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By admin: Jan. 11, 2023

Henley Passport Index 2023 : Japan retained its top position

Tags: INDEX

Japan has retained its position as the most favourable passport in the world, according to the latest Henley Passport Index, which allows visa-free entry to 193 global destinations.

An overview of the news

• Japan is at the top for the fifth year in a row.

• Singapore and South Korea are joint second in the ranking, followed by Germany and Spain and then several other European nations.

• The US was among the top 22 with visa-free access to 186 destinations, matching the likes of Switzerland, New Zealand and Norway.

• Compared to last year India's position has improved by two points. India is at 85th position in the ranking.

• An Indian passport holder can travel visa-free to 59 countries, although in 2022 the number was 60.

• Mauritius and Uzbekistan passports are as powerful as India's passports.

Top 10 countries in Henley Passport Index 2023

1. Japan - 193 destination 

2. Singapore, South Korea 192 destination 

3. Germany, Spain 190 destination 

4. Finland, Italy, Luxembourg 189 destination 

5. Austria, Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden 188 destination 

6. France, Ireland, Portugal, United Kingdom 187 destination 

7. Belgium, Czech Republic, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, United States 186 destination 

8. Australia, Canada, Greece, Malta 185 destination 

9. Hungary, Poland 184 destination 

10. Lithuania, Slovakia 183 destination 

      85. India, Mauritania, Uzbekistan 59 destination 

Welsh footballer Gareth Bale retires from international, club football

Tags: Sports Sports News

Walsh legendary football player Gareth Bale announced his retirement on 9 January. At the age of just 33, he has announced his retirement from club and international football.

An overview of the news

• Bale is one of Wales' greatest ever players. He played record matches for his country and also made many records in terms of scoring goals.

• He was instrumental in helping Wales win two European Championships. With this, he led his team to the semi-finals of Euro 2016, and also to the World Cup for the first time since 1958.

• The Los Angeles forward has played for Southampton, Tottenham and Real Madrid.

• He played his last match during Wales' World Cup group stage match with England on 29 November.

• Bell played in the forward position and was part of Wales' squad for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He also played the previous season in Major League Soccer for Los Angeles FC.

Surinder Chawla appointed as MD & CEO of Paytm Payments Bank

Tags: Person in news

Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) has appointed veteran banker Surinder Chawla as its new Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

An overview of the news

• The appointment has been approved by the Reserve Bank of India for a period of three years.

• Chawla will replace Paytm Payments Bank CEO Satish Kumar Gupta, who retires in October 2022, with Deepender Singh Rathore serving as the interim CEO.

• Prior to joining PPBL, Chawla was working with RBL Bank, where he served as Head of Branch Banking and focused on expanding CASA base, fee revenue and cross-selling across channels.

• This Indian domestic bank was under regulatory scrutiny for a while.

• RBI barred it from taking on new customers in March 2022.

• The action was based on some material supervisory concerns found in the bank, according to the central bank.

• Chawla has had an illustrious career spanning over 28 years in Retail Banking in reputed institutions like HDFC Bank, RBL Bank, ABN AMRO Bank and Standard Chartered Bank.

Paytm founder and CEO - Vijay Shekhar Sharma 

Paytm founded- August 2010 (Noida)

Khelo India Youth Games 2022 torch, theme song and mascot unveiled

Tags: Sports Sports News

State Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated the mascot and theme song for the fifth edition of Khelo India Youth Games to be hosted by Madhya Pradesh.

An overview of the news

• The mascot of Khelo India Youth Games 2022 is 'Asha'. While the theme song is 'Hindustan Ka Dil Dhadka Do...' sung by famous singer Shaan.

• The torch of Khelo India Youth Games was named Amarkantak, on which the figure of Maa Narmada is also engraved.

• On this occasion, CM Shivraj announced to give Rs 5 lakh for sports training to the sportspersons who have won medals in Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Olympics and to give direct DSP posts to the players who have won medals.

Khelo India Youth Games 2022

• The Games will be hosted in Madhya Pradesh from 31 January 2023 to 11 February 2023.

• For the first time water sports namely Kayaking Canoeing, Canoe Salaam and Fencing will be part of this edition of Khelo India Games.

• It will be organised in eight different cities of the state.

• The eight host cities designated are Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Maheshwar, Mandla and Balaghat.

• More than 8 thousand 500 athletes and sportspersons are expected to participate in this sporting event.

• The 4th Khelo India Youth Games was held at Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Panchkula (Haryana) from 4 to 13 June, while some matches were also played in Chandigarh.

