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Thursday, January 5, 2023

DAILY GK 22-24 DEC

 DAILY GK 22-24 DEC

1.          2022 SOCIAL PROGRESS INDEX: INDIA RANKS 110TH

·            The Institute for Competitiveness released the annual 2022 Social Progress Index (SPI) which was published by Social Progress Imperative.

·            India secured a global rank of 110 with score of 60.19 in Tier 4 countries.

·            The index is topped by Norway with a score of 90.74 in Tier-1 countries i.e. high income countries.

·            The SPI 2022 for States and Districts made by the Institute for Competitiveness and Social Progress Imperative was submitted to Economic Advisory Council- Prime Minister (EAC-PM).

·            Puducherry got the highest SPI score of 65.99 due to its remarkable performance across components like personal freedom and choice, shelter, and water and sanitation.

 

2.          TENTATIVE LIST OF UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITES

·            According to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), 3 new Cultural Sites in India have been added to the provisional list of United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCOWorld Heritage sites.

·            They are as Sun Temple, Modhera, Gujarat and its adjoining monuments,Vadnagar – A multi-layered Historic town, Gujarat,Rock-cut Sculptures and Reliefs of the Unakoti, Unakoti Range, Unakoti District, Tripura

·            With this addition, India currently has 52 sites on the UNESCO Tentative List.

·            There are 40 sites in India that have been designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

 

3.          THE STATUS OF CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE SCHEME ‘AYURSWASTHYA YOJANA’

·            the Ministry of Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) issued a notification regarding the status of the centres of excellence scheme ‘AYURSWASTHYA Yojana‘.

·            AYURSWASTHYA Yojana, a Central Sector Scheme under the Ministry of Ayush is currently run with 2 componentsAYUSH and Public Health (PHI) & Centre of Excellence (CoE) from the Financial Year (FY) 2021-2022 by merging two erstwhile schemes of AYUSH Ministry.

 

4.          INDIA’S FIRST GREEN STEEL BRAND – “KALYANI FERRESTA”

·            This was manufactured by a Saarloha Advanced Materials (Saarloha) Pune-based Kalyanigroup company, by using renewable energy resources, leaving zero carbon footprints in the environment.

·            India is presently leading the countries which have committed to achieving carbon neutrality, with ongoing green steel manufacturing.

·            Sweden was the 1st country in the world to manufacture fossil-free steel which is also known as green steel.

·            Green steel is manufactured using low-carbon energy sources such as hydrogen, coal gasification and electricity rather than using coking coal.

·            India is the world’s second-largest producer of crude steel after China.

 

5.          UI GREEN METRIC WORLD UNIVERSITY RANKINGS 2022

·            According to the UI Green Metric World University Rankings 2022 released by The Universitas Indonesia (UI) on the Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal (town within Udupi), Karnataka is ranked No. 1 in India and 121st worldwide for being the most sustainable university.

·            MAHE is followed by Mangalore University, Mangaluru, Karnataka, and S R M University (Institute of Science and Technology) Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu are ranked 2nd & 3rd in India.

·            Wageningen University & Research of Netherlands topped the list followed by the United Kingdom(UK)’s Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham in 2nd and 3rd place respectively.

 

6.          DIGITAL INDIA AWARDS 2022

·            The Smart Cities Mission of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has won the Platinum icon award in the Digital India Awards (DIA) 2022 under the Data Sharing and Use for Socio Economic Development category for their initiative “DataSmart Cities: Empowering Cities through Data”.

·            Digital India Awards (DIA) are instituted under the aegis of National Portal of India to honour and encourage innovative digital solutions by government entities at all levels(Centre, State & local bodies) to fulfil the Digital India vision.

 

7.          BRITISH MAGAZINE’S LIST OF 50 GREATEST ACTORS

·            Indian Actor and Bollywood superstar, Shah Rukh Khan has become the only Indian to be named on the 50 Greatest Actors Of All Time List of Empire Magazine, a British monthly film magazine.

·            The list also features Hollywood giants like Denzel Washington, Tom Hanks, Anthony Marlon Brando, Meryl Streep, Jack Nicholson and many others.   

 

8.          INDIAN NAVY GETS 5TH SCORPENE CLASS SUBMARINE ‘VAGIR’

·         The fifth Scorpene-class conventional submarine, “Vagir”(S25), of “Project 75”, Kalvari Class submarines, Yard 11879, was delivered to the Indian Navy by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) Mumbai, Maharashtra.

