Daily GK Update- 9th Jan, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Raj Kumar Singh dedicates Automatic Generation Control to nation: Power and new and renewable energy minister, Raj Kumar Singh has dedicated Automatic Generation Control (AGC) to the nation. The AGC sends signals to power plants every four seconds to maintain the frequency and thereby reliability of India’s power system. It will help in achieving the government’s target of 500 GW non-fossil fuel-based generation capacity by 2030.

About the Automatic Generation Control:

(1) Automatic Generation Control will be operated by Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) through National Load Despatch Centre.

(2) POSOCO will send signals to every power plant through AGC every 4 seconds to maintain the frequency and reliability of the Power System.

(3) R.K. Singh has also released a report titled “Assessment of Inertia in Indian Power System”. It has been prepared by POSOCO with the help of IIT Bombay.

(4) India has achieved an installed capacity of 150 GW of renewable energy and aims to achieve a renewable energy capacity of 175 GW in 2022.

 

2. PM chose Puducherry as host of National Youth Festival: Puducherry has been handpicked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to host the 25th National Youth Festival. The 25th National Youth Festival is going to be held in Puducherry from 12th to 16th January 2022. The festival has been organised as part of the Azadi ki Amrit Mahotsav marking the 75th year of Independence, said Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports and Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur. Key points of the festival:

(1) The festival is likely to draw around 7000 youths in the age group of 18 to 22 from across the country. Around 500 youths from Puducherry will take part in the event.

(2) The government of India holds National Youth Festival, as a part of National Youth Week celebrations. It is organised with the aim of propagating the concept of national integration, brotherhood, the spirit of communal harmony, courage and adventure amongst the youth.

(3) This aim is achieved by organizing gatherings of youth and encouraging them to take part in different activities.

 

3. Odisha’s Ganjam district is now child marriage free 2022: Odisha’s Ganjam has declared itself a child marriage free district, the first in the State. The district administration has been able to stop as many as 450 child marriages and video-record 48,383 marriages in two years — 2020 and 2021. After verification, the Ganjam administration declared it a child marriage free district. Sarpanchs and task force committee members had sent recommendations that no child marriage had taken place in their respective areas.

About the programme: Ganjam had started a programme Nirbhaya Kadhi (Fearless bud). All heads of educational institutes were directed to inform the administration if any girl aged between 12 and 18 remained absent from school for five days. As many as one lakh teenagers have undergone counselling in the past two years. The administration also made the production of Aadhaar cards mandatory for any marriages to take place.

Note: Odisha Capital: Bhubaneswar; Odisha Governor: Ganeshi Lal; Odisha Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik.

 

4. Alka Mittal becomes 1st women head of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation: Director HR in ONGC, Alka Mittal has been given the additional charge as the new interim chairman and managing director (CMD) of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), the largest oil and gas producer in India. She is the first woman to head the top post at the Maharatna company. She replaces Subhash Kumar who superannuated on December 31. He was also serving as an interim head. Alka Mittal has been appointed for a period of six months with effect from January 1, 2022, or till the appointment of a regular incumbent to the post, or until further order, whichever is the earliest.

Note: ONGC Headquarters: Vasant Kunj, New Delhi; ONGC Founded: 14 August 1956.

 

5. Pravasi Bhartiya Divas: 9th January: The Non-Resident Indian Day or also known as the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas is celebrated every year on 9th January every year. The aim of the event is to strengthen the engagement of the overseas Indian community with the Government of India and reconnect them with their roots. On the occasion of 2022 Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD), Union Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan will speak at a virtual youth PBD conference on the “role of Indian diaspora” in innovation and new technology.

History and Significance: On 9 January 1915, Mahatma Gandhi came to India from South Africa and became the greatest Pravasi who led India’s Freedom Struggle and made India free from British or colonial rule. As a Non-Resident Indian or Pravasi, he is presented as a symbol of a change and development that could bring into India.

Note: Union Minister of External Affairs: Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok announces resignation: Prime Minister of Sudan, Abdalla Hamdok has announced his resignation on January 02, 2022. The decision follows a military coup that caused political deadlock and widespread pro-democracy protests in the country. The 66-year-old Hamdok served as the 15th Prime Minister of Sudan from 2019 to 2022. Mr Hamdok called for a dialogue to agree on a “national charter” and to “draw a roadmap” to complete the transition. The October coup had upended Sudan’s plans to move to democracy after a popular uprising forced the military’s overthrow of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir and his Islamist government in April 2019.

Note: Sudan Capital: Khartoum; Currency: Sudanese pound.

 

2. Apple becomes world’s first company to hit $3 trillion M-Cap: The stock market value of Apple Inc. hit $3 trillion and became the world’s first company to do so. The market cap of Apple hit $182.86 per share, which made it the world’s first company to touch the $3 trillion mark. However shortly after hitting the mark, the share value dipped below it and did not rise again until the market closed. The iPhone maker passed $2 trillion in 2020 and over $1 trillion in 2018. The world’s most valuable company reached the milestone as investors bet that consumers will continue to shell out top dollar for iPhones, MacBooks and services such as Apple TV and Apple Music. In China, the world’s largest smartphone market, Apple continued to lead for the second straight month, beating rivals such as Vivo and Xiaomi, recent data from CounterPoint Research showed.

