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By admin: Feb. 21, 2022

International Mother Language Day (21 February)

Tags: Important Days

International Mother Language Day is observed worldwide on 21st February every year to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism.

The idea to celebrate International Mother Language Day first came from Bangladesh. The general conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) decided to celebrate February 21 as International Mother Language Day in 2000. 

The theme of the International Mother Language Day 2022 is: “Using technology for multilingual learning: Challenges and opportunities”, 

United Nations Educational and Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) 

It is a specialised agency of the United Nations . It was set up on 16 November 1945.

Its Headquarters is Paris, France 

Its Director General :-  Audrey Azoulay 

Prime Minister inaugurates Asia's biggest Bio-CNG plant 'Gobar-Dhan' in Indore

Tags: National News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated Asia's biggest Bio-CNG plant, Gobar-Dhan, in India’s cleanest city of Indore, Madhya Pradesh. 

Situated on the Devguradia trenching ground, the 550 MT per day capacity Bio-CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) plant is the biggest of its kind in Asia.

The Gobar-Dhan plant will have the capacity to treat 550 tonnes of segregated wet organic waste and produce around 17,000 kg CNG and 100 tonnes of organic compost per day. The plant is also expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide green energy along with organic compost as fertiliser.

The Prime Minister said that in the coming two years, work is being done to build such Gobar-Dhan Bio-CNG plants in 75 major municipal bodies of the country. This campaign will go a long way in making India's cities clean, pollution-free, clean energy.

Beijing winter olympics 2022 comes to an end

Tags: Sports News

The 24th winter olympics came to an end on 20 February 2022 at a colourful ceremony in the “Bird Nest” stadium Beijing, China.The Chinese President Xi Jingping was the chief guest at the occasion along with the International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach.

• Thomas Bach officially declared the games as over and symbolically handed the games to the next winter olympics host Milano-Cortina.

• The Italian city of Milano-Cortina will host the event in 2026.

Winter olympics 2022 medal Tally 

• From India there was only one competitor, Arif Khan from the Baramulla district of  Jammu and Kashmir.  He is the first ever Indian to qualify for winter olympics.

• He participated in two events. In the giant slalom event he finished 45th while he was unable to complete the men’s slalom event.

For details and additional information  also see the 5 February 2022 post 

Fact File Winter Olympics 

• The winter olympics is organised by the International Olympic Committee every four years on snow or ice.

• The first winter olympics was held in Chamonix (France), in 1924. Initially called the “International Winter Sports Week”, this event was renamed the “1st Olympic Winter Games” only in 1926 at the IOC Session in Lisbon(Portugal).

• The decision to create a separate Winter Games cycle was taken at the 1925 IOC Session in Prague(Czech Republic).

• It was not held in 1940 and 1944  due to the second world war and resumed in 1948 at St. Moritz, Switzerland. 

• Until 1992 the winter and the summer olympics were held in the same year but a decision was taken to separate the events. The next winter olympics took place in 1994 and since then it has been held in even years, that is 1998. It is usually held in the month of February.

• The winter olympics has been held in three continents: North America, Europe and Asia.

• The United States has hosted the event a maximum 4 times (1932,1960,1980, 2002) followed by France in (1924, 1968, 1992).

• As of 2022, twelve countries have participated in every Winter Olympic Games – Austria, Canada, Finland, France, Britain, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. 

• Norway has till date (2022) won the maximum medal in the Winter Olympics . It has won a total of 405 medals.

Mumbai to host IOC session in 2023

Tags: Sports News

Mumbai was selected as the host of the 2023 International Olympics (IOC) session.

It was selected at the 139th IOC session held at Beijing, China where the 24th winter olympics came to an end on 20 February 2022.  

• A total of 82 IOC members were eligible for voting, out of which 6 voted for abstention, while 75 members voted yes. Only one vote went against Mumbai as the host of the next IOC Session.

• This is the second time India will host the IOC session after the 86th session was held in 1983 at New Delhi.

• The Mumbai session is expected to announce the host of the 2030 winter olympics.