·            It will be commissioned into the Indian Navy in January 2023 as “Indian Naval Ship (INS) Vagir,” a fully combat-worthy submarine capable of operation in all modes and deployment regimes.

·            Six Scorpene-class submarines are to be built indigenously under Project-75.

·            The first submarine, “INS Kalvari,” was commissioned in December 2017, followed by 2nd submarine “INS Khanderi“ in September 2019, 3rd submarine “INS Karanj” in March 2021, and 4th submarine “INS Vela” in November 2021.

 

9.          INDIAN NAVY LAUNCHES ITS FIRST ANTI-SUBMARINE WARFARE SHIP “INS ARNALA”

·            The Indian Navy launched the Indian Naval Ship (INS) “Arnala,” the first of eight indigenously built Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC) [Yard 3029], at shipbuilding facility of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) in Kattupalli, Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

·            It is built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd. (GRSE), Kolkata, West Bengal.

 

10.       GIXI: IGX LAUNCHES INDIA’S FIRST GAS PRICE INDEX

·            The Indian Gas Exchange (IGX) launched GIXI, the first ever, nationwide price index to reflect benchmark natural gas prices for India. This launch is on the lines with international benchmarks such as JKM (Japan Korea Marker), HH (Henry Hub), WIM (West India Marker), TTF (Dutch).

·            IGX Price Index is calculated for various hubs and delivery points with IGX prices being discovered based on actual deliveries making it reflective of the true market situation.

·            IGX is Promoted by the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX), it is India’s first automated national level Gas Exchange.
Managing Director & CEO– Rajesh Kumar Mediratta

 

11.       SCO-IBC MEETING HELD AT NEW DELHI

·            The 19th meeting of the Experts and Coordinators of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Interbank Consortium (SCO-IBC), the first to be held under India’s presidency, came to an end in New Delhi, Delhi.

·            The SCO IBC will be led by India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL) from October 26 to October 25, 2023.

·            Recently, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi attended the 22nd SCO Summit, which took place on September 15-16, 2022, in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

·            The SCO Presidency for the upcoming years 2022–2023 was transferred from Uzbekistan to India during the summit.

·            The SCO is an eight-nation group composed of India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

·            In July 2005India was granted ‘observer status’ in the SCO during the Astana Summit held in Astana, capital of Kazakhstan.

·            India became a full member of the SCO during the SCO summit in Astana in June 2017.

 

12.       HEMANT GUPTA APPOINTED AS CHIEF OF NDIAC

·            The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has appointed Justice Hemant Gupta, retired Supreme Court Judge, as the Chairperson of the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (NDIAC) and Ganesh Chandru and Anant Vijay Palli as part-time members of NDIAC.

·            He has delivered several important judgments, including the verdict in the Karnataka Hijab ban case

 

13.       NATIONAL MATHEMATICS DAY 2022 – DECEMBER 22

·            National Mathematics Day is annually celebrated across India on December 22 to mark the birth anniversary of renowned Indian Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan, who was born on 22nd December 1887 in Erode, Madras Presidency, British India (now Tamil Nadu, India).

·            22nd December 2022 marks the 135th birth anniversary of Srinivasa Ramanujan.

 

14.       SANIA MIRZA TO BECOME INDIA’S 1ST MUSLIM WOMAN FIGHTER PILOT

·            Sania Mirza  from Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, who cleared the National Defence Academy (NDA) exam and secured 149th rank, is set to become India’s 1st Muslim female fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force (IAF) and UP’s 1st IAF pilot.

·            The NDA exam was held to fill 400 seats, 19 of which were reserved for women candidates. 2 of these 19 seats were reserved for fighter pilots.

·            In 2016, the IAF commissioned 3 women as fighter pilots. Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth, and Mohana Singh created history by becoming the 1st female combat pilots in the IAF.

·            The 1st female Rafale fighter pilot is Flight Lieutenant Shivangi Singh, who was commissioned in 2017.

·            Captain Abhilasha Barak is the 1st woman Combat Aviator in the Indian Army.

 

15.       WINNERS OF SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARDS 2022

·            The Sahitya Akademi announced the winners of Sahitya Akademi Awards 2022, the annual awards that recognises the literature works in 24 Indian languages (including English).

·            Novelist Anuradha Roy, Tamil author M. Rajendran, Telugu writer Madhuranthakam Narendra and Sanskrit Poet Janardan Prasad Pandey ‘Mani’ were among 23 litterateurs awarded the Sahitya Akademi Awards for 2022.

