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By admin: Nov. 8, 2022

Caroline Garcia of France beats Aryna Sabalenka to win the WTA Finals 2022 title

Tags: Sports Person in news

Caroline Garcia of France won the WTA (Women Tennis Association) Finals 2022 with a straight-sets victory over Aryna Sabalenka on 7 November 2022. 

The season ending WTA tournament in which the top ranked  women players participate ,was held at Forth Worth, Texas in the United States of America from 31st October -7 November 2022. 

Caroline Garcia is the second Frenchwoman to win the tournament after Amelie Mauresmo in 2005.

Sabalenka was not playing under the Belarus flags as the WTA has suspended the players from Belarus and Russia to participate under their national flags due to the Ukraine war.  

Iga Swiatek of Poland finished the 2022 tennis year as the top ranked women player.

Women Tennis Association (WTA)

It was founded by the legendary women Tennis player Billie Jean King in 1973 as an association of professional women tennis players in the world.

The WTA organises women's tennis tournaments called Tour comprising over 50 events and four Grand Slams. The Tour culminates with the WTA Finals.

The WTA's corporate headquarters is in St. Petersburg, Florida, with its European headquarters in London and its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Beijing.

India organises International Conference on “Citizen-centric energy transition: Empowering citizens with Mission LiFE (Lifestyles for Environment) at the COP27 in Egypt

Tags: place in news Summits

The Indian government organised an International Conference on “Citizen-centric energy transition: Empowering citizens with Mission LiFE (Lifestyles for Environment)” on 8 November 2022 at the India Pavilion at the ongoing Conference of Parties (COP-27) at Sharm-El-Sheikh in Egypt.

The International conference was organised by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and the Ministry of Power, Government of India, in partnership with Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).

The COP 27 conference is being organized by the United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) with Egypt being the host country in Sharm-El-Sheikh from 6 -18 November 2022.

The Conference held discussion on ways to accelerate the deployment of energy efficient and low carbon technologies as well as market investment to facilitate and strengthen the global energy transition.

Indian Air Force chief and French Air Force chief participates in the Garuda VII exercise

Tags: place in news Defence

The Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force (IAF) Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, and Chief of the Air Staff of French Air and Space Force (FASF) General Stéphane Mille flew aircraft in the ongoing Garuda VII exercise being held at Jodhpur on 8 November 2022.

The 7th 'Garuda VIl' exercise is being held from 26 October to 12 November 2022 at Air Force Station Jodhpur.

Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari flew the French made Rafale fighter plane while General Stéphane Mille flew the Indian Su-30MKI fighter.

For the first time the indigenous LCA Tejas and Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) Prachand is participating in an international military exercise.

Apart from the LCA and LCH, the IAF contingent consists of Su-30 MKI, Rafale and Jaguar fighter aircraft, as well as Mi-17 helicopters. The IAF contingent also includes Combat Enabling Assets like Flight Refuelling Aircraft, AWACS, AEW&C and Garud Special Forces. 

Four French Air Force Rafale fighters and one A-330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft are participating in the exercise.

PM Modi unveils the logo and motto of the G20 Presidency to be hosted by India

Tags: Summits

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the Logo, Theme and Website of India’s G20 Presidency on 8 November 2022. India will take over the Presidency of the G20 from Indonesia on 1st December 2022.

Logo 

The G20 Logo draws inspiration from the vibrant colours of India’s national flag – saffron, white and green, and blue.

It juxtaposes planet Earth with the lotus, India’s national flower that reflects growth amid challenges. The Earth reflects India’s pro-planet approach to life, one in perfect harmony with nature.

Below the G20 logo is “Bharat”, written in the Devanagari script.

Theme 

The theme of India’s G20 Presidency - “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth One Family One Future” - is drawn from the ancient Sanskrit text of the Maha Upanishad. 

The theme affirms the value of all life, human, animal, plant, and microorganisms and their interconnectedness on the planet Earth and in the wider universe.

Message of the Logo and Theme 

The logo and the theme together convey a powerful message of India’s G20 Presidency, which is of striving for just and equitable growth for all in the world, in these turbulent times, in a sustainable, holistic, responsible, and inclusive manner. 

