NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. PM
Narendra Modi unveils hologram statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has unveiled a hologram statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at
India Gate on Parakram Divas. The size of the hologram statue is 28 feet in
height and 6 feet in width. A grand statue, which will be made of granite, will
replace the hologram statue once it is completed. The statue is being installed
on the 125th birth anniversary as a tribute to the immense contribution of
Netaji in the country’s freedom struggle and would be a symbol of the country’s
indebtedness to him.
The prime minister also conferred the
’Subhas Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan Puraskar’ for the years 2019, 2020, 2021,
and 2022 in the investiture ceremony. A total of seven awards were presented
during the ceremony. Gujarat Institute of Disaster Management (in the
Institutional category) and Professor Vinod Sharma (in the Individual category)
have been selected for the Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan Puraskar for
their excellent work in Disaster Management for the year 2022.
2. PM
Modi to unveil 216-foot statue of saint Ramanujacharya: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi will inaugurate a 216-foot statue of Ramanujacharya in a sitting
position in Hyderabad on February 5, 2022, to celebrate the 1,000th birth
anniversary of the saint. Ramanujacharya was an 11th-century saint and a
revolutionary social reformer. The statue will be called as the ‘Statue of
Equality’. It is located in a 45-acre complex at Shamshabad on the outskirts of
Hyderabad in Telangana.
About the project: The project is
built at a cost of Rs. 1,000-crore, which was funded entirely by donations from
devotees globally. President Ram Nath Kovind will unveil the inner chamber of
the statue of Ramanujacharya on February 13, 2022. The Statue of Equality is
the world’s second-tallest statue in a sitting position. The Buddha statue in
Thailand is considered as the world’s tallest statue in a sitting pose.
3.
Jerri hamlet declared as first ‘Milk Village’ of J&K: In the Union
Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the administration has declared Jerri
settlement in Reasi district as the first ‘Milk Village’ of the Union Territory
and sanctioned 57 more dairy farms under the Integrated Dairy Development
Scheme (IDDS) for the hamlet. The village, which houses 73 individual dairy
units with 370 cows, will give the local farmers financial security.
After being declared as ‘Milk Village’, a
total of 57 units have been sanctioned under the IDDS for the village. Under
the IDDS, dairy units of five animals are provided with a 50 per cent subsidy.
The scheme also has a provision for milking machine, bulk milk cooling unit at
50 per cent subsidy (maximum Rs 5 lakh), paneer making machine, khoya making,
Dahi making, cream separator, ice cream making machine, butter and ghee making
machine (max subsidy Rs 3. 5 lakh), milk van (maximum subsidy Rs 2 lakh), milk
ATM subsidy of Rs 5 lakh.
4.
Jahnavi Dangeti becomes first Indian to complete prestigious Nasa programme: Jahnavi Dangeti, a
young girl from Andhra Pradesh, has just completed NASA’s International Air and
Space Program (iasp nasa) at the Kennedy Space Centre in Alabama, US, making
her the first Indian to accomplish this feat. She is part of a carefully
shortlisted group of 20 students from around the world. She has been a campus
ambassador for numerous organisations, including Star (Space Technology and
Aeronautical Rocketry), an Indian private aerospace company. She is a member of
the International Organization of Aspiring Astronauts (IOAA). She participated
in many events and workshops of Nasa, Isro and other space agencies.
5. A
book titled ‘The Legend of Birsa Munda’ authored by Tuhin A Sinha & Ankita
Verma: Maharashtra
Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has released a book titled ‘The Legend of Birsa
Munda’, authored by Tuhin A Sinha and co-authored by Ankita Verma. The Book is
the story of a lesser-known tribal hero, Birsa Munda, who courageously fought
against the oppressive British Raj for the rights of his tribal community.
6.
Parakram Diwas: 23rd January: The Indian government has decided to
celebrate January 23rd as ‘Parakram Diwas’ to commemorate the birth anniversary
of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. This year is the 125th Birth Anniversary of
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Netaji was born on January 23, 1897. The day is
celebrated to honour and remember Netaji’s indomitable spirit and selfless
service to the nation. About Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose:
(1) Netaji’ was born on January 23, 1897,
in Cuttack in Odisha. He acquired a degree in philosophy and was later selected
for the Indian Civil Services. He refused to join as he did not want to serve
the British Government.
(2) Netaji joined the Indian National
Congress in 1921.
(3) Netaji started a newspaper called
“Swaraj”.
(4) He had written a book called “The
Indian Struggle”. The book covers the Indian Independence movement between 1920
and 1942.
(5) The term “Jai Hind” was coined by
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
(6) With the slogan “Give me blood and I
will give you freedom”, he awakened the country towards fighting against the
British.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
ILO Report: Global unemployment level in 2022 projected at 207 million: The International
Labour Organisation (ILO) has released its World Employment and Social Outlook
– Trends 2022 (WESO Trends) report. The report analyses comprehensive labour
market projections for 2022 and 2023 and assesses how labour market recovery
has unfolded worldwide. In the WESO 2022, ILO has downgraded its forecast for
labour market recovery in 2022.
Key figures of the report:
(1) The global unemployment level in 2022
is estimated at 207 million, compared to 186 million in 2019.
(2) Total working hours globally in 2022 is
projected to be 2% below the pre-pandemic level, and that is equivalent to the
loss of 52 million full-time jobs.
(3) The global labour force participation
rate in 2022 is projected to remain 1.2 percentage points below that of 2019
before the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic began.
(4) In 2022 around 40 million people will
no longer be participating in the global labour force.
(5) ILO states that there can be no real
recovery from this pandemic without a broad-based labour market recovery.