 

16.       UIDAI HQ BUILDING WINS TOP GREEN BUILDING AWARD

·            The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Headquarter in New Delhi (Delhi) has won the prestigious GRIHA Exemplary Performance Award 2022, a top national level Green Building Award.

·            GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) is a national rating system for green buildings in India.

·            PGIMER satellite centre at Sangrur, Punjab has balso een declared winner in the GRIHA Exemplary Performance competition in the category of energy management.

 

17.       2022 IWF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

·            Indian weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu won the  Silver medal, under 49 kg Women category, at the 2022 IWF World Championships held in Bogota, Colombia

·            Jiang Huihua of China took home the gold medal with a combined weight of 206 kg.

·            Saikhom Mirabai Chanu was born at Nongpok Kakching, Imphal, Manipur.

·            She was the 1st Indian Weightlifter to win a Silver at the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020 and the 2nd Indian Weightlifter after KarnamMalleswari to win an Olympic medal.

·            Hidilyn Diaz, a Filipino weightlifter (Philippines), has won 3 gold medals under the 55Kg Women’s category at the 2022 IWF World Championships in Bogota, Colombia.

 

18.       FIFA RANKING: BRAZIL RANKED NO.1

·            FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) officially announced the 2022 world rankings, and Brazil hold on to their No. 1 spot and 22nd FIFA Men’s World  Cup 2022 Champions Argentina ranked 2nd.

·            Morocco has improved from 22nd to 11th

·            France is at 3rd place

 

19.       KISAN DIWAS OR NATIONAL FARMERS DAY 2022 – DECEMBER 23

·            Kisan Diwas, also known as National Farmers Day, is annually observed across India on December 23 to recognise and honour the major role of farmers in the growth and development of India.

·            The day also marks the birth anniversary of Chaudhary Charan Singh, a farmers’ leader who became India’s 5th Prime Minister (PM) (1979-1980).

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DAILY GK 20,21 DEC

 DAILY GK 20,21 DEC

1.          INDIA LAUNCHES ‘GROUP OF FRIENDS’ TO PROMOTE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR CRIMES AGAINST PEACEKEEPERS

·India, the President of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), has launched a ‘Group of Friends’ to promote accountability for crimes against peacekeepers.

·The co-chairs of the ‘Group of Friends’ are India, Bangladesh, Egypt, France, Morocco and Nepal.

·Peacekeeping is one of the key tools that is available with the UNSC to maintain international peace and security.

·India, among the largest troop-contributing countries to UN peacekeeping, which has lost around 177 peacekeepers in the line of duty and is notably the largest among other countries.

 

2.          GOOGLE PARTNERS DIGILOCKER TO BRING ON-DEVICE STORING OF GOVERNMENT IDS 

·During the Google for India 2022 (8th edition) conference, Google announced a partnership with DigiLocker, a government-authorised identification storage system, to bring local storage of government-issued IDs on Android devices.

·Google’s AI offering includes, on-device processing of text and images to identify important documents and organise them in a locally stored ‘Files’ folder.

·In March 2022, DigiLocker’s user base topped 100 million. To retrieve, digitize, and store government-issued papers, it makes use of an Application Programming Interface (API).

·DigiLocker is a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY) under the Digital India programme.

 

3.          INDIA’S SARGAM KOUSHAL CROWNED AS MRS WORLD 2022

·India’s Sargam Koushal was crowned Mrs World 2022 held at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, Nevada, United States of America(USA). She brought the crown back to India, 21 years after Aditi Govitrikar (Mrs World 2001).

·She was crowned by Shaylyn Ford, Mrs World 2021 from the United States (US)

·Mrs Polynesia was named the 1st runner-up, followed by Mrs Canada as the 2nd runner-up.

 

4.          LEO VARADKAR ELECTED AS IRELAND’S PRIME MINISTER

·Indian origin Leo Varadkar leader of the Fine Gael party has been elected Prime Minister of Ireland (Taoiseach) for the second time in December 2022. 

·Leo Varadkar was appointed as new Prime Minister by Irish President Michael D. Higgins

·The former Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin is the new deputy prime minister and minister for foreign affairs and defence.

·The Republic of Ireland is a parliamentary representative democracy, with the Legislative power vested in the Oireachtas and the executive Executive power vested on Taoiseach (Prime Minister), along with Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister).

