Daily GK Update- 12th Jan, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Election Commission hikes expenditure limit for candidates in polls: The Election Commission of India has increased the existing election expenditure limit for candidates in Parliamentary and Assembly constituencies, due to the rise in inflation. The new limits will be applicable in all upcoming elections in the country. The previous major revision in the election expenditure limit was done in 2014. It was further increased by 10% in 2020. EC had formed a Committee to study the cost factors and other related issues, and make suitable recommendations.

Parliamentary constituencies poll expenditure ceiling:

(1) The ceiling on parliamentary poll expenditure has been raised from 70 lakh to 95 lakh rupees in bigger states and 54 lakh to 75 lakhs in smaller states.

(2) The bigger states include Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Karnataka.

(3) The smaller states include Goa, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and UTs.

(4) The ceiling on poll expenditure in UT of Jammu and Kashmir has been raised to 95 lakhs.

Assembly constituencies poll expenditure limits: For Assembly constituencies, expenditure limits have been enhanced from 28 lakh rupees to 40 lakh rupees in bigger states and from 20 lakhs to 28 lakhs in smaller states.

 

2. ICMR approves India-made first kit ‘OmiSure’ to detect Omicron: The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved a testing kit for detecting the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. The covid kit developed by Tata is called ‘OmiSure’ and will be an enhancement for the detection of the Omicron variant. The kit is manufactured by Tata Medical and Diagnostics. The tests have been performed as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Responsibility for batch-to-batch consistency lies with the manufacturer.

About the test kit: The Tata Medical and Diagnostics has developed a kit ‘OmiSure’ that can detect the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV2 in nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal specimens during the RT-PCR tests. The test kit is compatible with all standard Real-Time PCR Machines. The test run time of this kit is 85 minutes. The result turnaround time, including sample collection and RNA extraction, is 130 minutes.

 

3. Union Minister Jitendra Singh inaugurates 24th Conference on e-Governance 2020-21: Union Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh has inaugurated the 24th National Conference on e-Governance in Hyderabad, Telangana. The theme of the two-day Conference is ‘India’s Techade: Digital Governance in a Post Pandemic World’. The conference has been organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), in association with the State Government of Telangana.

About the conference: The conference would provide considerable momentum to the e-governance initiatives across the country, providing opportunities for civil servants and industry captains to showcase their successful interventions in e-governance in improving end to end service delivery. Delegates from 28 states and 9 Union Territories along with academia, research institutions, IT industry would be participating in the conference through virtual mode.

 

4. Govt re-appoints Vijay Paul Sharma as CACP Chairman: The Centre has re-appointed Vijay Paul Sharma as the chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP) after he relinquished the post in May last year following completion of the five-year tenure. The role of the CACP chairman will be crucial in the proposed committee on the minimum support price (MSP) and other reforms. Sharma, a professor at the Centre for Management in Agriculture at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, was appointed CACP Chairman for the first time in June 2016.

The function of CACP: The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices, established in 1965, is an apex advisory body under the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. It’s an expert body that recommends the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) by taking into consideration various factors.

 

5. A new book titled “Gandhi’s Assassin: The Making of Nathuram Godse and His Idea of India” by Dhirendra Jha: Dhirendra K. Jha, a Delhi-based journalist, has authored a new book titled “Gandhi’s Assassin: The Making of Nathuram Godse and His Idea of India”. The book explores Godse’s relationship with the organizations that influenced his view and gave him a sense of purpose and draws out the gradual hardening of Godse’s resolve that led to Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination.

 

6. National Youth Day: 12th January: In India, the National Youth Day is celebrated on 12 January annually to commemorate the birth anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. The main aim behind this is to make sure that the students across the country can be encouraged to learn about the life, the ideas and philosophy of Swami Vivekananda and apply them in their lives. In 2022, we are observing the 159th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekanand (12 January 1863). The theme for National Youth Day 2022 is The Theme of 2022 is “It’s all in the mind.”

History of National Youth Day: The decision to celebrate Vivekananda’s birthday as National Youth Day was taken in 1984, and it was first marked on January 12, 1985.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. OPEC appoints Kuwait’s Haitham Al Ghais as new secretary general: Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has appointed Kuwaiti oil executive Haitham Al Ghais as its new secretary-general, as demand for oil continues to improve amid a mild recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Al Ghais, a veteran of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Kuwait’s Opec governor from 2017 to June 2021, will take the group’s reins in August, replacing Mohammad Barkindo. The move comes as the oil exporters’ group and its allies prepare to decide on a future course for oil production. Opec+ is expected to stick to the plan and increase production by 400,000 barrels per day in February.

Note: OPEC Headquarters: Vienna, Austria; OPEC Founded: September 1960, Baghdad, Iraq.

