, and helicopter operations, according to Navy officials.
- These exercises are conducted on a regular basis with units
of friendly foreign navies, while visiting each other's ports or during a
rendezvous at sea, according to Navy officials.
Pilot Shivangi Singh: First Woman Rafale Pilot In India - 25 Jan 22
Highlights:
- India's first female Rafale pilot is Shivangi Singh. At the
Republic Day celebrations, she was a part of the Indian Air Force Tableau. In
2017, she enlisted in the Indian Air Force.
- She is only the second woman pilot to take part in the
Tableau of the Indian
- Air Force. Bhawna Kanth, a fighter jet pilot, was the first
woman to take part in the IAF tableau.
- Shivangi Singh was part of the second group of female
fighter pilots to be commissioned. Before Rafale, she was a MiG-21 pilot.
- She is a member of the squadron known as the Golden Arrows.
- Shivangi Singh was born in the Indian state of Bihar.
- Sikkim Manipal Institute of Technology was where she earned
her bachelor's degree in technology.
- She continued her education at Jaipur's Malaviya National
Institute of Technology.
- "Indian Air Force Transforming for the
Future" was the theme of the 2022 IAF Tableau.
- The tableau included the Aslesha radar and indigenously
produced Light
- Combat Helicopters. The Gnat aircraft was also displayed by
the IAF.
Golden Arrows Squadron:- Its headquarters are in Ambala, Punjab.
- Dassault Rafale jets
were used to resurrect the squadron in 2016.
- During the 1965 India-Pakistan war, it was relocated to
Delhi to safeguard the capital. It's been Rafale since 2019.
- It's a low-weight radar with a lot of features. It can be
used in a variety of environments, including deserts, plains, high altitudes,
and mountain peaks.
- The British came up with the idea for Gnat.
- It's a fighter
jet with a subsonic speed.
- It's used for both combat and training. Different
squadrons in India fly the Gnat.
SEBI launched Saarthi Mobile App for Security Markets - 26 Jan 22
Highlights:
- SEBI launched the Saarthi mobile application, which provides
information about security markets, which is useful for investors.
- The application explains mutual funds, how they work,
trading and settlement, KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures, market
developments, and so on.
- The application also includes a mechanism for resolving
grievances. Both Hindi and English are used in the application.
- It is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
- The app
will eventually be available in local languages as well.
- The number of independent investors entering the market has
recently increased.
- The app was created to assist these individual investors.
- In addition, new investors are trading on their smartphones.
- As a result, mobile apps are assisting them.
- Individual Investors: Individual investors in India are on
the rise.
- In 2020, their share was 39%.
- According to NSE (National Stock
Exchange) data, it will have risen to 45 percent by 2021.
- Banks' interest rates are decreasing.
- Fixed Deposit interest
rates range from 2.9 % to 5.4%.
- As a result, the returns on such investments are extremely
low. Global
- liquidity is increasing. People are also spending a lot of
time at home as a result of the pandemic.
- The BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange) market capitalization
increased by 1.8 times.
- In Russia, it rose by 1.6 times.
- China, France, and South Africa are the other countries that
have seen significant growth.
- It is obvious that India has a higher market
capitalization than other countries.
- Security Markets Security markets are those in which
securities are freely traded.
- Securities are nothing more than assurances.
- When a person fails to pay back the money, the securities
are forfeited.
- Securities are tradable financial instruments that raise
capital both in public and private markets.
World Economic Outlook -2022:IMF - 26 Jan 22
Highlights:
- On January 25, 2022, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
published its World Economic Outlook.
- According to the analysis, global economic growth will be
half a percentage point lower than previously projected.
- The rate of growth will slow from 5.9% in 2021 to 4.% in
2022.
- In 2023, it will drop even lower to 3.8 %.
- According to the IMF, the reduction in global growth
predictions is mostly due to the IMF's assessment of economic prospects in
China and the United States.
- In the United States, the removal of Joe Biden's Build Back
Better strategy from the baseline, early withdrawal of monetary support, and
supply constraints resulted in a 1.2 percentage point downward revision for
growth in 2022.
- Disruptions connected to China's zero-tolerance Covid policy
and persistent financial hardship among property developers resulted in a 0.8
percentage point negative revision.
- India will grow at a rate of 9% in 2021-2022. India's growth prospects were assessed by the IMF to be 9.5 percent
for the year in October 2021.
- India's GDP is expected to grow at 9% in 2022-23, according
to the IMF.
- According to the October prediction, growth will be 8.5
percent in 2022-23 and 7.1 percent in 2023-24.
- India's prospects for 2023 are predicted based on expected
credit growth increases. Furthermore, the financial sector's improved
performance is boosting investment and consumption.
