Daily GK Update- 21st April, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. World’s Highest Tunnel connecting Himachal Pradesh to Ladakh to be construed by BRO: BRO Director General Lieutenant General Rajeev Chaudhary announced that the Border Roads Organisation will build the world’s highest tunnel at Shinku La Pass, at 16,580 feet, to connect Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh. He said this while opening the strategically crucial Himachal to Zanskar Road at Shinku La Pass, where more than a half-dozen vehicles crossed from the Zanskar side towards Manali. Key Points:

a)      The Border Roads Organisation (BRO), according to Lieutenant General Rajeev Chaudhary of PTI, would begin construction of the tunnel connecting Himachal Pradesh and the Zanskar Valley in Ladakh by July this year. He stated that the Centre has already established BRO’s ‘Mission Yojak’ to carry out this ambitious project.

b)      The tunnel, which is expected to be completed by 2025, will transform the economy of Zanskar Valley, according to the official.

c)       Currently, one must travel 101 kilometres on the Leh route from Manali to Darcha, then turn left towards Shinku La Pass and enter Zanskar valley.

d)      The tunnel’s south portal will be at Shinku La, and the tunnel’s north portal will be at Lhakhang.

e)      The D-G praised BRO personnel’s efforts in reopening the Shinku La-Padum and Manali-Leh roads in record time.

 

2. Karnataka named Robin Uthappa as brand ambassador for Brain Health Initiative: The Karnataka State Government in association with NIMHANS and Niti Ayog launched the Karnataka Brain Health Initiative (Ka-BHI) in January. Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa has been recently appointed as the brand ambassador for Karnataka- Brain Health Initiative (Ka-BHI). Note: Karnataka Capital: Bengaluru; Karnataka Chief Minister: Basavaraj S Bommai; Karnataka Governor: Thawar Chand Gehlot.

 

3. Lt Gen Manoj Pande named as India’s next Chief of Army Staff: Lieutenant General Manoj Pande has been appointed as the next Chief of Army Staff. Lt Gen Pande is the incumbent Vice-Chief of the Army. He will take over from General MM Naravane, who is set to retire on April 30, 2022. He has served as chief engineer in the UN mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. He was the Commander-in-Chief Andaman and Nicobar Command (CINCAN) from June 2020 to May 2021. Outgoing army chief Gen MM Naravane is seen as the frontrunner for the Chief of Defence Staff’s (CDS) post, that has been vacant since the death of India’s first CDS Gen Bipin Rawat in an air crash last December.

 

4. India Pulses and Grains Association named Bimal Kothari as Chairman: India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA), the apex body for India’s pulses trade and industry, has appointed Bimal Kothari as the new Chairman with immediate effect. Kothari takes over from Jitu Bheda, who was the IPGA chairman since 2018. Kothari, one of the key founding members of the association, has been the Vice-Chairman of IPGA since 2011 when it was formed. Bimal Kothari takes over as the third chairman of the association after Pravin Dongre and Jitu Bheda.

 

5. Ethosh Digital has opened its first IT Training & Services centre in Leh: Leh has taken the first step in building an IT sector. SS Khandare, the Additional Director General of Police for Ladakh, has opened Ethosh Digital’s first IT Training and Services centre in Leh. Ethosh Digital is a multinational company established in California that specialises in digital communications and AR-VR products. Ethosh Digital was assisted in establishing the first IT office in Ladakh by Aseem Foundation, a Pune-based NGO that works in India’s border regions in the sectors of education, business, health, sports, and sustainable development.

 

6. A new Children’s Book titled “The Boy Who Wrote a Constitution” has been Released: On the occasion of Dr BR Ambedkar’s 131st birth anniversary, a new book titled “The Boy Who Wrote a Constitution: A play for Children on Human Rights” authored by Rajesh Talwar, a fact-based drama on Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar’s own recollections of his childhood has been released. It is published by Ponytale Books. Talwar’s also authored books include “The Vanishing of Subhash Bose”, “Gandhi, Ambedkar, and the Four-Legged Scorpion”, and “Aurangzeb”.