Note: Apple Inc. CEO: Tim Cook; Apple Inc. Founded: 1 April 1976, California, United States; Apple Inc. Headquarters: Cupertino, California, United States; Apple Inc. Founders: Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. RBI Retains SBI, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank as D-SIBs 2022: Reserve Bank of India has retained State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs). These three banks have continued to be on the D-SIBs list published by RBI, since Sep 04, 2017. Domestic Systemically Important Banks are those banks which if fail would have a significant impact on the economy.

The D-SIBs banks are classified into 5 buckets. Bucket 1, Bucket 2, Bucket 3, Bucket 4 and Bucket 5. With Bucket 5 being the most important followed by rest in decreasing order. State Bank of India is in Bucket 3, while ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank are in Bucket 1. The updated list is based on the data collected from banks as of March 31, 2021.

About the D-SIB: The D-SIB framework requires the central to disclose the names of banks designated as D-SIBs starting from 2015 and place these lenders in appropriate buckets depending upon their Systemic Importance Scores (SISs). SIBs are seen as ‘too big to fail (TBTF)’, creating expectations of government support for them in times of financial distress. These banks also enjoy certain advantages in funding markets.

 

2. RBI approved Fino Payments Bank for international remittance business: Reserve Bank of India has approved Fino Payments Bank for commencing international (Cross Border) remittance business under the Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS). The approval will enable the customers of Fino Payments Bank to receive money sent from foreign countries. The Bank plans to implement the service in its mobile applications as well and it also plans to partner with more leading money transfer operators (MTOs) to improve its cross-border remittance.

What are the benefits of the bank?

(1) The Bank will be undertaking inward cross-border money transfer activities and will be partnering with an overseas principal.

(2) It has also received the approval to partner with one of the largest global remittance service providers as its overseas principal.

(3) The customer segment of Fino Bank at the middle of the pyramid is targeted to families of many of the people working in foreign countries.

(4) The money remitted by family members abroad can now be directly withdrawn at the nearest micro-ATM or Aadhaar-Enabled Payment Services (AEPS) enabled Fino Bank’s neighbourhood merchant point.

Note: Chairman of Fino Payments Bank: Prof Mahendra Kumar Chouhan; Fino Payments Bank established: 13 July 2006; MD & CEO of Fino Payments Bank: Rishi Gupta; Headquarters of Fino Payments Bank: Mumbai, Maharashtra.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Nippon India MF launches India’s first Auto ETF 2022: Nippon Life India Asset Management Limited, asset manager of Nippon India Mutual Fund (NIMF), has announced the launch of India’s First Auto sector ETF – Nippon India Nifty Auto ETF. Nippon India Nifty Auto ETF will predominantly invest in stocks comprising of the Nifty Auto Index in the same proportion as the Index. It will provide exposure to Top 15 (as per Nifty Auto Index methodology) companies representing auto-related sectors like Automobiles 4 wheelers, Automobiles 2 & 3 wheelers, Auto Ancillaries, and Tyres.

The Nippon Auto ETF will start operation from January 5, 2022 to January 14, 2022. The minimum investment amount required is Rs 1,000 and in multiples of Rs 1 aftermath. The investment objective of the scheme is “to provide investment returns closely corresponding to the total returns of the securities as represented by the Nifty Auto Index before expenses, subject to tracking error. However, there can be no assurance or guarantee that the investment objective of the Scheme will be achieved.

 

2. CryptoWire introduces India’s first global index of cryptocurrencies IC15: CryptoWire, a global crypto super app that is a special business unit of TickerPlant, announced the launch of India’s first index of Cryptocurrencies – IC15, which is a rule-based broad market index by market capitalisation. The IC15 tracks and measures the performance of the top 15 widely traded liquid cryptocurrencies listed on leading crypto exchanges of the world, the company stated. The Mumbai-based company has been designed to provide insights into crypto mining and the true benchmark and a mirror of the underlying crypto market, a barometer of the industry in a sense, with a diversified representation of overall market sentiments.

About the Index:

(1) CryptoWire’s Index Governance Committee, comprising domain experts, industry practitioners, and academicians, will maintain, monitor, and administer the index while rebalancing it every quarter.

(2) The Base Value of the index is set at 10,000 and the base date is April 1, 2018.

(3) Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, Bitcoin Cash, Cardano, Litecoin, Binance Coin, Chainlink, Polkadot, Uniswap, Dogecoin, Solana, Terra, Avalanche, and Shia Inu will be the constituents of IC15.

(4) The index enables crypto enthusiasts, investors, and investment managers to monitor the performance of cryptocurrencies in the global markets.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. 3-time Olympic Gold winning Triple Jump Champion Viktor Saneyev passes away: The Olympic triple jump 3-time gold medalist and former world record holder, Viktor Danilovich Saneyev passed away in Australia. He was a triple long player who represented the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) in the Olympic Games. Later he worked as a coach in Australia. He secured gold medals in European Games organized in 1969 Athens and 1974 Rome.

