1. World's first vaccine for honeybees approved for use by United States
Tags: Science and Technology International News
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved the world's first insect vaccine, which has been developed to protect bees from a devastating bacterial disease.
An overview of the news
US researchers have developed a vaccine to target a disease called American foulbrood.
The disease is caused by Paenibacillus larval bacteria and once it reaches a bee population, it has the potential to completely destroy the colony.
Dalil Freitak of the University of Helsinki and his colleagues discovered an important egg yolk protein called vitellogenin.
This fundamental discovery laid the groundwork for a new type of insect vaccine, and the team's first target was honey bees.
Effectiveness of vaccine
The vaccine works by binding to the vitellogenin protein in inactivated bacterial cells so that when consumed by the queen bee it can be transferred directly to her larvae.
This vaccine is given to the queen bees in the form of royal jelly. She swallows it, and fragments of the vaccine get deposited in her ovaries.
After exposure to the vaccine, immunity develops in the developing larvae.
A successful clinical trial demonstrated that the vaccine is both safe and effective.
Progeny from a vaccinated queen bee are much less likely to contract bacterial disease.
2. New British Indian Army Memorial to be built in Scotland
Tags: International News
A new British Indian Army memorial has been approved to be built in the Scottish city of Glasgow to commemorate the sacrifices of millions of Indian soldiers who fought alongside the British during the two world wars.
An overview of the news
In this, the contribution of more than 40 lakh Indian soldiers who fought on behalf of Britain in both the world wars will be shown.
Scotland, the local council of Glasgow has approved plans to build a memorial. Glaswegian City Council is now making the final preparations to build the memorial.
This war memorial will be built near an art gallery and museum named Kelvingrove.
According to Colourful Heritage, the organisation that made the memorial, the diversity of India can also be shown through this memorial.
Therefore, it will give information about the contribution of all the soldiers of Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Christian religions.
The contribution of those Sikh and Muslim soldiers who participated in the Second World War will be specially shown in the memorial.
3. Kevin McCarthy elected as new speaker of the US House of Representatives
Tags: Person in news International News
Republican leader Kevin McCarthy has been elected as the speaker of the US House of Representatives.
An overview of the news
He was serving as the House Minority Leader in the House.
The US Parliament has elected Kevin McCarthy of the Republican Party as the speaker of the House of Representatives after 15 rounds of voting. McCarthy is the 55th speaker of the US House of Representatives.
Kevin McCarthy, 57, has replaced Nancy Pelosi, 82, the leader of the Democratic Party in the House of Representatives.
After the midterm elections held on November 8, the number of members of former President Donald Trump's Republican Party has increased to 222 in the 435-member House of Representatives.
With this, President Joe Biden's Democratic Party has come in the minority in the House of Representatives.
Kevin McCarthy has become the third most senior US position after US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
About Kevin McCarthy
Kevin McCarthy is a member of the Republican Party.
He was elected as the House Minority Leader from 2019 to 2023.
He previously served as the House Majority Leader from 2014 to 2019 under Speakers John Boehner and Paul Ryan.
McCarthy has been elected as a member of the US Parliament 9 times. He was born in Bakersfield, California.
4. India deploys a platoon of women peacekeepers to the UN Mission in Sudan
Tags: International News
India deployed a platoon of women peacekeepers in the Abyei region of Sudan on 6 January as part of the Indian battalion in the United Nations Interim Security Force (UNISFA).
An overview of the news
It is India's largest single contingent of women peacekeepers in a UN mission since it deployed its first all-women contingent to Liberia in 2007.
In 2007, India became the first country to deploy an entirely women contingent for a UN peacekeeping mission.
Police units formed in Liberia provided 24-hour guard duty, night patrols in the capital Monrovia, and helped increase the capacity of the Liberian Police.
The Indian contingent, comprising two officers and 25 other ranks, will form part of an engagement platoon and specialise in community outreach; they will also undertake extensive security work.