For India, the G20 Presidency also marks the beginning of “Amritkaal”, the 25-year period beginning from the 75th anniversary of its independence on 15 August 2022,

G20 APP

A mobile app "G20 India" has been released on both Android and iOS platforms.

Group of 20 or G-20 is a multilateral organisation of 19 countries and the European Union was set up in 1999.India has been a member of the G20 since its inception in 1999.

NIA to host 3rd ‘no Money for Terror ‘ministerial Conference in November 2022

Tags: place in news Economy/Finance Summits

India will host a 2 day “No Money for Terrorism” ministerial conference on 18 and 19 November 2022 in New Delhi. The conference will be hosted by India’s premier anti-terrorism agency, National Investigation Agency (NIA).Ministers, diplomats, and counterterrorism experts from the Egmont Group member states are likely to attend this third conference

The first meeting of this kind took place in Paris, France, in 2018, and the second one took place in Melbourne, Australia, in 2019. India was to host the third conference but it was postponed due to covid-19 pandemic.

Egmont Group 

The Egmont group is an association of more than 150 countries. It consists of member countries' Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). The main aim of the Egmont group is to strengthen information-sharing mechanisms among its members to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and associated predicate crimes.

What is Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)?

Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) serve as national centres for the receipt and analysis of suspicious transaction reports and relevant money laundering information, and terrorist financing. FIUs are also responsible for sharing such information amongst the law enforcement agencies of the country.

In India the FIU comes under the Income tax department under the Union ministry of Finance.

This will be the second major international conference on terrorism to be hosted by India. For the first time the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee meeting was held outside New York was held in India on 28 and 29 October 2022.

Government constitute 22nd Law Commission with Justice (retd.) Rituraj Awasthi as the Chairperson

Tags: committee Person in news

The Union ministry of Law and Justice constituted the 22nd Law Commission on 7 November 2022 and appointed former Karnataka High court chief justice Rituraj Awasthi as the chairperson of the Law Commission. 

The five member 22nd Law Commission will have a term of three years.

Justice Rituraj Awasthi was recently in the spotlight as the judge who headed the Karnataka High Court bench which delivered the hijab verdict.

Other members of the Law Commission 

Former Kerala High Court judge Justice KT Sankaran, Prof. Anand Paliwal, Prof. DP Verma, Prof.(Dr) Raka Arya and  M Karunanithi have been appointed members of the Law Commission.

Justice BS Chauhan was the chairman of the 21st Law Commission whose term expired in August 2018.

Law Commission in India 

Law commission is a non-statutory body which is set up by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice for suggesting reform in laws in India.

Its recommendations are not binding on the government.

The provision for the Law commission was made in the Charter act 1833 and the first Law commission was set up in 1834 under the chairmanship of Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay. 

The Indian Penal Code 1860 is based on the recommendation of the Macaulay commission.

The First Law commission in Independent India was set up in 1955 and M.C Setalvad who was also the first Attorney General of India was the chairman of the Law Commission.

UN chief calls for a climate solidarity pact between developed and emerging economies

Tags: Environment International News

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for a climate solidarity pact in which developed and emerging economies unite around a common strategy and mobilise resources to address the climate crisis.

Important facts

• At the opening of the COP27 United Nations Climate Summit of the Parties in Egypt on 7 November, he said the proposed treaty would give all countries additional efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

• He said the international financial system must be reformed to support low-income countries.

• At the inaugural session of world leaders at COP27, he said all countries should make "extra effort" to cut emissions and end the construction of coal plants.

• He said the two largest economies — the United States and China — have a particular responsibility to join efforts to make this pact a reality.

• Chinese President Xi Jinping did not attend COP27, although China has sent a delegation of negotiators.

• Guterres also launched a plan for a global early warning system for extreme weather events, a project that would cost $3.1 billion over the first five years.

• It will also deliver advance warnings about any extreme weather on the planet such as storms and heat waves.

• COP27 is the 27th annual meeting of the United Nations on Climate. It is taking place in Sharm El Sheikh until 18 November.