The essence of the day: This book conveys to the children about the challenging boyhood and grown-up years of Ambedkar who had written the Constitution of India and became India’s first law minister.

 

7. National Civil Services Day: 21st April: India observes National Civil Services Day on April 21 every year to acknowledge the works of officers engaged in several public service departments in the country. The day also marks a reminder for civil servants, who collectively run the country’s administrative machinery and their dedication to serving the citizens of the country.

History and Significance: Civil Services Day is celebrated on April 21 to commemorate the day when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the first Home Minister of Independent India addressed probationers of Administrative Services Officers at Delhi’s Metcalf House in 1947. In his address, he called Civil Servants, the ‘Steel Frame of India’. This meant that civil servants, employed at various levels of the government, act as supporting pillars of the country’s administrative system.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Russian vessel Moskva has sunk as a result of a ‘Neptune missile strike’ by Ukraine: According to a ministry message, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, Moskva, was being hauled to port when it sank due to stormy waves. The 510-crew missile cruiser, which led Russia’s naval attack on Ukraine, was a symbol of the country’s military might.

Key Points:

a)      Kyiv claims that its rockets struck the cruiser. According to the United States, it was also targeted by Ukrainian missiles.

b)      Moscow has denied any attack and claims the ship sank due to a fire.

c)       According to Russia, the conflagration caused the warship’s ammunition to explode, and the whole crew was eventually evacuated to adjacent Russian boats in the Black Sea.

d)      After first stating that the battleship was floating, the Russian defence ministry revealed late Thursday that the Moskva had been lost.

e)      The 12,490-tonne warship is the largest Russian warship sunk in combat since WWII.

 

2. Tropical Storm Megi: Landslides and floods caused Mass Destruction in Philippines: Tropical Storm Megi wreaked havoc on the Philippines, killing at least 167 people in landslides and floods. According to the national disaster organisation, another 110 persons are missing, and 1.9 million people have been impacted. Hillside avalanches and overflowing rivers wreaked havoc on the villages surrounding Baybay city in central Leyte province.

About Tropical Storm Megi:

a)      Tropical Storm Megi, also known as Tropical Storm Agaton in the Philippines, was a minor but devastating tropical storm that hit the Philippines in April 2022.

b)      It’s the third tropical depression and second tropical storm of the typhoon season in the Pacific for 2022.

c)       Megi arose from a convection zone in the Philippine Sea, travelling northwestward into the Leyte Gulf, where it stayed nearly stationary, slowly tracking eastward. Megi made two landfalls, one at Guiuan’s Calicoan Island and the other in Samar’s Basey.

d)      Before fading, it continued southwestward and reentered the Philippine Sea.

 

3. World Creativity and Innovation Day: 21st April: World Creativity and Innovation Day is celebrated on April 21 every year. The day aims to raise awareness about the importance of creativity and innovation in problem-solving and encourage creative multidisciplinary thinking at the individual and group levels. The World Creativity and Innovation Week is also observed from April 15-21. The theme of World Creativity and Innovation Day 2022: Collaboration

History of World Creativity and Innovation Day: World Creativity and Innovation Day (WCID) was founded on 25 May 2001 in Toronto, Canada. The founder of the day was the Canadian Marci Segal. Segal was studying creativity in 1977 at the International Center for Studies in Creativity. The United Nations on 27 April 2017 resolved to include World Creativity and Innovation Day on 21 April as a Day of observance to raise importance among people about the use of their creativity in problem-solving for all issues that may be related to achieving the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. Haryana wins 12th Senior Men’s National Hockey Championship: Haryana has emerged as the champions of the 12th Senior Men’s National Hockey Championship by defeating Tamil Nadu 3-1 in the shootout after the final ended 1-1 in the regulation time. The tournament was held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh from April 6 to 17, 2022. Haryana has won the trophy for the first time since 2011. Karnataka prevailed over Maharashtra 4-3 in the third/fourth place classification match.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. WPI based inflation in March rose to 14.55%: The wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation in India in the month of March rose to 14.55% due to an increase in power prices and rising edible oil prices. In March 2022, the high rate of inflation was recorded due to a rise in prices of mineral oils, crude petroleum and natural gas, and basic metals owing as there was a disruption in the global supply chain caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In March 2021, the WPI-based inflation had stood at 7.89%.