- The World Bank recently predicted a decline in global
growth, with the rate remaining at 4.1 percent in 2022.
- Omicron Variant Impact:
- According to the IMF, governments have reimposed mobility
restrictions in response to the introduction of the Omicron Covid-19 strain.
- In the United States and other developing countries and
emerging markets, rising energy prices and supply interruptions have resulted
in increased and much more broad-based inflation than predicted.
- China's ongoing real estate contraction, as well as a
delayed rebound in private spending, have hampered economic forecasts.
International Education Day observed on January 24 - 27 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The International Day of Education is observed on January 24, annually.
- Year 2022 marked the fourth year of celebration.
- The day was observed with the theme - ‘Changing Course, Transforming Education’.
- Celebration took place at the UN Headquarters in New York, Expo 2022 in Dubai, Global Minnesota and Harvard University Graduate School of Education.
- History of the day:
- The International Education Day was proclaimed by “United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)” in December 2018.
- It was proclaimed to mark the significance of education in ensuring peace and development.
- UNGA resolution:
- The resolution to observe ‘International Day of Education’ was authored by 59 member states.
- It demonstrated the unwavering political will for supporting transformative actions for equitable, inclusive, and quality education for all.
- Significance of Education:
- Education is a tool, which can be employed to ensure progress and growth.
- However, access to this tool is deeply unequal. Covid-19 pandemic has increased this divide.
- Education has suffered a huge gap amid the pandemic because of closure of universities, schools, and other educational institutions and it required a shift towards online mode.
National Voters Day observed on January 25 - 27 Jan 22
Highlights:
- Every year, the National Voters Day is celebrated on January 25.
- The day is celebrated to increase the enrolment of new voters in the country.
- Theme of National Voters Day 2022: "Making elections Inclusive, Accessible and Participative."
- Every year, the National Awards for the Best Electoral Practices are conferred at state and district level on the National Voters Day.
- The awards are presented for election management, security management, IT initiatives and accessible elections.
- Also, the awards are presented for Election Commission of India icons, media groups and other important stakeholders.
- The awards are presented by the Election Commission of India.
- The National Voters Day is being celebrated in the country since 2011.
- The then broadcasting minister Ambika Soni (during Manmohan Singh government) announced that the participation of youths reaching the eligible age of 18 years were showing less interest towards electoral rolls.
- The day was launched to increase their interest. Thus, the day targets the young population.
Veteran archaeologist R. Nagaswamy passed away - 28 Jan 22
- Highlights:
- Renowned archaeologist and first director of Tamil Nadu archaeology department, Padma Bhushan R. Nagaswamy, passed away in Chennai.
- He is survived by two sons and two daughters.
- His wife, Parvathi, predeceased him.
- Nagaswamy is known for his epigraphy research on sculptures in Mahabalipuram.
- He is known for several books on Tamil literature.
- Padma Bhushan
- Nagaswamy was honoured with the Padma Bhushan award, for his research work in archaeology, in 2018. He was also the recipient of Kalaimamani award, which is the highest civilian award from Tamil Nadu government.
- Ramachandran Nagaswamy: A Fact File
- He was an Indian historian, epigraphist and archaeologist, known for his work on temple inscriptions and art history of Tamil Nadu. He was the first director of Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department, from 1966 to 1988.
- He also played an instrumental role in starting the annual Chidambaram Natyanjali festival in 1980. He was an authority in Chola Bronzes.
Param Vishisht Seva Medal honoured to Neeraj Chopra - 29 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Olympic Gold medal winner Neeraj Chopra was honoured
with the Prama Vishisht Seva Medal.
- Neeraj Chopra brought fame to India by
winning the country’s first athletic gold medal.
- In Tokyo Olympics, Chopra won
the medal throwing javelin to 87.58 metres. Along with Neeraj Chopra, 18 other
are being honoured with the award.
- Chopra was honoured with the Arjuna award in 2018. In 2020,
he was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal.
- In 2016, Chopra was enrolled in
Rajputana Rifles as Naib Subedar.
- He was a part of the Mission Olympics Wing
that operated at the Army Sports Institute located in Pune.
- The Mission
Olympics Wing was an initiative of the Indian Army.
- Under the initiative, the
army identified qualified sports person from the army and trained them in
different disciplines. They participated in national and international
competitions.
Naib Subedar:- It Is a rank in the Indian army. The Naib Subedars are
Junior Commissioned officers. Their ranks are lower than lieutenants and higher
than havidars.
- Param Vishisht Seva Medal:
- The award was constituted in 1960.
- It is awarded to peace
time services. The award shall be presented posthumously.
- The lawfully
constituted armed forces, Territorial Army, reserve forces; auxiliary and
nursing officers are eligible for the award.
- It is equivalent to Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal.