 

2. Sindhutai Sapkal popular as ‘Mother of Orphans’ passes away: Social worker Sindhutai Sapkal, who was called as ‘Mother of Orphans’ passed away at the age of 73 years. She was also referred to just as ‘Sindhutai’ or ‘Mai’. She was awarded the Padma Shri in 2021 in the Social Work category. Apart from this, she had received more than 750 awards and honours in her lifetime. She adopted close to 2,000 orphans and is grandmother to even more. She was from Maharashtra. A biopic on her life titled “Mee Sindhutai Sapkal“ was released in the year 2010.

Daily GK Update- 8th Jan, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launches NEAT 3.0: Union Minister of Education, Dharmendra Pradhan has launched National Educational Alliance for Technology (NEAT 3.0), and regional language textbooks prescribed by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). NEAT 3.0 aims to provide the best-developed ed-tech solutions and courses to students on a single platform. It will be beneficial especially among the economically disadvantaged students. It is a Public-Private Partnership model between the Government (through its implementing agency AICTE) and the Education Technology companies.

58 global and Indian ed-tech startup companies have come together for this solution and are offering 100 courses and e-resources to enhance learning outcomes, developing employable skills as well as overcome learning loss. The collaboration of global ed-tech companies and Indian start-ups by way of NEAT will help to build on the digital education bedrock of India.

 

2. Sushmita Dev in 31-member Panel to examine bill on raising legal age of marriage: The parliamentary standing committee constituted to examine “The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021” comprise of a total of 31 members, including only one women representative. Out of the total 31 members, TMC MP Sushmita Dev is the sole woman representative in the committee. The Bill seeks to raise the legal age of marriage for women in India from 18 to 21 to bring it at par with men.

About the Bill: The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill 2021 seeks to amend the “Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006” and seven personal laws, which are: Indian Christian Marriage Act; the Parsi Marriage and Divorce Act; the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act; the Special Marriage Act; the Hindu Marriage Act; and the Foreign Marriage Act.

 

3. Telangana tops in highest number of ODF villages: Telangana stood first in the country in the list of the highest number of open defecation free (ODF Plus) villages under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase-II programme till December 31, 2021. As many as 13,737 out of 14,200 villages in the State are on the ODF Plus list, which is 96.74%. This was followed by Tamil Nadu with 4,432 villages (35.39%) and Karnataka with 1,511 villages (5.59%). Gujarat took the 17th position with only 83 villages (0.45%).

The State government has enacted a new Telangana Panchayat Raj Act to ensure the holistic development of villages. A secretary has been posted in every panchayat for smooth execution of welfare programmes, close monitoring, digital reporting and to ensure the prevalence of good governance in villages. Multi-purpose workers have been appointed to maintain proper sanitation in villages. There are 12,769 dedicated compost sheds in all gram panchayats. Tankers have also been provided to water the plants for greenery in villages.

 

4. Vinod Kannan named as next CEO of Vistara airline: Vinod Kannan took over as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Vistara Airlines. He replaced Leslie Thng who was the CEO from July 16, 2017, to December 31, 2021. It added that Deepak Rajawat has been elevated to take up the role of Vistara’s Chief Commercial Officer. Vistara, is a 51:49 joint venture between Tata Sons Private Limited and Singapore Airlines.

Kannan spent over two decades working with SIA and has held several senior positions in the airline’s head office in Singapore as well as overseas. He holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the National University of Singapore and the University of California, Los Angeles.

 

5. Ladakh celebrated traditional new year ‘Losar Festival’: The Losar Festival in Ladakh is celebrated at the onset of the New Year in the traditional schedule of Tibetan Buddhism. It is celebrated by the Buddhist Community in the Ladakh region. The Losar is a 15 days festival, from the start of the Tibetan Lunar calendar, marking the 1st day of the 11 months in the Tibetan Calendar. Losar is a Tibetan word that means ‘New Year’.

The festivities began with the celebration of Birth and Nirvana Anniversary Je Tsongkhapa with illuminations of religious places like Monasteries,  Stupas, residential and other places. The eve of the Losar festival is also celebrated with memorial food offerings for the departed loved ones.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Ex-UK PM Tony Blair joins top royal order 2022: Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the Duchess of Cornwall, and Baroness Amos are to be appointed as members of the Order of the Garter, England’s oldest and most senior order of chivalry. The former prime minister now will be known as ‘Sir Tony’. The appointments are the personal choice of the Queen, who has up to 24 “knight and lady companions”. The ceremonial order, founded in 1348, is a recognition of significant public service and made without prime ministerial advice.

Under Sir Tony’s leadership, the UK joined the US-led invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan – an official inquiry into the 2003 Iraq war was strongly critical of his government and UK military chiefs. He famously referred to Diana, Princess of Wales, as the “people’s princess” after her death.

 

2. Russia’s test-fires new hypersonic Tsirkon missiles 2022: Russia successfully test-fired around 10 new Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missiles from a frigate and other two missiles from a submarine. The Zircon missile would be capable of flying at nine times the speed of sound and have a range of 1,000 kilometres (620 miles). The Tsirkon Cruise Missile will join Avangard glide vehicles and the air-launched Kinzhal (Dagger) missiles in Russia’s hypersonic arsenal. Zircon is intended to arm Russian cruisers, frigates and submarines. It is one of several hypersonic missiles under development in Russia. The launch was the latest in a series of tests of Zircon, which is set to enter service next year.

