DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

By admin: Jan. 14, 2023

The 'Soul of Steel' challenge was launched in Uttarakhand

Tags: State News

The 'Soul of Steel' challenge was launched in Uttarakhand on January 14, which aims to test endurance at high altitude.

An overview of the news

• It has been started on the lines of 'Ironman Triathlon' long distance triathlon challenge in Europe.

• The effort is being led by Claw Global, a venture and supported by the Indian Army.

• Soul of Steel aims at pooling skill sets and creating a challenge that will develop the human ability to stabilize, survive in high altitude areas.

• Apart from life skill training and youth development, it will promote adventure tourism in Uttarakhand globally.

• Initially, there will be 12 Indian participants and six international teams and the age profile to apply is 18 to 30 years.

• The locations chosen are generally in the area of Nanda Devi National Park, which has many peaks over 7000 feet.

Dr Jitendra Singh launches “Geospatial Hackathon”

Tags: Science and Technology National News

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh on 14th January launched “Geospatial Hackathon” to promote Innovation and Start-Ups in India’s Geospatial ecosystem.

An overview of the news

• The hackathon will promote innovation and startups in the geospatial ecosystem of India.

• The objective of this hackathon is not only to foster partnerships between the public and private geospatial sectors, but also to strengthen the geospatial start-up ecosystem of our country.

• The "Geospatial Hackathon" will end on March 10, 2023 and will have two sets of challenges - Research Challenge and Startup Challenge.

• There will be 4 winners to be found for the best solution to the geospatial select problem statements.

• The minister invited the youth of the country to participate and contribute in building the country's geospatial economy.

• Half of India's population is below 40 years of age and very ambitious.

• The Indian start-up economy has crossed a major milestone as India's 100th start-up joins the unicorn club in 2022.

G20’s first Infrastructure Working Group meeting to be held in Pune on January 16-17

Tags: National News

The first ever Infrastructure Working Group (IWG) meeting of the G20 under India's G-20 presidency will be held in Pune on January 16-17.

An overview of the news

• The Forum will bring together IWG member states and international organisations invited by India to discuss the 2023 Infrastructure Agenda under the Indian G20 Presidency.

• The meeting is being hosted by the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India. Australia and Brazil are joining as co-chairs.

• The outcomes of the Infrastructure Working Group feed into the G20 Finance Track priorities and promote Infrastructure Development.

• The theme of the Indian G-20 presidency 'One Earth, One Family, One Future' explains the purpose of the 2023 Infrastructure Agenda.

• The theme emphasises the message of equitable development and is in sync with the central agenda of the discussion which talks about building resilient, inclusive and sustainable urban infrastructure.

Topics of discussion

• Infrastructure investments 

• Developing infrastructure as an asset class

• Promoting quality infrastructure investment 

• Identifying innovative instruments for mobilising financial resources for infrastructure investment

• The most priority topic of discussion in this meeting has been kept on 'Financing Cities of the Future: Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable'.

META appoints Vikas Purohit as director of India Global Business Group

Tags: Person in news

Meta India has appointed Vikas Purohit as the Director of Global Business Group for its business operations in India.

An Overview of the news

• Vikas Purohit will work with Arun Srinivas, director and head of Meta's advertising business in the country.

• Mr. Purohit will lead the company's strategic relationships with leading brands and agencies in the country to drive Meta's revenue growth across key channels in India.

• Purohit will also partner with the media and creative ecosystem to accelerate the adoption of digital tools by the largest advertisers and agencies.

• Vikas Purohit, an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, has previously worked with companies such as Tata CLIQ, Amazon, Reliance Brands Limited, Aditya Birla Group and Tommy Hilfiger.

• Purohit played a key role in introducing and furthering Amazonian fashion. His last stint was in Tata Cliq.

Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award 2023

Tags: Awards

President Draupadi Murmu honored 27 overseas Indians with the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award on 10 January 2023 at the concluding session of the 17th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention.

An Overview of the news

• It is the highest award given to overseas Indians for their distinguished contributions and achievements abroad.

• Chief among the recipients of the award were Guyana President Mohamed Irfan Ali and Suriname President Chandrika Prasad Santokhi. In this context, some of the major award recipients, their country and related field have been mentioned as follows:

Awardee             Country         Region

Archana Sharma     Switzerland     Science and Technology

Reena Pushkarna     Israel         Business and Social Welfare

Vaikuntham Iyer         Canada         Education, Health, Clean Tech.

Shivakumar Nadesan     Sri Lanka         Community Welfare

Jagdish Chennupati     Australia         Science, Technology, Education

Sanjeev Mehta         Bhutan         Education

Dilip Lundo         Brazil         Art-Culture-Education

Alexander Maliakale     Brunei         Medicine

Joginder Singh Nijjar     Croatia         Art & Culture

Ramji Prasad         Denmark         IT

Kannan Ambalam     Ethiopia         Community Welfare

Selection of Honor Recipients

• The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman recipients are selected by a committee headed by the Vice President. In which the External Affairs Minister (S Jaishankar) is its Vice-Chairman. While other members of the committee come from different places.