 

2. Justice Ayesha Malik to be Pakistan’s first woman Supreme Court judge: Pakistan has moved closer to appointing the first woman judge of the Supreme Court, after a high-power panel approved the elevation of Lahore High Court judge Ayesha Malik to the apex court. The Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP), headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, approved Malik’s elevation by a majority of five votes against four. This is the second time that the JCP held a meeting to decide on Justice Malik’s elevation. Justice Malik’s name first came before the JCP on September 9 last year but the panel was equally split, resulting in the rejection of her candidature.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Winter Olympics-bound Md Arif Khan included in Target Olympic Podium Scheme: Sports Ministry’s Mission Olympic Cell (MOC) of India has approved the inclusion of Alpine Skiing athlete Md Arif Khan in the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) Core group, until the Winter Olympics, scheduled this February in Beijing, China. The feat earned Khan the unique distinction of becoming the first Indian to win direct quota spots in two different Winter Olympics events, besides being the first athlete from the country to seal a berth at the Winter Olympic games 2022. Khan will take part in the Winter Olympics in the Slalom and Giant Slalom events. He has also been approved an amount of Rs 17.46 Lakh under TOPS towards training in Europe and procurement of equipment, ahead of the grand event in China. Khan’s current training base is in Austria, where he is accompanied by his coach and physio.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. SBI General Insurance launched ‘#BahaneChhodoTaxBachao’ campaign: State Bank of India General Insurance Company Ltd has launched a campaign titled ‘#BahaneChhodoTaxBachao’ to increase awareness around the need to buy health insurance to save tax. It will also highlight the other benefits of opting for health insurance. The campaign aims to increase the awareness of how buying health insurance can help people save tax which is crucial and seasonal in the last quarter of the financial year for all Indians. The campaign will also underline the other benefits of opting for health insurance.

The campaign is in a quirky Vox Pop format featuring anchor Rudraksh Singh aka Rudy is seen travelling across major cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Kolkata and asks the lamest excuse that people have to offer for not buying/opting for health insurance. The idea here is to find out ‘India ka lamest excuse’ for not opting for health insurance. Health insurance not just prevents a medical emergency but also benefit from saving tax under section 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Note: SBI General Insurance Founded: 24 February 2009; SBI General Insurance Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra; SBI General Insurance MD & CEO: Prakash Chandra Kandpal; SBI General Insurance Tagline: Suraksha Aur Bharosa Dono.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail invests $200 mn in Dunzo to acquire 25.8% stake: Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail has invested $200 million or around Rs 1,488 crore in Bengaluru-based quick commerce player Dunzo for a 25.8 per cent stake on a fully diluted basis. The move will help Reliance get a foothold in the country’s growing quick delivery market. Dunzo raised a total of $240 million in this latest round led by the Reliance Industries Ltd arm. The other existing investors were Lightbox, Ligthrock, 3L Capital and Alteria Capital, who participated in the round.

The funding will be used to strengthen Dunzo’s vision to excel in the quick commerce business, enabling instant delivery of essentials from a network of micro warehouses while also expanding its B2B business vertical to enable logistics for local merchants in Indian cities.

Note: Dunzo Founder(s): Kabeer Biswas, Ankur Agarwal, Dalvir Suri, Mukund Jha; Dunzo Founded: July 2014; Dunzo Headquarters location: Bengaluru.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. 3rd National Water Awards for 2020 announced: Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has declared the winners of the third National Water Awards for the year 2020. Uttar Pradesh has been adjudged as the Best State in water conservation efforts in the National Water Awards 2020. It is followed by Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu respectively. The award comes with a citation, trophy and cash prize. Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh received the best district award in the northern zone followed by Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar in Punjab.

3rd National Water Awards 2020 list is given below:

 

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”	ITC Limited, Kolkata, West Bengal

 

DEFENCE

 

1. Sea Dragon 2022 Exercise: India joins ‘Sea Dragon’ exercise: India and its partners in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad along with Canada and South Korea are participating in the multinational exercise Sea Dragon 2022 at Guam in the Western Pacific. The six nations that are participating in the exercise are the United States, Australia, Canada, India, Japan and South Korea.

About the exercise: The exercise, primarily focused on anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training, will involve more than 270 hours of in-flight training and activities ranging from tracking simulated targets to tracking a US Navy submarine. Each event will be graded and the country scoring the highest points will receive the Dragon Belt award.

The focus of the exercise: Sea Dragon 22 focuses on anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training and excellence, which includes everything from tracking simulated targets to tracking a genuine US Navy submarine. Pilots and flight officers from all around the world develop strategies and discuss tactics in training sessions that take into account their individual countries’ skills and equipment.