Note: Russia Capital: Moscow; Russia Currency: Rouble; Russia President: Vladimir Putin.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. SEBI reconstitutes its primary market advisory committee: Capital markets regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India has restructured its primary market advisory committee on data. The committee aims to measure pertaining to areas such as securities market data access and privacy. Sebi has appointed Professor at National Law University, Delhi and former chairperson, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India S Sahoo as Panel Head. Earlier this panel was headed by Madhabi Puri Buch, an ex-whole time member of Sebi.

The objective of the Committee: The scope of the work of the committee includes identifying segment-wise data perimeters, data needs and gaps, recommending data privacy and data access regulations applicable to market data. It is responsible for recommending appropriate policy for access to securities market data. In addition, the committee recommends standardization of data definitions; data identification logic ( usage of uniform codes for identifying and storing data – raw data and derived data) and data validation techniques (single source of truth, validation).

Other members of the committee: Members of the committee include Ashlesh Gosain, Regional Head South Asia, Bloomberg LP, Mumbai; Reena Garg Scientist F & Head (Electronic & Information Technology Department) at BIS; Kiran Shetty, CEO and Regional Head – India & South Asia at SWIFT India; Ganesh Ramakishnan Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering in IIT Bombay.

Also, BSE Managing Director and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan; NSE MD and CEO Vikram Limaye; Mahesh Vyas, MD of CMIE; Prithvi Haldea, chairman at Prime Database; and Anuj Kumar, CEO of CAMS are also the members.

 

2. RBI named Ajay Kumar Choudhary and Deepak Kumar as new Executive Directors: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Deepak Kumar and Ajay Kumar Choudhary as new executive directors (ED) with effect from 03 January. Prior to being promoted as ED, Deepak Kumar was heading the department of information technology of RBI, while Ajay Choudhary was Chief General Manager-in-Charge, Department of Supervision.

About the Deepak Kumar: Kumar has over a span of three decades working in RBI’s central office departments covering policy making and project management functions in the areas of information technology, cyber security, payment systems, currency management, human resource management, banking supervision, foreign exchange management.

About the Ajay Kumar Choudhary: Meanwhile, Choudhary has, over a span of three decades, served in supervision, regulation, currency management, payments and settlements, and other areas in the Reserve Bank, in its Central Office as well as Regional Offices. He will look after the fintech department, risk monitoring department and inspection department.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. NTPC plans to buy 5% equity in Power Exchange of India Ltd: State-owned power generation company NTPC Ltd. is set to acquire a 5 per cent equity stake in Power Exchange of India Ltd (PXIL). It must be noted that the government is planning to expand the share of the spot power market in the total electricity supply in India to 25 per cent by 2023-24. At present, the size of short-term power trading is about 5 per cent.

About Power Exchange of India Ltd:

(1) It was incorporated on February 20, 2008, as India’s first institutionally promoted power exchange.

(2) PXIL provides various electricity trading solutions and helps in connecting buyers with sellers.

(3) The authorised share capital of the PXIL is Rs 120 crore and the paid-up capital is Rs 58.47 crore.

 

2. Indian-origin Ashok Elluswamy was first employee to be hired for Tesla’s: Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk, who has been using social media to recruit people, has disclosed that Indian-origin Ashok Elluswamy was the first employee to be hired for his electric vehicle company’s Autopilot team. Before joining Tesla, Mr Elluswamy was associated with Volkswagen Electronic Research Lab and WABCO Vehicle Control System.

Ashok Elluswamy holds a bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the College of Engineering Guindy, Chennai and a Master’s degree in Robotics System Development from Carnegie Mellon University.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Zishaan A Latif won Ramnath Goenka Award in Photo journalism: Zishaan A Latif won Ramnath Goenka Award in the Photo Journalism category. He won the award for his photo essay, The arduous struggle for inclusion in the NRC, which was published in The Caravan in October 2019. He documented the plight of people who were dropped from the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and put a face to an untold human story. About a month after the NRC list was released, Latif made his way through four districts in Assam, documenting people’s struggle for inclusion in the NRC.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Legendary Kenyan Conservationist and Fossil-hunter Richard Leaky passes away: World-renowned Kenyan politician, conservationist and fossil hunter Richard Leakey has passed away. The legendary paleoanthropologist is credited for the discovery of ‘Turkana Boy’ in 1984 which led to groundbreaking discoveries proving that humankind evolved in Africa. Turkana boy is the most complete fossil Skelton of a human ancestor ever found. Paleoanthropology is the study of human evolution through fossil and archaeological records. Leakey is also known to spearhead campaigns against the ivory trade to save the population of African elephants.

 

2. Indian Navy’s 1971 war veteran Vice Admiral S H Sarma passes away: The Indian Navy’s 1971 Indo-Pak war veteran Vice Admiral S.H. Sarma has passed away, at the age of 100. He was the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet during the 1971 war. India had defeated Pakistan in the 1971 war leading to the creation of Bangladesh. Vice Admiral Sarma had celebrated his 100th birthday on December 1 last year. He also took part in the Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav celebration in Delhi recently. Sarma was the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet during the 1971 war. India had defeated Pakistan in the 1971 war leading to the creation of Bangladesh.