Khelo India Youth Games winners list

Successful training launch of Prithvi-2 at Chandipur, Odisha

Tags: Defence Science and Technology

Prithvi-2 was successfully trained on 10 January 2023 from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur off the Odisha coast.

An overview of the news

• Prithvi-II is an indigenously developed surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) with a range of approximately 250-350 km. and it can carry one ton payload.

• The Prithvi-II class is a single-stage liquid-fueled missile with a payload of 500–1000 kg. has warhead mounting capability.

• The missile system is capable of hitting targets with a very high degree of accuracy.

• The state-of-the-art missile uses an advanced inertial guidance system with an efficient trajectory to hit its target.

• It was initially developed for the Indian Air Force as the primary user and was later inducted into the Indian Army as well.

• While the missile was first inducted into India's Strategic Forces Command in 2003, it was the first missile developed under the IGMDP.

Five missiles developed under IGMDP

• The 5 missiles (P-A-T-N-A) developed under this program are:

• Prithvi: Short-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile.

• Agni: Surface-to-surface medium-range ballistic missile i.e. Agni (1,2,3,4,5).

• Trishul: Short-range surface-to-air missile.

• Nag: Third generation anti-tank missile.

• Akash: Medium-range surface-to-air missile.

DRDO develops unmanned vehicle for operations in Himalayan regions

Tags: Science and Technology

Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has developed an unmanned aerial vehicle with the aim of targeting logistics operations on the Himalayan border.

An overview of the news

• This aircraft has been displayed by DRDO at the 108th Indian Science Congress held in Nagpur, Maharashtra.

• This UAV can fly with a load of 5 to 25 kg. and is also capable of dropping bombs in enemy territory.

• The aircraft can conduct autonomous missions within a radius of five kilometres and automatically return to the origin after delivering the cargo to the designated location.

• This UAV is equipped with landing accuracy as well as ground vehicle follow mode and modular design, due to which this UAV can prove to be very useful during the war.

• This multi-copter payload has been successfully tested by DRDO at an altitude of 14 thousand feet in Sikkim. After two more trials, this UAV will be inducted into the Armed Forces.

Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO)

• It is a premier defence research and development agency under the Ministry of Defence, Government of India.

• It aims to make India self-reliant in critical defence technology and systems.

• It was established in 1958.

• Headquarters - New Delhi

• Chairman - Sameer V Kamath

India's star female tennis player Sania Mirza has announced her retirement

Tags: Sports Sports News

India's star female tennis player Sania Mirza has announced her retirement in January 2023. This year's Australian Open and Dubai Tennis Championships will be her last tournaments.

An Overview of the news

• She will play in women's doubles at the Australian Open in January 2023 with Kazakhstan's Ana Danilina, which will be her last appearance at any Grand Slam.

• Sania missed the US Open last year due to an elbow injury.

International Tennis Career of Sania Mirza

• Sania has won the mixed doubles title of Australian Open in 2009, French Open in 2012, US Open in 2014.

• Apart from this, she has won the 2016 Australian Open, 2015 Wilmington, 2015 US Open title in women's doubles.

• Sania Mirza has won many titles and honours in her career. She has been awarded the Arjuna Award in 2004, Padma Shri in 2006, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna in 2015 and Padma Bhushan in 2016.

South African all rounder Dwaine Pretorius announces retirement from international cricket

Tags: Sports Sports News

South African all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius has announced his retirement from international cricket on 9 January 2023.

An Overview of the news

• Cricket South Africa (CSA) confirmed this. He made his international debut in 2016.

• The 33-year-old Dwayne represented South Africa in all three formats of cricket.

• He played 30 T20 Internationals, 27 ODIs and three Test matches. This includes two World Cups.

• Pretorius had his best bowling performance in T20 Internationals in 2021 with 5-17 against Pakistan.

• Dwayne Pretorius will now be seen in cricket action in IPL 2023. Pretorius will represent Chennai Super Kings in the upcoming IPL. Chennai Super Kings bought Pretorius for his base price of Rs 50 lakhs.

Chhattisgarh CM Celebrated Traditional ‘Cherchera’ Festival in Raipur

Tags: Festivals State News

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel organised the traditional festival 'Chherchera' at Dudhadhari Math in capital Raipur.

An overview of the news 

• Chherchera festival is celebrated on the full moon night of the Hindu calendar month of 'Paush'. It is meant to celebrate the joy of taking the harvest home after farming.

• It is a festival of receiving and giving charity. Giving charity brings generosity in the mind and taking charity ends the ego inside the person.

• On this day Lord Shankar begged for alms from Mother Annapurna, so people donate green vegetables along with paddy on this day.