World Radiography Day

Tags: Important Days

World Radiography Day is celebrated every year on 8 November.

Important facts

• The day marks the anniversary of the birth of X-rays.

• X-ray plays a huge role in the medical industry as one of the diagnostic tools that help doctors detect a wide variety of problems, and diagnose diseases to treat them better and in a timely manner.

• X-rays have made diagnosis easy and painless.

• The day also helps to recognize the hard work of radiographers and radiologists who made X-rays possible.

• This is the 11th International Day of Radiology and this is observed by all the medical imaging professionals from across the world.

• The theme of International Day of Radiology 2022 - "Radiologists and Radiographers supporting patients." 

Background of the day

• X-rays were discovered by Professor Wilhelm Konrad Röntgen in the year 1895, when he was working with cathode-ray tubes in his laboratory.

• He observed a fluorescent glow of crystals on a table near his tube, which contained a bulb with negative and positive electrodes.

• When air was removed from the tube and a high voltage was applied, the tube produced a fluorescent glow.

• When the tube was covered with black paper and that material was placed a few feet away from the tube, it generated a green fluorescent light.

• He found that the rays could pass through human tissues but not through bones and metal.

• The first World Radiography Day was observed in 2007 by the International Society of Radiographers and Radiological Technologists on 8 November.

At least 15,000 killed by Heat Wave in Europe this year : WHO

Tags: International News

The World Health Organization (WHO) on 8 November said, at least 15,000 people have died in Europe because of heat waves this year so far. 

Important facts

• According to reports recorded by health officials during the 3 months of summer, there have been nearly 4,000 deaths in Spain, more than 1,000 in Portugal, more than 3,200 in the United Kingdom and about 4,500 in Germany.

• The three months of June-August were the hottest in Europe.

• For example, France's National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) reported that more than 11 000 people died between 1 June and 22 August 2022, compared to the same period in 2019.

• Temperatures in Europe have warmed significantly over the period 1961–2021 at an average rate of about 0.5 °C per decade.

• According to a report released by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), it is the fastest warming region.

• More than 148,000 people have lost their lives due to extreme temperatures in the European region in the past 50 years.

World Health Organisation (WHO)

• The World Health Organisation is a specialised agency of the United Nations which was founded on 7 April, 1948.

• Headquarters of WHO : Geneva, Switzerland

• Members : 194 countries

• Director General of WHO:  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus  of Ethiopia.

Government notifies the use of drought resistant PB2 variety of Basmati rice for cultivation

Tags: Economy/Finance Science and Technology

The Union Agriculture ministry has notified the use of drought -tolerant basmati rice developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) for large-scale release.

The new variety of Pusa Basmati (PB) 1882 can withstand deficient rainfall during the flowering stage of the grain. In the traditional variety inadequate rain during flowering of plant leads to a drop in the rice productivity 

Also there will be no need for transplanting of the rice as is done in traditional methods. This variety of rice can be sown directly in the field resulting in huge saving of water.

According to S Gopala Krishnan, principal scientist, IARI, rice grown through the transplanting method requires close to 3000 litres of water for producing one kg of rice, while the new variety sown through direct seeding method results in huge savings on water usage. 

He also said that the new variety during two years of field trials had given an average yield of 4.6 tonne/hectare compared to 4.2 tonne/hectare reported for its parent variety PB 1.

Basmati growing region of India 

The new PB.2 variety has been recommended for cultivation in key Basmati rice growing regions of India.

The areas of Basmati Rice production in India are the Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttarakhand and western Uttar Pradesh.

India is one of the leading exporters of basmati rice in the world. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, U.S and Yemen Republic are the major buyers of basmati rice from India. (Source APEDA)

Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI)

It was set up as Agricultural Research Institute in 1905 at Pusa, Bihar. It was shifted to New Delhi in 1936.

After Independence its name was changed to Indian Agricultural Research Institute. 

It is basically engaged in the research in the field of agriculture and its allied field for increasing crop productivity and developing integrated crop management technologies for a sustainable agricultural production system.

It developed the hybrid seeds of wheat and rice which led to Green revolution in India.