Daily GK Update- 7th Jan, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launched “India Semiconductor Mission”: Information Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has launched the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) to attract large investments for setting up semiconductor wafer fabrication facilities in India. The companies that are interested are invited by the Centre for the development of the semiconductors and display manufacturing ecosystem in India. ISM is a specialised and independent business division within the Digital India Corporation.

About the mission: The financial support of up to 50 per cent of the project cost (ceiling of Rs 12,000 crore per fab) will be provided for the scheme for setting up display fabs. Fiscal support will be provided on ‘pari-passu’ basis for a period of six years from the date of approval both for semiconductor fabs and display fabs.

 

2. Government approved 19th Tranche of Electoral Bonds: The government has approved the issuance of the 19th tranche of electoral bonds, which will be open for sale from January 1 to 10, 2022, ahead of assembly elections in five states Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Goa. In the 19th tranche of sale, the State Bank of India (SBI), has been authorised to issue and encash electoral bonds through its 29 specialised branches. There is no limit on the number of bonds an individual or company can purchase. An electoral bond will be valid for 15 days.

About the Electoral bonds: Electoral bonds have been pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring transparency in political funding. However, Opposition parties have been raising concerns about alleged opaqueness in funding through such bonds.

 

3. Odisha launched Digital Life Certificate system for pensioners 2022: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has launched an online service for the verification of identity and submission of life certificates for pensioners of the state government. The chief minister virtually launched the new initiative while attending the orientation programme for newly recruited 153 officers of Odisha Civil Services. Under the Digital Life Certificate system:

(1) Identification and life certificates can now be submitted by the pensioners using an artificial intelligence-based video-verification process.

(2) It will be of immense help to the pensioners as they can submit their identification and life certificates digitally, without visiting any government office simply by using their mobile phones.

(3) This facility will also be available at the ‘Mo Seva Kendras’ located across the state. Patnaik said the introduction of digital life certificates and E-dairy were part of his government’s 5T and ‘Mo Sarkar’ initiatives.

(4) The 5Ts include teamwork, technology, transparency, transformation, and time limit on which performance of government officials and projects are judged, while the ‘Mo Sarkar’ initiative attempts to bring in professionalism and behavioural change in public offices through a direct random feedback system from citizens.

Note: Odisha Capital: Bhubaneswar; Odisha Governor: Ganeshi Lal; Odisha Chief Minister: Naveen Patnaik.

 

4. Vinay Kumar Tripathi named as Chairman and CEO of Railway Board: 1983 Batch of Indian Railway Service, Vinay Kumar Tripathi has been appointed as new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Railway Board. He is presently working as General Manager, Northeastern Railway to the post of Chairman of Railway Board. Indian Railway Board is the apex body of the Indian Railways, which reports to parliament through the Ministry of Railways. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has not only approved the appointment of Tripathi for six months from January 1 but also further granted an extension of his tenure till 31 December in 2022.

 

5. V.S Pathania takes over as Director-General of Indian Coast Guard: V.S. Pathania took over as the 24th Director General (DG) of the Indian Coast Guard from Krishnaswamy Natarajan who retired from service. He is an alumnus of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and National Defence College, New Delhi. He was elevated to the rank of Additional Director General in Nov 2019 and took over the reins as Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard) at Visakhapatnam.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. France takes over EU Presidency for six months 2022: France has assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union with effect from January 01, 2022. The country will continue to hold the EU presidency for the next six months till June 30, 2022. This is the 13th time that France has taken over the rotating presidency. The motto of France as EU President is “recovery, strength, belonging.” France will work to place the continent’s digitization and climate protection at the forefront. The presidency of the EU rotates every six months among the member states of the 27-nation bloc. Upon the completion of six months presidency, France will be replaced by the Czech Republic.

Note: France Capital: Paris; France Currency: Euro; France Prime Minister: Jean Castex; President of France: Emmanuel Macron.

 

2. Covid-19 new variant ‘IHU’ discovered in France: Scientists and experts in France have reportedly identified a new variant of COVID-19 termed ‘IHU’. The new variant is said to be a more mutated strain than Omicron. The B.1.640.2 or IHU variant was first identified by the academics at institute IHU Mediterranee Infection and contains 46 mutations, which is more than Omicron. Nearly 12 cases of this new variant have been reported near Marseilles and has been linked to the African country Cameroon. But, the Omicron strain is still dominating in most parts of the world.

This new variant can be a major threat, however, the cases have not been reported so far in countries other than France and is not labelled as ‘variant under investigation’ by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. GoI keeps interest rates on Small Savings Schemes unchanged: The interest rates on the small savings schemes will remain the same for the fourth quarter of 2021-2022 (January – February – March 2022) as they were in the third quarter of 2021-22 (October-December 2021). It must be noted that West Bengal is the highest contributor to the small saving schemes while Uttar Pradesh is the second top contributor. Also remember, the government notifies the Interest rates for small savings schemes on a quarterly basis.