• According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the committee considers the nominations for the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award and unanimously the winners are selected.

• The awardees are expatriates who have made a mark abroad through their work in different fields.

Italian man sets Guinness World Record by creating 'mirror typing' books in ancient languages

Tags: Person in news International News

According to a report by Guinness World Records (GWR), an Italian man, Michele Santaglia has created a world record by typing copies of 81 books backwards, which is called 'mirror writing'.

An overview of the news

• Santaglia types books using four completely blank keyboards without looking backwards.

• He types each book in its original language whether it be hieroglyphs, Old Hebrew, Traditional Chinese, Mayan, Etruscan, Cuneiform or Voynich glyphs.

• He reverse-typed the Bible, the Code of Hammurabi, the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Book of the Dead from ancient Egypt, the writings of Leonardo da Vinci.

• He is able to type using 16 computer keyboards simultaneously located at different heights.

• He credits Leonardo da Vinci who inspired him to do mirror typing.

• Santaglia has given several books to various world figures over the years, including former US Presidents Bill Clinton, George Bush and Barack Obama, Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI, and former Italian Presidents Carlo Ciampi and Giorgio Napolitano.

• Also, he has compiled all the four Indian Vedas in a single book by reverse typing.

Lok Sabha Speaker to lead Parliamentary delegation to Kenya, Tanzania

Tags: International News

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will lead a delegation to Kenya and Tanzania from January 16 to 21. 

An overview of the news

• The delegation includes Chirag Paswan, Manoj Kishorbhai Kotak and S Phangnon Konyak (all Members of Parliament) and Utpal Kumar Singh, Secretary General, Lok Sabha.

• During their visit to Tanzania, apart from meeting their host, the delegation will also call on the Vice President of Tanzania, Philip Mpango.

• The delegation will also visit places of cultural and historical importance.

About Kenya

• Kenya is a country in East Africa.

• President: William Ruto

• Capital: Nairobi

• Currency :Kenyan shilling

About Tanzania

• Tanzania, East African country situated just south of the Equator.

• President: Samia Suluhu Hassan

• Capital: Dodoma

• Currency: Tanzanian shilling 

Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal disqualified from Lok Sabha over attempt to murder case

Tags: National News

The Lok Sabha Secretariat has issued a notification disqualifying Lakshadweep MP Mohd Faizal, who was recently convicted in an attempt to murder case by a court in the Union Territory.

An overview of the news

• According to a notification issued on January 13, Faizal has been disqualified from the date of his sentencing by a sessions court in Kavaratti on January 11.

• This decision has been taken under Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 under the provisions of Article 102 (l) (e) of the Constitution of India.

• The court in Lakshadweep had sentenced four people, including Faizal, to 10 years in jail after they were found guilty in an attempt to murder case.

• The Kavaratti sessions court also imposed a fine of Rs one lakh each on the convicts for attempting to murder Mohd Salih, son-in-law of late Congress leader and former Union minister P M Sayeed, during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections.

7th Armed Forces Veterans Day

Tags: Important Days

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh presided over the Armed Forces Veterans Day celebrations on January 14, 2023 at Jaswant Maidan, Dehradun Cantonment.

An overview of the news

• He also launched a car sports initiative 'Soul of Steel Alpine Challenge' from Dehradun to Gamshali located in Niti Valley.

• He dedicated to the nation the Shaurya Sthal developed by the Uttarakhand War Memorial Trust.

• This year the event is being celebrated by the three service headquarters at nine locations across the country – Jhunjhunu, Jalandhar, Panagarh, New Delhi, Dehradun, Chennai, Chandigarh, Bhubaneswar and Mumbai.

• During the event, ex-servicemen were honored with medals/souvenirs/certificates of recognition etc.

Armed Forces Veterans Day

• Armed Forces Veterans Day is celebrated on 14 January. On this day in 1953, the first Indian Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) of the Indian Army, Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa formally retired from service.

• Cariappa led the Indian Army in the 1947 war.

• This day is celebrated as Armed Forces Ex-Servicemen Day and this day is dedicated to the respected ex-servicemen.

• The day was first observed on January 14, 2016 and it was decided to celebrate the day every year by hosting such interactive programs in honor of the Armed Forces Veterans and their next of kin.

EU Inaugurates First Mainland Satellite Launch Port

Tags: Science and Technology International News

European officials and Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf inaugurated the EU's first mainland orbital launch complex on 13 January during a visit to Sweden by members of the European Commission, which is the 27-nation bloc's executive arm.

An overview of the news

• The European Union is looking to boost its ability to launch small satellites into space with a new launchpad in arctic Sweden.

• The new facility inaugurated at the Esrange Space Center near the city of Kiruna will complement the EU's current launching capabilities in French Guiana.

• The tiny satellites are vital for tracking natural disasters in real time and helping to guarantee global security in light of Russia's war in Ukraine.

• The total number of satellites could reach 100,000 by 2040 as compared to the current 5,000 operational satellites.

European Union (EU) 

• It is an international organisation made up of European countries, which was formed in 1993.