Headquarters: New Delhi 

Director: Ashok Kumar Singh

Gopal Vittal of Airtel elected as the Vice Chairman of the Global Telecom body GSMA

Tags: Person in news

Airtel Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gopal Vittal has been elected as the deputy chairman of the Global System for Global Association (GSMA) for a period of 2 years beginning 1 January 2023. He is the second Indian to hold a post in the GSMA,

Earlier Bharti Airtel founder and Chairman, Sunil Bharti Mittal was elected as the GSMA Chairman in 2017-18.

Telefonica Group CEO Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete Lopez continues to be the chairman of the GSMA board. Telefonica is a Spanish multinational telecom company.

 Global System for Global Association (GSMA) 

GSMA was founded in 1995 as an international association of telecom companies which uses the GSM mobile platform. 

Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) technology for mobile communication was developed by Groupe Speciale Mobile (GSM).

Groupe Speciale Mobile (GSM) was formed by the Confederation of European Posts and Telecommunications (CEPT) in 1982 to design pan-European mobile technology.

Today GSM is the most used digital wireless technology in the world. The other wireless technologies are CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) and TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access).

Headquarters of GSMA: London, United Kingdom

World Heritage glaciers to disappear by 2050 : UNESCO

Tags: Environment International News

According to new UNESCO data, by 2050, one-third of the World's Heritage Sites of Glaciers will disappear. 

Key points of the UNESCO report

• The report highlights the accelerated melting of glaciers regardless of efforts to limit temperature rise.

• The report says that it is still possible to save the other two thirds of glaciers, if the rise in global temperatures does not exceed 1.5°C compared to the pre-industrial period.

• The study, conducted by UNESCO in partnership with the IUCN, shows that these glaciers have been shrinking at an accelerated rate since 2000 due to CO2 emissions and higher temperatures.

• Each year, glaciers are currently losing 58 billion tons of ice.

• This is equivalent to the combined annual water use of France and Spain and is responsible for about 5% of the global sea-level rise.

Reducing Carbon Dioxide Emission

• The study suggests that the only effective solution to this environmental threat is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions as quickly as possible.

• The report calls for a rapid reduction in CO2 emissions to save the glaciers and the biodiversity it supports.

• In addition to reducing carbon emissions, UNESCO also advocated the creation of an international fund for glacier monitoring and conservation.

Some of the endangered glaciers

• Kilimanjaro National Park and Mount Kenya (Africa)

• Glaciers in Western Tien-Shan (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan) that have shrunk by 27% since 2000 

• The Dolomites (Italy) (Europe), 

• Yellowstone National Park (North America).

Importance of Glaciers

• Glaciers are important for survival. Half of humanity is directly or indirectly dependent on glaciers as a water source for domestic use, agriculture and electricity.

• Glaciers are also supporters of biodiversity, which keeps many ecosystems alive.

• Due to the melting of glaciers, people will have to face other challenges including water scarcity, increasing number of disasters, and loss of biodiversity.

8 years expected to be warmest from 2015 to 2022: WMO Report

Tags: Environment

The report titled 'WMO Provisional State of the Global Climate 2022' released at the 27th Conference of Parties to the UNFCCC on 6 November. 

Key features of the report 

• The global mean temperature in 2022 is projected to be 1.15 °C above the pre-industrial (1850–1900) average, with 2015 to 2022 (eight years) likely to be the warmest on record.

• Report stated that the rate of sea level rise has doubled since 1993 and has risen by nearly 10 mm since January 2020 to a new record high this year.

• Concentrations of the main greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide – hit record levels once again in 2021.

• The annual increase in methane concentrations was the highest on record.

• Flood events occurred at various stages during the monsoon season in India, especially in the Northeast in June.

About the report 

• The WMO State of the Global Climate Report is released annually.

• It provides an authoritative voice on the current state of the climate using key climate indicators and reporting on extreme events and their impacts.

• The temperature figures used in the tentatively 2022 report are as of the end of September. Its final version will be released in April next year.

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

• It is an intergovernmental organisation with a membership of 193 member states and territories.

• It was established by ratification of the WMO Convention on 23 March 1950.