Various Interest Rates for Quarter-4 (Jan-March) of 2021-22:

 

S.No	Small Savings Scheme	Interest Rate
1	Post Office Savings Account	4%
2	5-Year Post Office Recurring Deposit (RD) Account	5.80%
3	Post Office Time Deposit (TD) Account – One Year	5.50%
4	Post Office Time Deposit Account (TD) – Two Years	5.50%
5	Post Office Time Deposit Account (TD) – Three Years	5.50%
6	Post Office Time Deposit Account (TD) – Five Years	6.70%
7	Post Office Monthly Income Scheme Account (MIS)	6.60%
8	Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS)	7.40%
9	15-Year Public Provident Fund Account (PPF)	7.10%
10	National Savings Certificates (NSC)	6.80%
11	Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP)	6.90%
12	Sukanya Samriddhi Account	7.60%

 

2. Baldev Prakash named as MD & CEO of J&K Bank: Baldev Prakash has been appointed as the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) of Jammu & Kashmir Bank for three years. His appointment will be effective from the date of taking charge or April 10, 2022, whichever is earlier. Apart from him, R K Chhibber has been appointed as an additional director on the board of the bank.

Prakash has over 30 years of experience in banking. He had joined SBI as a probationary officer in 1991 and was the Chief General Manager (Digital and Transaction Banking Marketing Department) at SBI, Mumbai. The appointment is effective from the date of taking charge or April 10, 2022, whichever is earlier.

Note: Jammu & Kashmir Bank Headquarters: Srinagar; Jammu & Kashmir Bank Founded: 1 October 1938.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. IRDAI: LIC, GIC Re and New India systemically important insurers: Insurance regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has stated that LIC, GIC Re and New India continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs) for 2021-22. D-SIIs refer to insurers of such size, market importance and domestic and global interconnectedness, whose distress or failure would cause significant dislocation in the domestic financial system.

The continued functioning of D-SIIs is critical for the availability of insurance services. D-SIIs are insurers that are perceived to be ‘too big or too important to fail’. The three insurers “have to carry forward their efforts” to raise the level of corporate governance, and identify all relevant risks and promote a sound risk management framework and culture.

Note: IRDAI Founded: 1999; IRDAI Headquarters: Hyderabad; IRDAI Chairperson: Subhash Chandra Khuntia.

 

2. LIC inaugurates Digi Zone to sell policies online: Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India has inaugurated “Digi Zone”, at Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai, as part of its effort to enhance its digital footprint. LIC’s Digi Zone can be used by the customers to purchase policies online, pay the premium and avail of other services. As a part of its efforts to become a tech-driven life insurer, LIC will offer information related to its products and services through kiosks installed on the Digi Zone premises.

Customers can use LIC’s Digi Zone to buy policies online, pay the premium and avail of other services. LIC plans to undertake the next wave of digital transformation to unlock several benefits of accelerating growth, driving customer satisfaction and improving intermediary productivity and loyalty.

Note: LIC Chairperson: M R Kumar; LIC Headquarters: Mumbai; LIC Founded: 1 September 1956.

 

DEFENCE

 

1. Exercise Milan 2022: India to host 46 nations mega naval wargames: India has invited a total of 46 friendly foreign countries to participate in the multinational naval exercise Milan in Visakhapatnam, scheduled from February 25, 2022. The theme of this 11th edition of exercise Milan is camaraderie, cohesion and collaboration. This exercise was initiated in 1995 and held biennially and conducted with friendly navies.

About the Exercise Milan 2022:

(1) The professional competitions and conferences planned during this phase shall build the operational tempo for the Sea Phase planned from March 1-4. This Phase would be utilised to consolidate upon the lessons learnt during harbour interactions and to build upon the experience of operating together at sea.

(2) The countries that have been extended invitations for participation include Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Israel, Iran, France, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Brazil, United Arab Emirates, among others.

(3) As per an official, India has increased its naval engagements with friendly nations at bilateral, trilateral and multilateral levels since 2018.

 

OBITUARIES

 

1. Bollywood film producer Vijay Galani passes away: Bollywood film producer Vijay Galani has passed away. He was suffering from blood cancer and was in London for seeking treatment. He is known for producing films like Salman Khan’s Suryavanshi (1992), Govinda and Manisha Koirala’s Achanak (1998), Akshay Kumar’s Ajnabee (2001), Paresh Rawal and Mallika Sherawat’s Bachke Rehna Re Baba (2005), Salman Khan’s Veer (2010). His last production venture was Vidyut Jammwal and Shruti Haasan’s The Power (2021).

Daily GK Update- 6th Jan, 2022

 

NATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. Dharmendra Pradhan launches reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat’: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has launched a 100-day reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat. The launch of the 100 Days Reading Campaign is in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 which lays emphasis on the promotion of joyful reading culture for children by ensuring the availability of age-appropriate reading books for children in local/mother tongue/regional/tribal language. The Minister while launching the campaign has underlined the importance of reading that children need to develop to ensure continuous and lifelong learning. He also reinforced that the habit of reading, if inculcated at an early age, helps in brain development and enhances imagination and provide a conducive learning environment for children.

Padhe Bharat campaign:

(1) Padhe Bharat campaign will focus on children studying in Balvatika to Grade 8. The reading campaign will be organized for 100 days (14 weeks) starting from January 1, 2022, to April 10, 2022.

(2) The reading campaign aims to have the participation of all stakeholders at the national and state level including children, teachers, parents, community, educational administrators etc.

(3) One activity per week per group has been designed with the focus on making reading enjoyable and building a lifelong association with the joy of reading. This campaign has also been aligned with the vision and goals of the foundational Literacy and Numeracy mission.