• On this occasion people from every class, including Annadata (Farmers), donate food grains.

• The amount donated in Chherchera is spent on public welfare. People of every class including farmers donate food grains.

• This year, there has been a good production of paddy in the state and 85 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has been procured, which has been paid to the farmers immediately.

• There are 2500 paddy procurement centres and 2000 committees where the work of weighing and lifting is going on continuously.

About Chhattisgarh

• Capital: Raipur

• Governor: Anusuiya Uikey

• Chief Minister: Bhupesh Baghel

120-feet-tall Polo Statue Inaugurated by Amit Shah in Manipur

Tags: State News

On 6 January 2023, Union Home Minister Amit Shah unveiled a 120 feet tall statue of a Polo player at the Merging Polo Complex in Imphal East district of Manipur. Various project launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

An overview of the news

• On this occasion, Chief Minister N Biren Singh presented a Polo mallet and a painting of the game to Amit Shah.

• The first Medical College and Hospital of Manipur's hill district Churachandpur was also inaugurated.

• He laid foundation stone of Rs 1,300 crore project.

• He laid the foundation stone for construction of 40 police posts, of which 34 are located along the India-Myanmar International Border and 6 along National Highway 37.

• Projects to be launched by him include the Manipur Olympian Park at Sangaithel, a private ward at the state-run Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences, the Moreh town water supply scheme, the Nongpok Thong Bridge and Cave on the eastern side of Kangla Fort and tourism projects at Kangkhui Cave is included.

Polo game in Manipur

• Manipur is known as the birthplace of Polo in India; The modern game of Polo is derived from Manipur. This game was earlier known as 'Sagol Kangji', 'Kanjai-Baji' or 'Pulu'.

• The oldest polo ground in the world is the Imphal Polo Ground in Manipur.

• The history of the Polo Ground is established in the royal chronicle "Cheethrol Kumbaba" starting from 33 AD.

About Manipur

• Capital: Imphal

• Governor: La Ganesan

• Chief Minister: N. Biren Singh

Punjabi will be taught in Australian schools

Tags: International News

Punjabi is all set to be the newest language to be taught in public schools of Western Australia. The Australian government has decided to include Punjabi language in schools.

An overview of the news

• The number of Punjabi speakers in Australia is continuously increasing. Punjabi language has become the fastest growing language in this country.

• According to the 2021 census, Punjabi is the fastest growing language in Australia, with more than 239,000 people using the language at home.

• In comparison to the year 2016, there has been an increase of 80 percent in the number of Punjabi speakers in Australia in the year 2021.

• This year the syllabus from pre-primary to 12th will be prepared. After including Tamil, Hindi and Korean languages in the curriculum in 2021, it has been decided to teach Punjabi in schools.

• With over 190 languages spoken in Australia, linguistic diversity is a great strength that provides social, cultural and economic benefits.

About Australia 

• Head of State: British Monarch, King Charles III

• Prime Minister: Anthony Albanese

• Currency: Australian Dollar

• Capital: Canberra

RRR's Naatu Naatu wins historic Golden Globe for best original song

Tags: Awards

South Cinema's film RRR has created history at the 80th 'Golden Globe Awards 2023' award ceremony, the film's Telugu song 'Naatu Naatu' has won the Best Song award.

An overview of the news

• 'Naatu Naatu' is the first Indian song to win this prestigious award.

• The song was composed by MM Keeravani and sung by Kaala Bhairava and Rahul Sipligunj.

• In the 'Golden Globe Awards 2023' award, the film 'RRR' received nominations in two categories, including 'Best Film - Non-English' and the other 'Best Original Song - Motion Picture'.

• 'RRR' directed by Rajamouli is based on nationalism and brotherhood.

• It stars famous actors Ram Charan and Jr. NTR in lead roles.

• The two play real-life Indian revolutionaries Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem in the film.

• The film is based on a fictional story set in the pre-independence era.

• The film 'RRR' is the first Indian film after two decades to be nominated for the awards.

• Rajamouli recently won the prestigious New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Director.

• Earlier in the 'Foreign Language' category, the films 'Salaam Bombay!' (1988) and 'Monsoon Wedding' (2001) were nominated. Both these films were directed by Mira Nair and both the films are completely different from 'RRR'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Global Investors Summit in Indore

Tags: Summits State News

PM Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the 7th edition of Global Investors Summit', a flagship event of the state government in Indore on 11 January.

An overview of the news

• The President of Suriname Chandrika Prasad Santokhi and the President of Guyana Dr Mohammed Irfan Ali attended the inaugural session.