- It is lower to Padma
Bhushan and higher to Maha Vir Chakra.
World’s fastest AI supercomputer introduced by Meta - 30 Jan 22
Highlights:
- According to Facebook parent company Meta, its new “artificial
intelligence supercomputer” will be the fastest across the world, by the middle
of year 2022.
- Meta introduced the AI Research Super Cluster (RSC) on
January 24, 2022.
- It is believed to be among fastest AI supercomputers running
today.
- Currently, AI can perform tasks such as translating text
between languages and help in identifying potentially harmful content.
- However, development of next generation of AI will require
powerful supercomputers, which are capable of quintillions of operations per
second.
Significance of RCS:- RCS will help in building new and improved AI models. It
will also allow to work across hundreds of different languages.
- RCS will also help in building technologies for next major
computing platform called “the metaverse”, where AI-driven applications and
products will play a significant role.
What is Metaverse?- Metaverse is a network of 3D virtual worlds.
- It is focused
on social connection.
- This term is described as a hypothetical iteration of
internet and universal virtual world, in futurism and science fiction.
- Metaverse term was originated in 1992 science
fiction novel Snow Crash.
- Meta Platforms is formerly known as Facebook.
- It is an
American multinational technology conglomerate.
- It is headquartered in Menlo
Park, California.
- Meta is the parent organization of Facebook, WhatsApp, and
Instagram. Meta is among world’s most valuable companies and is among Big Tech
companies in U.S. information technology along with Amazon, Google, Apple, and
Microsoft.
- Supercomputer has high level of performance as compared to
general-purpose computer.
- Its performance is commonly measured in
floating-point operations per second (FLOPS), rather than “million instructions
per second (MIPS)”.
India become largest exporter of Cucumber and Gherkins - 30 Jan 22
Highlights:
- India emerged as the ‘Pickle King of The World’, in a recent
development.
- India crossed the exports if worth USD 200 million of
agricultural processed product, pickling gherkins, cucumber or cornichons, in
the financial year 2020-2021.
- With this, India became the largest exporter of cucumbers
and gherkins worldwide.
- India exported 1,23,846 metric tonnes (MT) of cucumber and
gherkins, with a value of USD 114 million during April-October 2021.
- In 2020-21, India shipped 2,23,515MT of cucumber and
gherkins with value worth USD 223 million.
India meeting Global Demand:- As many 51 companies in India produce and export gherkins. Gherkins
are exported in two forms viz., packed in drums and in ready-to-eat packs.
- India meets 15 percent of total global requirement or demand of gherkins.
- Indian plants are of international standards and have been made to cater to the
requirements of foreign countries.
- Indian states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra
Pradesh process and export the pickled cucumber across the world.
- Pickled
cucumbers are imported by more than 20 countries, namely, USA, France, South
Korea, Japan, Israel, Canada, Germany etc.
- As per reports, gherkins are cultivated under contract
farming by 90,000 small and marginal farmers across India.
- These farmers have
an annual production area of 65,000 acres.
- A gherkin farmer earns Rs 80,000 on
an average, with a net income of Rs 40,000.
- Farmers can take two crops of gherkins annually, since it is
a 90-day crop.
- Gherkin is also known as pickled cucumber. It is a cucumber
that has been pickled in vinegar, brine, or other solution and left to ferment
for some time.
Peru Crises : Govt. Declared Emergency - 31 Jan 22
Highlights:
- The Government of Peru
recently declared an environmental emergency due to oil spill last for 90 days.
- Around six thousand barrels of oil were spilled into the
Pacific Ocean.
- A tanker of Repsol, a Spanish Energy firm, was transporting oil
to Vantinalla refinery in Peru.
- The name of the tanker is “Mare Doricum”,an Italian tanker.
- The oil spill occurred due to the explosion of undersea
volcano Tonga. According to NASA, the Tonga volcano eruption is more powerful
than an atom bomb.
- The tsunami waves
from the explosion caused the oil spill.
Damages caused:- The oil spill killed huge number of marine wildlife. It has
left a huge impact on the local fishermen.
- Also, it is to affect the tourism
sector largely.
- Around 2,384 cubic metres of sand is affected by the oil
spill.
- The total economic losses are estimated to be more than 50
million USD.
- Around 713 hectares of sea has been affected.
Impact on Biodiversity:- The oil spill has threatened the survival of Humboldt
penguins. These penguins are listed as “vulnerable” species by the IUCN.
- The fish in the region is carrying oil smell. The
crustaceans that feed on the fish are badly affected.
- Humboldt Penguins
- The Humboldt Penguins were added to the Mumbai Byculla Zoo
in September 2021.
- They have large bare skin patches around their eyes.
- This
adaptation of the penguin helps to keep them cool. They are endemic to the coasts of Peru and Chile.