 

2. PM Modi to lay foundation stone of Major Dhyan Chand Sports University: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of Major Dhyan Chand Sports University in Meerut. The University will be established at Salawa and Kaili villages of Sardhana town in Meerut at an estimated cost of about 700 Crore rupees. The University will have the capacity of training 1080 sportspersons including 540 female and 540 male sportspersons.

About the University:

(1) The Sports University will be equipped with modern and state-of-the-art sports infrastructure including synthetic Hockey ground, Football ground, Basketball, Volleyball, Handball, Kabaddi ground, Lawn tennis court, Gymnasium hall, Synthetic running stadium, Swimming pool, Multipurpose hall, and a Cycling Velodrome.

(2) It will also house facilities for Shooting, Squash, Gymnastics, Weightlifting, Archery, Canoeing, and Kayaking, among other facilities with the capacity of training.

 

3. IIT Madras bagged the first position in ARIIA Rankings 2021: IIT Madras has bagged the first position in the Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) 2021, for the third consecutive year, under the category of CFTIs/ Central Universities/ Institute of National Importance (Technical). The third edition of the ARIIA ranking was dominated by the IITs in the centrally funded institution category. Seven IITs are on the top-10 list. IIT-Madras is followed by IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IT Kanpur, and IIT Roorkee. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru bagged the sixth position in the category.

Other categories Winners:

(1) In the state and deemed to be universities category, Panjab University (Chandigarh) topped the ranking followed by Delhi Technological University, and Netaji Subhas University of Technology (Delhi).

(2) In the government engineering colleges category, the College of Engineering in Pune stood first, followed by PSG College of Technology in Tamil Nadu, and LD College of Engineering in Gujarat.

(3) Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology Khordha (Odisha) topped the private university category. G H Raisoni College of Engineering in Maharashtra was recognised as the most innovative private college.

(4) Indira Gandhi National Open University (Delhi) topped the category among centrally funded institutions followed by the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Kozhikode.

About the 3rd edition of ARIIA: This 3rd edition of ARIIA has introduced a special framework for non-technical institutions that further strengthen the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem in Indian higher education institutions. A total of 1,438 higher education institutions (HEIs) including all IITs, NITs, and IISc participated in the third edition of ARIIA rankings as compared to 674 HEIs during last year.

 

4. Nirmala Sitharaman chairs 46th GST council meet in Delhi: The GST Council’s 46th meeting was held in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman. The GST Council has recommended deferring the decision to change the rates in textiles recommended in the 45th GST Council meeting. Consequently, the existing GST rates of 5 % instead of 12% in textile sector would continue.

This convention attains special significance as it comes days ahead of Sitharaman presenting the much-anticipated Union Budget 2022-23 on February 1, for which she has been holding a series of pre-budget consultations with stakeholders.

The 2022-23 Union Budget of India will be presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2022. This will be the fourth budget of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government in its second tenure. The 2021-22 budget, presented on 1st February this year, was the first one to be presented orally due to the ongoing coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

 

5. 1st electric boat built for Kochi Water Metro Project: In Kerala, the first battery-powered electric boat built for the Kochi Water Metro Project was handed over to the Kochi Metro Rail Limited. The fully air-conditioned boat is among the 23 boats being built by the Cochin Shipyard for the 747-crore rupee Kochi Water Metro project. Kochi Water Metro system will have 78 ferries, linking 38 terminals spread over 76 route kilometres.

The battery-powered water metro boat can carry 100 passengers. KMRL said it was for the first time in the world a centrally controlled integrated water transport system with a large fleet is powered by the battery.

 

6. UP’s Jhansi Railway Station renamed as ‘Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station’: Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh has announced that the government of UP has renamed the Jhansi Railway Station, in Jhansi, UP as “Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station” after Rani Laxmibai. The announcement was made by UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. A notification to this effect has been issued by the UP government and the Railways has started preparations to implement the change. Earlier the Mughalsarai Railway station was renamed as Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya junction and the Faizabad Railway station as Ayodhya Cantt.

 

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

 

1. World’s longest Metro line opened in China: Shanghai has opened two new metro lines, upholding its rank as the city with the largest Metro network in the world. With the new lines, the total length of Shanghai’s metro network has extended to 831 km, continuing to be the longest in the world. China’s Shanghai opened two new metro lines – Line 14 and Phase One of Line 18. The opening of the two new lines will bring the total number of fully automatic metro lines in Shanghai to five, with an operating length of 167 km, ranking first in the world for the first time. The city will now enjoy 20 metro lines with 508 stations, 83 of which are transfer ones.

 

2. China launches 5-year plan to become a hub of world robotics innovation: China has announced a five-year roadmap to achieve its goal of becoming a global robotics innovation hub by the year 2025. China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology revealed operating income from the country’s robotics industry is expected to grow by around 20% per year between 2021 and 2025. From 2016 to 2020, the sector expanded at an average growth rate of 15%. Last year, operating income surpassed 100 billion yuan ($15.69 billion) for the first time. To achieve its goal by 2025 of becoming a worldwide robotics innovation centre, China has proposed a strategy concentrating on improvements to essential components such as servo motors and control panels. As per the 2021 World Robot Report, South Korea, Singapore, and Japan were the top three most automated countries in Asia-Pacific.