• The theme of the two-day summit is 'Madhya Pradesh-The Future Ready State'. 

• Special attention has been given to environmental protection in this summit, which will be completely based on carbon neutral and zero waste.

• This summit will showcase the various investment opportunities in Madhya Pradesh."

• A total of 447 international delegates from 84 countries, 401 international buyers, 5,000 industrialists and representatives from different international industry associations and representatives from G20 countries are participating in the event.

• In the International Pavilion, 9 partner countries and 14 International Trade Organizations will display different aspects of their respective countries.

• More than 500 famous industrialists of the country will also participate in this. The Global Investors Summit will have 19 sessions on various topics.

Objectives of the Global Investors Summit

• Showcasing the industrial ecosystem of the state. 

• Promoting the state policies.

• Consultation with industrial organisations to formulate Industry-friendly policies. 

• Collaboration opportunities. 

• Promoting export potential and buyer-seller meets and vendor development. 

Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurates ‘Jai Hind- The New Light and Sound Program' at Red Fort

Tags: National News

On January 10, 2023, Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated the 'Jai Hind-Naya Prakash Aur Dhvani Program / Light and Sound Show' at the Red Fort in Delhi.

An overview of the news

• The program will be presented in Hindi and English languages.

• The light and sound show has started after a gap of five years at the Red Fort.

• This program is a new form of light and sound program already being organised, in which theatrical presentation of the history and bravery of India from the 17th century till now.

• They will depict major events in Indian history related to the freedom struggle including the rise of the Marathas, the War of Independence of 1857, the rise of the Indian National Army and its trials.

• It will have projection mapping, live action films, light and sound, actors, actresses, dancers and puppet shows.

• As a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Archaeological Survey of India has already opened 4 museums, these are -

1. Yaad-e-Jallian Museum,

2. Museum on 1857 - India's First War of Independence,

3. lovers of freedom

4. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Museum in Red Fort.

• Now the new light and sound show will further strengthen the patriotic pride among the audience.

Senior BJP leader and former Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi passed away

Tags: Person in news

Former Governor of West Bengal and senior BJP leader Pandit Kesharinath Tripathi has passed away at the age of 88 in Prayagraj.

About Pandit Kesrinath Tripathi 

• Pandit Kesrinath Tripathi was born on 10 November 1934 in Allahabad.

• Along with being a senior advocate of the Allahabad High Court, he also held the post of Speaker of the UP Legislative Assembly for many years.

• He was the Speaker of the UP Legislative Assembly thrice. Apart from this, he has also been the president of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

• Pandit Kesrinath Tripathi served as the Governor of West Bengal from 2014 to 2019, in addition to this he was also assigned the additional charge of the Governor of the states of Bihar, Meghalaya and Mizoram.

• Poetry Collection - Manonukriti, Age - Wings, Silence and Zero, Rejuvenation on Wounds, Unmukt

• Honours - Bharat Gaurav Samman, Vishwa Bharti Samman, Uttar Pradesh Ratna Samman

France captain Hugo Lloris announces retirement from international football

Tags: Sports Person in news Sports News

France team captain Hugo Lloris announced on 9 January his decision to retire from international football at the age of 36.

An overview of the news

• He took this decision three weeks after losing the final against Argentina in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

• Lloris made his international debut in November 2008 at the age of 21 in a friendly match against Uruguay. He is also the most capped player forFrance in the World Cup.

• He surpassed Lillian Thuram's record of 142 matches. Lloris represented the France team in 145 matches.

• In the final of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, France lost the match toArgentina in a penalty shootout after a 3–3 draw through full time and then extra time.

• Argentina won the shootout over France 4–2.

• Hugo Lloris is the fourth captain to lead his team to two consecutive World Cup finals. This feat was first achieved by Karl Heinz Rumeneige of Germany.

• Legendary footballer Diego Maradona also led Argentina to two consecutive World Cup finals under his captaincy.

• Lloris has represented France in four World Cups and three Euro Cups and captained Les Blues to the World Cup trophy in 2018.

Former CJI Ranjan Gogoi released a book titled 'Chief Minister's Diary No. 1'

Tags: Books and Authors

Former Chief Justice of India and Rajya Sabha member Ranjan Gogoi released the book 'Chief Minister's Diary No. 1', a diary of Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma.

An overview of the news

• The diary has been written by the CM of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma himself.

• Complete details of the first year of CM Biswa's tenure have been given in this diary.

• Hemant Biswa Sarma has tried to enumerate his day-to-day development activities as Chief Minister in this diary.

• Hemant Biswa Sarma would also bring out further editions of his diary in the next four years.