·Ireland Capital – Dublin,Currency – Euro

 

5.          ‘INS MORMUGAO’: STEALTH GUIDED MISSILE DESTROYER COMMISSIONED INTO INDIAN NAVY

·The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Mormugao (D67), the second of four “Visakhapatnam”-class destroyers, also known as the “Project 15B” class of stealth guided-missile destroyers, was commissioned at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, Maharashtra.

·It underwent sea trials on December 19, 2021, when Goa commemorated 60 years of independence from Portuguese rule.

·Goa Liberation Day is observed annually on December 19, to commemorate the armed forces operation known as “Operation Vijay,” which was launched in 1961 in an effort to liberate the state by defeating the Portuguese.

·The INS Mormugao is named after Mormugao, a historic port city in Goa on the west coast.

 

6.          22ND FIFA MEN’S WORLD CUP 2022 

·The 22nd FIFA Men’s World Cup 2022 was held from November 20, 2022 – December 18, 2022 in Qatar.

·It was the first World Cup held in the Middle Eastern country and the second held entirely in Asia after the 2002 tournament jointly hosted by South Korea and Japan.

·Argentina grabbed the top spot. It was its 3rd title.

·The runner up was France while the 3rd and 4th place was secured by Croatia, and Morocco respectively.

·Argentina’s Captain, and Seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi was named as tournament’s best player, winning the Golden Ball.

·Morocco became the first African country to reach the World Cup semifinals by beating Portugal 1-0.

·The FIFA World Cup is held every four years. This tournament was first held in 1930. No World Cup was held in 1942 and 1946 due to World War II.

·Official match ball- Adidas ‘Al Rihla’ (The Journey)

·Official match ball of last 3 matches (semi-finals, third-place, and final)- Al Hilm’ (Dream in Arabic)

·FIFA World Cup 2022 trophy unveiled by- Indian actor Deepika Padukone

·Total Matches-64, Total Teams-32

·The official mascot of the FIFA World Cup 2022 La’eeb, which is an Arabic word meaning “super-skilled player”.

·Kylian Mbappé is the top scorer in the 2022 FIFA World Cup with 8 goals get Golden Boot Award

·Golden Glove Best Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez (Argentina)

·FIFA Young Player Award Enzo Fernández (Argentina)

 

7.          FIH HOCKEY WOMEN’S NATIONS CUP SPAIN 2022

·The Indian women’s hockey team won the inaugural FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup 2022 by defeating Spain in the final (1-0)  held in Valencia, Spain.

·Spain is in the second position followed by Japan and Ireland in third and fourth position.

·India and Spain had played in the FIH women’s Hockey Pro League 2021-22 season as replacement teams after pull-outs by Australia and New Zealand due to COVID-19 related issues.

·FIH President –Mohammad Tayyab Ikram,Headquarters – Lausanne, Switzerland

 

8.          INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS DAY 2022 -DECEMBER 18

·The day(18th December) marks the day on which the UNGA adopted the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families in 1990.

·International Organization for Migration (IOM)was first established as the Provisional Intergovernmental Committee for the Movement of Migrants from Europe (PICMME) in 1951 and was renamed as International Organization for Migration(IOM) in 1980(after a series of name change).

·Headquarters– Geneva, Switzerland

 

9.          MINORITY RIGHTS DAY 2022 – 18TH DECEMBER

·The day marks the day on which the United Nations (UN) adopted and broadcast the Statement on the individual’s Rights belonging to Religious or Linguistic National or Ethnic Minorities in 1992.

·National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Chairperson– Iqbal Singh Lalpura

 

10.       MP GETS INDIA’S 1ST & WORLD’S 2ND INFANTRY MUSEUM AT MHOW CANTONMENT, INDORE 

·            On the eve of 75 years of raising of the Infantry School and to commemorate the Vijay Diwas, India’s first & World’s 2nd Infantry Research Centre and Museum was inaugurated in the Mhow cantonment in Indore district, Madhya Pradesh(MP).

·            The museum was thrown open to the public on 17th December 2022.

·            The Museum showcases the history of the Infantry Corps from 1747 to 2020 which includes the sacrifice of valour and valiant soldiers preserved in statues, murals and photo galleries of 30 theme zones.

·            National Infantry Museum and Soldier Center, Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning in Columbus Georgia, United States of America is the world’s first National Infantry Museum.