• It is a group of 27 countries that act as a cohesive economic and political bloc.

• 19 of these countries use the euro as their official currency.

• Its goal is to promote peace and the well-being of all citizens of the EU.

• Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium

Union Labour and Employment Minister inaugurates Regional Office of EPFO at Alwar, Rajasthan

Tags: State News

Union Minister for Labour and Employment, Forest, Environment and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav inaugurated the Regional Office of Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) at Alwar, Rajasthan on 13th January.

An overview of the news

• The opening of the regional office will benefit around 2 lakh workers, 12,000 establishments and 8500 pensioners in Alwar and neighbouring districts of Bharatpur and Dholpur.

• The major industrial areas governed by the Regional Office are Bhiwadi, Khushkheda, Tapukara, Karoli, Neemrana, Behror, Gheelot, Khairthal.

• This regional office will serve workers employed in industrial and other establishments in Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur districts.

• Jaipur is divided into two Regional Offices namely Regional Office Jaipur and Regional Office Alwar for the management of EPFO.

About EPFO

• Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) is a statutory organisation  set up under the Union  ministry of Labour and Employment was set up in 1951 by an Ordinance issued by the President. 

• Later Parliament passed the Employees' Provident Funds Scheme, act 1952.  

• It is the country’s largest social security organisation.

• EPFO assists the Central Board of Trustees in the administration of a provident fund scheme, pension scheme and an insurance scheme for the registered establishments in India. 

Indian Railways to start 'Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist Train' between Ayodhya to Janakpur

Tags: International Relations Latest

Indian Railways is going to run Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC tourist train "Shri Ram-Janaki Yatra: Ayodhya to Janakpur", which will cover two most important pilgrimage sites of neighbouring India and Nepal, Ayodhya and Janakpur.

• The initiative aims to strengthen bilateral relations between India and Nepal and promote cultural ties between the two countries.

• This train will be operated by Railway's PSU - IRCTC.

• The state-of-the-art Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist Train will depart from Delhi on 17th February, 2023 for a 7 days all inclusive tour.

• The train will cover Ayodhya and Janakpur Dham (Nepal) as well as pilgrimage and heritage sites at Nandigram, Sitamarhi, Varanasi and Prayag.

• This tourist train can carry 156 tourists and will have 4 first AC coaches, 2 second AC coaches, a well-equipped pantry car and two rail restaurants.

• Indo-Nepal Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train

• The first Indo-Nepal Bharat Gaurav tourism train was flagged off from Safdarjung Railway Station in Delhi in June 2022.

• 500 Indian tourists travelled in this train.

• This unique idea was conceptualised by the Ministry of Railways.

• This train returned to Delhi after covering a distance of about 8000 kms in a journey of 18 days.

• The Bharat Gaurav train was run with the theme 'Dekho Apna Desh'.

Congress MP Chaudhary Santokh Singh passed away during Bharat Jodo Yatra

Tags: Person in news

Congress MP Chaudhary Santokh Singh died of heart attack during Bharat Jodo Yatra in Phillaur, Punjab.

• Santokh Singh was the Member of Parliament of Congress Party from Jalandhar (Punjab).

• The Congress party started the Bharat Jodo Yatra under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi on 7 September 2022 from Kanyakumari.

• This yatra will pass through 12 states.

• During the journey, a distance of about 3500 kilometers will be covered in about 150 days.

• The yatra will conclude on January 30 with the unfurling of the tricolor by Rahul Gandhi at Lal Chowk in Srinagar, Kashmir.

Sultan Al Jaber appointed President of the 28th Climate Conference

Tags: Person in news

Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber has been named as the President of the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) to be held in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

• The COP28 conference will be held in Dubai from 30 November to 12 December 2023.

• Al Jaber is currently the UAE's Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology (MOIAT). He has been serving as the Special Envoy for Climate Change for several years.

• He also became the first CEO to be appointed as the President of the COP. Sultan Al Jaber heads the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), one of the world's largest oil companies.

• He has made several efforts with the UAE to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy across the region and globally.

• COP 27

• COP 27 was held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt from November 6-18, 2022.

• The COP-27 conference was organised by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bonn, Germany.

• India was represented at the conference by the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupendra Yadav.

• To mark the occasion, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) jointly launched the campaign "In Our Lifetime" at an event on 14 November 2022.

• The theme of COP-27: Delivering for People and Planet.

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

• COP: Conference of Parties

World's First Digital Party

Tags: National News

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has become the world's first fully digital party, with data on over three crore office-bearers from national president to booth level being made available through an app called Organisational Reporting and Analysis (SARAL). 

• Through this app prepared with the simple name, it will be an important medium of communication within the party along with making it easier for the general public to access the party's executive members from the president to the booth level.

• Both phone and SMS options are available on the app to contact any level official from any state.

• The biggest feature of this app is that with its help real time messages can be sent to any office bearer, which will facilitate the activation of the office bearers on any issue.

• Everyone will have the facility to download this app and only party-affiliated office-bearers will have access to the main part of the organisation in the app.