• The first State of Climate Report was released in 1993.

• Headquartered - Geneva

• Its supreme body - the World Meteorological Congress

UK court approves India's request for extradition of Sanjay Bhandari

Tags: Person in news International News

A magisterial court in the United Kingdom has approved the request for extradition of middleman Sanjay Bhandari to India in connection with charges of money laundering and tax evasion on November 7, 2022.

Important facts

• Indian authorities had made two requests for the extradition of 60-year-old Bhandari. The first request was related to money laundering, while the second was related to tax evasion.

• District Judge Michael Snow heard the case earlier this year at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.

• He said in his decision that there was no stay on Bhandari's extradition and decided to refer the matter to British Home Minister Suella Braverman, who is authorised to order extradition based on a court decision.

• The court passed order on the basis of the assurance of the Government of India that Bhandari would be kept in a separate cell in Tihar Jail in New Delhi along with the concerned health facilities during the trial.

• Bhandari is accused of concealing foreign assets, using old documents, profiting from assets not declared to the Indian tax authorities and falsely informing the authorities that he does not have any assets.

What is Extradition?

• Extradition is the formal process of surrendering a person from one state to another.

• The purpose of this process is the prosecution or punishment for offences committed by a person within the jurisdiction of the requesting country.

• The extradition of a fugitive criminal to India is regulated under the Indian Extradition Act, 1962.

• The Consular, Passport and Visa (CPV) Division, Ministry of External Affairs is the central/nodal authority to administer the Extradition Act.

• Extradition process can be initiated in case of under-investigation, under-trial and convicted criminals.

COP27: First time Compensating poor countries for climate disasters

Tags: Environment Summits International News

The 27th Conference of the Parties 9COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (COP27) is being held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt on 31 October to 13 November 2022.

Important facts

• In this, various countries have agreed to provide financial assistance to poor countries to deal with the loss and damage caused by climate change.

• The participating countries agreed on a 20-point provisional agenda.

What is Loss and Damage?

• It refers to the economic and non-economic impacts of climate change, including extreme events in countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.

• The demand for loss and damages is quite old, but it has faced strong resistance from rich and developed countries.

• The term was introduced in 1991 as a demand by the island country of Vanuatu, representing the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).

What is Conference of Parties (COP)? 

• The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the 'Earth Summit', was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 3-14 June 1992. 

• The conference focused  on the impact of human socio-economic activities on the environment. 

• The countries assembled here  agreed to work together to deal with issues of sustainable development and climate change .

• The Rio Earth summit agreed to  create the  United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) where the member countries can discuss issues related to global warming and climate change and take steps to deal with these problems .

• It entered into force on  21 March 1994, and has been ratified by 197 countries and territories .

• The countries which has ratified the UNFCCC are called as Parties 

• Every year they meet to discuss climate change related issues . These meetings are called Conference of Parties(COP) .

• The first COP was held in 1995 in Berlin, Germany .

MNRE notifies National Bio Energy Programme

Tags: National National News

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India has notified the National Bio-Energy Program on November 2, 2022.

Important facts

• MNRE has continued the National Bio-Energy Program for the period from FY 2021-22 to 2025-26.

• The program is recommended to be implemented in two phases.

• The first phase of the program has been approved with a budget outlay of Rs 858 crore.

• Biogas program will also assist in setting up household and medium sized biogas units in rural areas.

• MNRE has been promoting bio-energy in India since the 1980s, to harness the vast surplus biomass, cattle dung, industrial and urban bio-waste available in the country for energy recovery.

• The National Bioenergy Programme will comprises of the following sub-schemes:

1. Waste to Energy Program (program on urban, industrial and agricultural waste/residue to energy) to support the installation of large biogas, bioCNG and power plants (excluding power projects from MSW).

2. Biomass Programme (Scheme to Support Manufacturing of Briquettes & Pellets and Promotion of Biomass (non-bagasse) based cogeneration in Industries) to support setting up of pellets and briquettes for use in power generation and non-bagasse based power generation projects.

3. Biogas Program - To support household and medium sized biogas installations in rural areas.