 

11.       48TH MEETING OF THE GST COUNCIL

·            The 48th Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council Meeting was conducted virtually on December 17, 2022, in New Delhi, Delhi, and was presided over by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Ministry of Finance (MoF).

·            The council has clarified the applicability of a 22 % cess on Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) provided four requirements are fulfilled.

·            The GST on pulse husks has been decreased from 5% to NIL.

·            In accordance with Section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act of 2017, the GST Council suggested decriminalizing a number of offences.

 

12.       MEGHALAYA TOPS STATES IN AVERAGE MONTHLY INCOME PER AGRICULTURAL HOUSEHOLD

·            According to the 77th round of the Situation Assessment Survey (SAS) of Agricultural Households in the rural areas of India, Meghalaya tops the list of Average monthly income per agricultural household.

·            Meghalaya topped the list with a monthly agriculture household income of Rs 29,348  followed by Punjab with Rs 26,701 and Haryana with Rs 22,841.

·            The 77th round of the survey was conducted by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) from  January 2019 to December 2019 with reference to the agricultural year July 2018-June 2019.

 

13.       2022 UN BIODIVERSITY CONFERENCE HELD IN MONTREAL CANADA

·            The United Nations (UN) Biodiversity Conference was held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada to acknowledge new set of goals to guide global action through 2030 in order to prevent nature loss.\

·            It comprised of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 15) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)

·            The president of COP15 was China.

·            India was represented by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav, Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).

·            The conference saw the adoption of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) that addresses the key drivers of nature loss, and promotes health and well-being of mankind and planet. It will replace the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.

·            A number of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) has agreed to form a ‘Coalition for Nature’ for the implementation and adoption of GBF. It will be led by Cabo Verde, Samoa and Seychelles.

 

14.       SCIENCE & ENGINEERING INDICATORS 2022 RANKING

·            India has improved its position in the global ranking of scientific publications from 7th in 2010 to 3rd in 2020, according to the “Science & Engineering Indicators 2022” report by the National Science Foundation (NSF) of the United States (US).

·            The amount of scholarly output produced in India has increased, going from 60,555 papers in 2010 to 1,49,213 papers in 2020.

·            The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent US government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all non-medical fields of science and engineering.

 

15.       US-AFRICA LEADERS SUMMIT WASHINGTON DC

·            Nigeria and Rwanda became the first African nations to sign the Artemis Accords during the first-ever US-Africa Space Forum, which was held on the sideline of the US-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington DC, United States (US).

·            Nigeria & Rwanda have become the 22nd and 23rd signatories of the Artemis Accords.

·            The Artemis Accords are the broad non-binding framework that was launched jointly by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the U.S. State Department along with eight other nations in 2020 with an aim of advancing bilateral and multilateral space cooperation between the signatories.

·            With the signing of Nigeria and Rwanda, there are now total 23 signatories to the accord.

 

16.       NITIN GADKARI LAUNCHES FIRST-EVER ‘SURETY BOND INSURANCE’ FOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

·            Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari launched India’s first-ever ‘Surety Bond Insurance’ product from Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company to reduce the dependence of infrastructure developers on bank guarantees.

·            The product was introduced in response to the demand identified by the Infrastructure sector and the Government of India (GoI).

 

17.       DINESH KUMAR SHUKLA APPOINTED AS CHAIRPERSON OF AERB 

·            The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Senior Nuclear Scientist Dinesh Kumar Shukla to the post of Chairperson of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB). He has been appointed to the post for a period of three years.

·            Dinesh Kumar Shukla, who has been the Executive Director of the AERB, succeeds G Nageswara Rao to the post of Chairperson.

 

18.       3RD T20 WORLD CUP FOR THE BLIND 2022

·            The Indian National Blind Cricket Team won the 3rd T20 World Cup for the blind 2022 by defeating Bangladesh in the final held at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, Karnataka.

·            Team India has won the title for the third consecutive time(previously won in 2012 and 2017). Indian blind cricket team was led by Ajay Kumar Reddy.

·            Sunil Ramesh was awarded man of the match.

 

19.       INTERNATIONAL HUMAN SOLIDARITY DAY 2022 – DECEMBER 20

·            United Nations (UN)’s International Human Solidarity Day is annually observed across the globe on December 20 to raise public awareness of the value of solidarity

·            The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/60/209 on 22nd December 2005 and proclaimed December 20 of each year as International Human Solidarity Day.

 

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