Note: International Labour Organisation
Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland; International Labour Organisation
Director-General: Guy Ryder; International Labour Organisation Founder: Paris
Peace Conference; International Labour Organisation Founded: 1919.
2.
Oxford University Press declares ‘Anxiety’ as Children’s Word of the Year 2021:
The
Oxford University Press (OUP) has picked up ‘Anxiety’ as the Children’s Word of
the Year 2021, based on their recent research. Apart from “anxiety” (21%),
“Challenging” (19%), “isolate” (14%), “Wellbeing” (13%) and “resilience” (12%)
were the children’s top five words. In 2020, Coronavirus was the Children’s
Word of the Year by OUP.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1.
TCS Becomes Title Sponsor of Toronto Waterfront Marathon: TCS has partnered
with Canada Running Series (CRS) to become the new title sponsor and official
technology consulting partner of the Toronto Waterfront Marathon and Virtual
Race through November 2026. Tata Consultancy Services and Canada Running Series
aim to modernize marathon running in Canada through a new official race app. It
will offer a first-of-its-kind environmental impact calculator that will enable
runners and spectators to track and offset their environmental impact. TCS will
also work with CRS to create a hybrid and immersive race experience for all
runners and spectators around the globe.
Note: Tata Consultancy Services Founded: 1
April 1968; Tata Consultancy Services Headquarters: Mumbai; Tata Consultancy
Services CEO: Rajesh Gopinathan
BANKING AND FINANCE
1.
RBI Paper: Optimal hedge ratio for ECBs is at 63%: According to a
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Working Paper, the optimal hedge ratio for the
External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs) raised by firms in India is estimated at
63 per cent for the periods of high volatility in the foreign exchange
(forex/FX) market. An optimal hedge ratio is a ratio that implies the
percentage of total asset or liability exposure that an entity ought to hedge
against exchange rate fluctuations. According to the Paper, domestic economic
activity and movements in the exchange rate of the Indian rupee are the two
major factors influencing the ECBs issuance. Depreciation of the Indian rupee
has an adverse impact on the issuance of ECBs in the short as well as long run.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
1.
SEBI Launches Saa₹Thi Mobile App On Investor Education: The new app aims to
empower investors with accurate knowledge about the securities market. The app
will cater largely to individual investors, who have recently entered the
markets and carry out trading via their mobile phones. The app will be helpful
in easily accessing all the relevant information like the basic concepts of
Securities Market, KYC Process, trading and settlement, mutual funds, recent
market developments, investor grievances redressal mechanism, etc. It is
currently available in Hindi and English.
Note: SEBI Founded: 12 April 1992; SEBI
Headquarters: Mumbai; SEBI Chairperson: Ajay Tyagi
2.
Microsoft to acquire video gaming company Activision Blizzard: Microsoft Corp. is
set to acquire game making company, Activision Blizzard Inc., in an all-cash
transaction for $68.7 billion. ($95.00 per share). This acquisition will boost
the competitiveness of Microsoft in the mobile gaming business and
virtual-reality technology, across mobile, PC, console and cloud and will
provide building blocks for the metaverse.
Activision Blizzard is famous as the maker
of Candy Crush and Call of Duty, Xbox, among other leading video games. Upon
the completion of the deal, Microsoft will become the world’s third-largest
gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony. This is the biggest deal
ever by Microsoft and also the largest-ever deal in the history of the gaming
industry.
Note: Microsoft CEO and Chairman: Satya
Nadella; Microsoft Headquarters: Redmond, Washington, United States.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1.
Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla wins $1 million Genesis Prize for COVID-19 vaccine: The global
pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc.’s Chairman and Chief Executive, Albert Bourla,
has been awarded with the prestigious Genesis Prize 2022 on January 19, 2022.
He has been awarded for his efforts in leading the development of a COVID-19
vaccine (Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine). The award comes with a cash prize
of $1 million.
About the awards: The annual prize
is awarded to Jewish people who have achieved significant professional success,
in recognition of their accomplishments, contributions to humanity, and
commitment to Jewish values and/or to the State of Israel. It is widely
referred to as the “Jewish Nobel Prize”.
DEFENCE
1.
India Successfully Test Fires BrahMos Supersonic Cruise Missile: BrahMos supersonic
cruise missile, with increased indigenous content and improved performance, was
successfully test-fired from Integrated Test Range, Chandipur off the coast of
Odisha. The launch was conducted by Brahmos Aerospace in close coordination
with Defence Research and Development Organisation. This flight test was
monitored by all the sensors of the range instrumentation including telemetry,
radar and electro-optical tracking systems deployed across the eastern coast
and the down range ships. Brahmos was successfully test-fired from Integrated
Test Range, Chandipur off the coast of Odisha on January 20, 2022. The flight
test is a major milestone in the way forward for BrahMos programme. The highly
maneuverable missile cruised at supersonic speed for its maximum range and all
mission objectives were met. BrahMos Aerospace, the joint venture between DRDO
and NPO Mashinostroyeniya, Russia, has been continuously upgrading the
powerful, highly versatile BrahMos to increase its effectiveness and lethality
against sea and land targets.
OBITUARIES
1. Former India footballer Subhas Bhowmick passes away: Former India footballer Subhas Bhowmick has passed away at the age of 72 years due to prolonged illness. He was born in West Bengal. He was part of the Indian Football team that won a bronze medal at the 1970 Asian Games (held in Bangkok). He also scored a hat-trick against the Philippines in the Merdeka Cup in 1971. He has also served as the coach for football teams like Mohun Bagan and East Bengal.
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