United Nations Interim Security Force (UNISFA)
The United Nations Security Council responded immediately to the deteriorating situation in the Abyei region of Sudan by establishing UNISFA by its resolution 1990 of 27 June 2011.
The UN Security Council was deeply concerned by the violence, rising tensions and population displacement.
UNISFA was established after the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) reached an agreement in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
About UN Peacekeeping
UN peacekeeping began in 1948 when the UN Security Council authorised the deployment of UN military observers in the Middle East.
It helps to bring countries from conflict to a difficult path of peace.
It deploys soldiers and police from all over the world for peacekeeping.
India is one of the largest military and police contributors to UN peacekeeping operations.
There are currently more than 5,700 Indian peacekeepers deployed in nine of the 12 UN peacekeeping missions.
5. Dr. Vinay Prakash Singh takes over as the Secretary General of the Asian Pacific Postal Union
Tags: Person in news International News
Dr Vinay Prakash Singh assumed the charge as the Secretary General of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) on 1 January 2023. . This is the first time that an Indian is leading an international organization in the postal sector. Dr Singh will remain in office for 4 years.
Former Member (Personnel), Postal Services Board, Department of Post Dr Vinay Prakash Singh was elected as the Secretary General during the 13th APPU Congress held in Bangkok during August- September 2022.
Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) is an intergovernmental organization of 32-member countries of the Asian-Pacific region. APPU is the only Union of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in the region, which is a specialized agency of the United Nations.
The headquarters of the Asian Pacific Postal Union is in Bangkok, Thailand.
The Secretary General leads the activities of the Union and is also the Director of the Asian Pacific Postal College (APPC) which is the largest intergovernmental postal training institute in the region.
The Asia Pacific region generates around half of the global mail volume and has around one-third of the global postal human resource.
6. China becomes the first country in Asia and second in the world to launch Hydrogen powered Train
Tags: International News
China became the first country in Asia and second in the world to launch Hydrogen powered urban trains. Germany was the first country to introduce hydrogen powered trains in September 2022.
Chinese company CRRC Corporations ltd built a train that has a top speed of 160 KM per hour and can run without refuelling for 600 Km . The German Coradia iLint serial train developed by French company Alstom has set a record 1175 Km range without refuelling.
According to the Chinese officials, the operation of the train will reduce CO2 emissions compared to diesel traction by 10 tons per year.
Hydrogen powered Trains
Hydrogen is considered to be the green fuel of the future. The Hydrogen fuel cell is environment friendly and it does not emit any greenhouse gasses. The hydrogen fuel cell uses hydrogen and air to generate electricity. The combination of air and hydrogen will produce water as a by-product which will be released by the Train.
India is committed to achieve zero net carbon emission by 2070.
Hydrogen Train in India
As per Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, India will most likely get its first-ever indigenous Hydrogen trains by December 2023. As per the minister, like Vande Bharat Express, the Indian Railways is working on the new environment-friendly trains and the engineers are designing it. "The design process is already going on and we should be able to roll out the first hydrogen train in the country by December 2023," he added.
7. Croatia adopts Euro currency, also included in Europe's free passport club
Tags: International News
On January 1, 2023, Croatia adopted the euro currency and also joined Europe's free passport club (Schengen area), nearly a decade after joining the European Union.
Important facts
On January 1, 2023, Croatia with a population of about 4 million said goodbye to its Kuna currency and became the 20th member of the Eurozone.
It will be the 27th country in the world's largest passport-free Schengen zone, which enables more than 400 million people to move freely within its member states.
Adoption of the euro will help Croatia's economy at a time when global inflation has been rising since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which has pushed up fuel and food prices.
It will also boost Croatia's major tourism industry, which accounts for 20 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP).
The Eurozone consists of 19 members of the European Union (EU), which uses the Euro as their official currency.
What is the Schengen Zone?
The border-free Schengen Area guarantees visa-free movement for over 400 million EU citizens, as well as tourists, students living in the EU and visiting the EU.