The food index, which includes food products from the Manufactured Products group and food articles from the government’s Primary Articles group, has risen to 167.3 in March 2022 from 166.4 in February 2022. The WPI Food Index-based rate of inflation also increased to 8.71 % in March 2022 from 8.47 % in February 2022. In March 2022, the index for the major fuel and power group increased by 5.68 % to 146.9 from 139.0 in February 2022.

 

2. World bank Report States Extreme Poverty in India Decline by 12.3%: The extreme poverty rate in India fell from 22.5% in 2011 to 10.2% in 2019 as per World Bank Policy Research Working Paper. This represents a decline of 12.3 percentage points in extreme poverty count between 2011 to 2019 in the country. The decline in rural areas was much higher than in urban areas. While the reduction in rural poverty dropped by 14.7 percentage points, the poverty in urban areas dropped by 7.9 percentage points.

Note: World Bank Founded: July 1944, Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States; World Bank Headquarters: Washington DC, USA; World Bank President: David Robert Malpass; World Bank Member Countries: 189 (including India).

 

DEFENCE

 

1. In New Delhi, the Army Commanders’ Conference gets underway: In New Delhi, the Army Commanders’ Conference, an apex level biannual event, has commenced. The conference serves as an institutional forum for high–level discussions that lead to major policy decisions for the Indian Army. Key Points:

a)      The Indian Army’s senior command will analyse the operational posture along active borders, assess threats throughout the spectrum of conflict, and conduct an analysis of capability voids to focus on capability development and operational preparation plans during the five-day conference.

b)      Discussions on infrastructure projects in border areas, modernisation through reform, induction of Niche tech, and any influence of the Russia-Ukraine conflict are also on the agenda.

c)       Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to meet with senior commanders and deliver a speech at the Conference.

d)      Apart from ideas for enhancing works, financial management, adopting e-vehicles, and digitalisation in the Indian Army, the top commanders will discuss a variety of agenda items sponsored by regional commands.

 

2. Trishakti Corps conducts EX KRIPAN SHAKTI in West Bengal: Exercise KRIPAN SHAKTI, an Integrated Fire Power exercise was recently conducted by The Indian Army’s Trishakti Corps at the Teesta Field Firing Ranges (TFFR), near Siliguri, West Bengal. The exercise was led by Lieutenant General Tarun Kumar and General Officer Commanding Trishakti Corps. The aim of the exercise is to showcase the joint manship and synchronisation capabilities of the Indian Army and the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to fight in an integrated battle.

Key Points of the exercise:

a)      The Firing involves the deployment of a range of weapons such as guns, mortars, infantry combat vehicles, helicopters and the deployment of Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance platforms to execute the ‘Sensor to Shooter’ concept.

b)      Almost Precision and Professionalism were shown while executing drills such as Integrated responses by The Indian Army troops and Simulated enemy airborne drills by the CAPFs.

c)       The most significant drill is the swift action by the Special Heliborne troops and rapid deployment of arty guns and equipment by helicopters was done with high precision.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Noted Odia singer and musician Prafulla Kar passes away: Popular Odia singer and music director Prafulla Kar has passed away following age-related ailments. Kar was an eminent musician, singer, lyricist, writer and columnist. He received the prestigious Padma Shri award in 2015. He started his career as a singer in 1962 with the Odia film Shri Shri Patita Pabana. In 1975, he became a music composer in the film Mamata which turned out to be an instant hit. Some of the movies which would forever carry the legacy of his melodious music are Batighara, Shesha Shrabana, Sindura Bindu, Bandhu Mahanti, Balidaan and Ram Balaram.