 

3. World Day of War Orphans: 6th January:  World Day of War Orphans is marked on 6 January to create awareness about the plight of children who have lost their parents due to conflict. In any conflict, children are one of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable groups present. Children who have been injured in a gunfight or separated from their families require particular care in order to heal the mental wounds of war, begin school, and restart normal life.

World Day of War Orphans 2022 History: World Day of War Orphans was started by the French organisation SOS Enfants en Detresses, which aimed to help children affected by conflict. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), an orphan is defined as a “child under 18 years of age who has lost one or both parents to any cause of death”.

World Day of War Orphans 2022 Significance: On World Day of War Orphans, several awareness programmes are organised to create awareness about the trauma endured by orphaned children. The coronavirus pandemic has further led to issues like food insecurity and access to basic health and sanitation facilities for many children worldwide. World Day of War Orphans is marked as a reminder of the issues faced by such children and to remind the world of its responsibility to ensure that such kids also get equal access to health and educational opportunities.

 

OTHER UPDATES:

 

SPORTS

 

1. NewZealand’s Ross Taylor announces retirement from international cricket: Veteran New Zealand batter, Ross Taylor has announced retirement from international cricket at the end of the ongoing domestic season. Taylor hence will play his final appearance in the second Test against Bangladesh, where will equal Daniel Vettori’s record of 112 tests for New Zealand. He will be part of the one-day international series in Australia. He is the first cricketer to play more than 100 matches for New Zealand in all 3 formats.

 

2. Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez announces retirement from cricket: Pakistani all-rounder, Mohammad Hafeez has announced his retirement from international cricket on January 03, 2022, to end his career spanning more than 18 years. The 41-year-old Hafeez retired from Test cricket in December 2018. He has played 55 Tests, 218 ODIs and 119 T20Is for Pakistan, scoring 12,780 runs across formats. He is nicknamed “The Professor”.

 

BANKING AND FINANCE

 

1. SBI Card joined hands with Paytm for Card Tokenization: SBI Cards and Payment Services has tied up with Paytm for card tokenisation to protect the data of the cardholders. SBI Card has collaborated with Paytm to enable cardholders to tokenise their cards on devices and make payments through Paytm. Tokenisation refers to masking the original card number by replacing it with a set of unique characters, termed as token, which secures the customer’s card details when a transaction is under process. Currently, only cards issued in the Indian territory are enabled on the Paytm network. However, customers may transact using his/her SBI Card through the Paytm network in international locations.

Note: SBI Card Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana; SBI Card Managing Director & CEO: Rama Mohan Rao Amara.

 

2. RBI extended deadline for Periodic KYC Update till March 31, 2022: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that it has extended the deadline for periodic KYC updates by 3 months till March 31, 2022. Extension in view of prevalent uncertainty due to a new variant of COVID-19 – Omicron. Earlier the deadline for periodic KYC updates was December 31.

Meanwhile, the government has also extended the deadline for businesses to file GST annual returns for the 2020-21 fiscal ended March 2021 by two months till February 28. GSTR 9 is an annual return to be filed yearly by taxpayers registered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST). It consists of details regarding the outward and inward supplies made or received under different tax heads.

Note: Reserve Bank of India Founded: April 1, 1935; Reserve Bank of India Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra; Reserve Bank of India Governor: Shaktikanta Das.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

 

1. Tech Mahindra to acquire 100 percent stake in Allyis India, Green Investments: Tech Mahindra has approved a proposal for the acquisition of a 100 per cent stake in Allyis India and Green Investments, for a total consideration of up to USD 125 million. The acquisition will bolster Tech Mahindra’s capabilities in Digital Experience Solutions, Learning & Development, Marketing, Instructional Design; Engineering: Cloud & Automation, BI & Analytics, Technical support services.

Tech Mahindra will pay total consideration of up to $125 million, including employment-related and performance-related earnouts, as per a regulatory update filed with the exchanges. Allyis India Pvt Ltd and Green Investments LLC offer technology consulting and managed services for organisations to help reduce costs, improve performance, and meet their objectives. Allyis India Pvt Ltd was incorporated in 2018 whole Green Investments LLC was incorporated in 2013.

Note: Tech Mahindra CEO: C. P. Gurnani; Tech Mahindra Headquarters: Pune; Tech Mahindra Founder: Anand Mahindra; Tech Mahindra Founded: 1986.

 

AWARDS AND HONOURS

 

1. Danish Siddiqui gets posthumously Mumbai Press Club’s RedInk Award 2020: Photojournalist Danish Siddiqui, who died during an assignment in Afghanistan, has been posthumously awarded as the ‘Journalist of the Year’ for 2020 by the Mumbai Press Club. CJI N V Ramana presented the annual ‘RedInk Awards for Excellence in Journalism’. He presented the prestigious award to Siddiqui “for his spectrum of investigative and impactful news photography”. Danish Siddiqui’s wife Frederike Siddiqui received the award.

Senior journalist Prem Shankar Jha, 83, was bestowed with the lifetime achievement award “for his long and distinguished career of incisive and analytical writing”. The Mumbai Press Club instituted The RedInk Awards a decade ago to recognise good investigative and feature writing and raise the bar of journalism in the country.