Free movement of persons enables every EU citizen to travel, work and live in an EU country without special formalities.
The Schengen provision eliminates checking at the EU's internal borders, while providing a set of rules for controls at external borders.
About Croatia
Croatia is a country located in the northwestern part of the Balkan Peninsula.
Prime Minister: Andrej Plenković
President: Zoran Milanović
Capital: Zagreb
Currency :euro
8. Elon Musk becomes first person ever to lose $200 billion
Tags: Person in news International News
According to Bloomberg Billionaires Index Tesla Chief Elon Musk became the only person in history to lose $200 billion from their net worth.
Important facts
Musk, who recently acquired the micro-blogging platformTwitter for $44 billion, was the second person to amass over $200 billion after Jeff Bezos.
After the acquisition, Musk had a takeover of Twitter, resulting in a loss of Tesla shares.
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk's wealth declined to $137 billion. Musk also sold several Tesla shares throughout the year.
Currently, Musk's stake in his Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is valued at $44.8 billion, which is higher than his roughly $44 billion position in Tesla stock (he still has options worth an estimated $27.8 billion).
Elon Musk became the richest person in the world when his wealth reached $340 billion on November 4, 2021.
He lost the title to French fashion and cosmetics magnate Bernard Arnault in early December 2022.
Who is Elon Musk?
He is the charismatic chief executive officer (CEO) of electric car maker Tesla and rocket manufacturer SpaceX.
Musk completed the deal to buy Twitter in October 2022, becoming the owner of the social media company.
Born and raised in South Africa, Musk spent time in Canada before moving to the United States.
9. 10th edition of Dhaka Literary Festival
Tags: Festivals International News
After being cancelled for three consecutive years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 10th edition of Dhaka Lit Fest (DLF), Bangladesh's biggest international literary festival, is all set to take place on January 5-8, 2023.
Important facts
The event will be held on the historic grounds of the Bangla Academy in Dhaka.
More than 500 literary personalities across the globe including Nobel Prize Winner Abdulrazak Gurnah will be taking part in the festival.
The four-day event will feature internationally acclaimed authors including Amitav Ghosh, Hanif Qureshi, Alexandra Pringle, Gitanjali Shree, Daisy Rockwell, Esther Freud, Joy Goswami, Kaiser Haque, among others.
It will feature over 175 sessions with discussions on science and technology, activities for children and young adults, film screenings, theatre, music and cultural performances.
The organisers of DLF have termed it as a 'festival of ideas'.
Films, OTT, science and other topics of public interest will also be discussed in this programme.
There will be performances for children as well as for women. The Dhaka Lit Fest will also host discussions on health, food and cooking, among other topics.
About Dhaka Lit Fest
Sadaf Saaz, Ahsan Akbar and Kazi Anis Ahmed are the directors of the Dhaka Lit Fest (DLF).
It began in 2011 with the commitment to promote Dhaka, and Bangladeshi literature and culture to the world.
Dhaka Lit Fest has been a popular annual event in the winter calendar of Bangladesh.
About 30,000 people participated in the ninth Dhaka Lit Fest last held in 2019.
10. India, Austria to sign 5 agreements
Tags: International Relations International News
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that India and Austria will sign five agreements on January 2, 2023 and two of them are in the interest of the Indian community living in Austria.
Important facts
The two agreements would be in the interest of the Indian community.
There is an agreement on 'Migration and Mobility' for people who want to work in Austria and who want to come to India for business, or who come here as students and professionals.
Another agreement is on the ‘Working Holiday’ program that will enable Indian students in Austria to work for 6 months.
S Jaishankar is on an official visit to Austria where he held a meeting with Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
This is the first India-Austria EAM-level visit in the last 27 years which is taking place in 2023 against the backdrop of 75 years of diplomatic relations.
About Austria
It is a largely mountainous landlocked country of south-central Europe.
Chancellor: Karl Nehammer
President: Alexander Van der Bellen
Capital: Vienna
Currency : euro
Official Language : German