President of the Indian Olympic Association  : Narendra Batra  

President of the International Olympic Committee : Thomas Bach 

Headquarters of IOC : Lussanne , Switzerland 

Noted Gandhian Shakuntala Choudhary passed away

Tags: Person in news

Shakuntala Choudhary also popularly known as 'Shakuntala Baideo' died on 21 February 2022.She was 102 years old . 

•  She was from Kamrup district of Assam and a noted Gandhian social worker and freedom fighter. 

• She worked for the welfare of the villagers, especially women and children .

• She was awarded with Padam Shri by the President in 2022.

Coal India wins “Most Dependable Public Sector in India” Award

Tags: Awards

Coal India limited was conferred with the “Most Dependable Public Sector in India” at the “Energy Meet & Excellence” awards function organised by the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Kolkata .

Coal India Limited 

• It is the world’s largest coal producing company in the world.

• It is a Maharatna company under the Ministry of Coal, Government of India.

• Its Headquarters : Kolkata, West Bengal .

Current Chairman and Managing Director (MD): Pramod Aggarwal 

Minister of Coal, Government of India  : Prahlad Joshi 

ADB to provide $68 million loan to IIFL improve women's access to green housing in India

Tags: Economics/Business

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and IIFL Home Finance Limited (IIFL) signed a $68 million loan to improve financial access to affordable green housing for lower-income women borrowers in India .

 Out of $ 68 million ,ADB will provide $58 million while the $10 million concessional loan by  the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia (CFPS). The Canadian loan will be routed through ADB.

Asian Development Bank 

• It was set up in 1966.

• Its headquarters is at Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines 

• Total member countries : 68 

• President of ADB : Masatsugu Asakawa of Japan

IIFL

IIFL Holdings Limited is an Indian diversified financial services company headquartered in Mumbai.

IIFL Home Finance Limited is a subsidiary company of IIFL.

Chairman : NirmaL Jain  

First foreign branch of IIT to be set up in UAE

Tags: National News

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) will establish its first branch in the UAE as part of the India-UAE trade deal signed on February 18 2021.

• This will be the first time an IIT will be established outside India.

• Presently, there are 23 IITs in India, which are located in various regions of the country offering undergraduate, postgraduate and doctorate level programmes.

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)

• In 1945 the British Government set up a committee headed by Nalini Ranjan Sarkar to study and recommend the steps to be taken for technological development in India.

• It recommended setting up at least four ‘Higher Technical Institutes’ (HITs) one each in East, West, North and South.

• After Independence the government of India set up the“ Higher Technical Institute in India” as the  Indian Institute of Technology.

• The first IIT was inaugurated by the then Education Minister, Abul Kalam Azad, on 18th August, 1951 in Kharagpur.

• On the recommendations of the Sarkar Committee, four campuses were established at  Bombay  (1958),Madra  (1959), Kanpur  (1959), and Delhi (1961).

• They are governed by the  Institutes of Technology Act  1961.

• At present there are 23 IITs in India .

Indian Navy's 12th Presidential fleet review at Visakhapatnam.

Tags: National News

President Ram Nath Kovind participated in the Indian Navy's 12th Presidential fleet review at Visakhapatnam held on 21 February 2022.

•  A fleet review is usually conducted once during the tenure of the President.

• President Ram Nath Kovind  participated in the Presidential fleet review on an indigenously built Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel, INS Sumitra, which will lead the Presidential Column.

• President Kovind, who is also the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, will be reviewing over 60 ships and submarines, and 55 aircraft of the Indian Navy.

•  Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar were also present at the review.

• The first Presidential fleet review was held in 1953 for the first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad.

Important for Exam 

Indian Navy 

The headquarters of the Indian Navy is at New Delhi.

The other command centre of the Indian Navy are as follows 

Command             Headquarters

Western Command  :    Mumbai 

Southern Command:     Kochi(Kerala)

Eastern Command :    Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh)

Tri service command : Port Blair (Andaman and Nicobar)

(It means Army,Navy,Air Force joint command )

Navy Day : 4 December