Daily Current Affairs and GK | 10 December 2021

Topic: Important Days

1. Human Rights Day: 10 December

• Every year, Human Rights Day is observed on 10 December. It is celebrated to raise awareness about the social, cultural and physical rights of people.
• This year’s Human Rights Day theme is “Equality, Reducing inequalities, advancing human rights”.
• It is observed to mark the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.
• The principle of equality and non-discrimination are the two main human rights. Human rights are the best ways to reduce inequalities in society.
• United Nations Human Rights Council established in the year 2006 is responsible for the promotion and protection of human rights in the world.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

2. NITI Aayog launched 'e-Sawari India E-Bus Coalition' in tie-up with CESL.

• NITI Aayog launched the 'e-Sawari India E-Bus Coalition' in association with Convergence Energy Service Ltd (CESL) and World Resources Institute, India (WRI India).
• The coalition has been launched to share data and learnings on e-bus in India amongst various stakeholders.
• The e-Sawaari India Electric Bus Coalition is one of the step toward electrification of the bus transport system in India.
• NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said that electrification of public transport is essential for decarbonisation in India.
• The government is promoting the manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India through the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India (FAME) scheme.
• Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL): It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL).

Topic: Personality in News

3. Serum Institute of India ED Suresh Jadhav passed away.

• Serum Institute of India’s Executive Director Dr Suresh Jadhav passed away. He played a key role in the development of the Covid-19 vaccine Covishield.
• He was part of several national and international bodies and associations. He held the post of Executive Director since 1992.
• He started his career with a research fellowship of CSIR. He was President of Developing Countries Vaccine Manufacturers Network (DCVMN) from 2004 to 2008.
• He represented the Serum Institute of India on the GAVI board. He played a key role in getting WHO pre-qualifications of several products.
• Serum Institute of India is the world’s largest vaccine maker. It is the second company to apply for the approval of a vaccine candidate from the Drugs Controller General of India.

Topic: Defence

4. India successfully test-fires air version of BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.

• India successfully test-fired the air version of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the integrated test range of Chandipur.
• The air version of the missile has been test-fired from supersonic fighter aircraft Sukhoi 30 MK-I.
• The defense ministry described this launch as a major milestone for the development of BrahMos in India.
• Various laboratories of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), academic institutions, quality assurance & certification agencies were involved in the development of this complex system.
• BrahMos is a joint venture between India and Russia. The missile derives its name from the Brahmaputra river of India and the Moskva river of Russia.
• Recently, India has successfully test-fired the Vertically Launched Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM) from the Chandipur-based ITR.

Topic: State News/ Madhya Pradesh

5. MP government implements Police Commissionerate system in Bhopal and Indore.

• Madhya Pradesh government has implemented a Police Commissionerate system in Bhopal and Indore.
• MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that the new system will strengthen law and order and help in cracking down on criminals.
• He also said that the Police Commissionerate system has been implemented in view of the law and order requirements arising out of geographical expansion and technology.
• Police Commissioner System covers the boundaries of 36 police stations in Indore and 38 police stations in Bhopal.

Topic: State News/Uttar Pradesh

6. PM Modi to visit Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh on 11 December.

• PM Modi will visit Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh on 11 December and inaugurate Saryu Nahar National Project.
• The work on the project started in 1978. However, it got delayed and was not completed even after nearly four decades.
• In 2016, the project was brought under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana.
• Saryu Nahar Project involves the interlinking of five rivers - Ghaghara, Saryu, Rapti, Banganga, and Rohini to ensure optimum usage of water resources of the region.
• It will provide assured water for irrigation of over 14 lakh hectares of land and benefit about 29 lakh farmers of over six thousand 200 villages.
• It will benefit nine districts of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. The names of districts are Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Gonda, Siddharthnagar, Basti, Sant Kabir Nagar, Gorakhpur, and Maharajganj.

Topic: Reports and Indices

7. World Malaria Report 2021 has been released on 6 December.

• According to the World Malaria Report 2021, the global effort against malaria has suffered due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
• Around 627000 deaths have occurred due to malaria in 2020. It is an increase of 12 percent over 2019.
• 69,000 deaths have occurred due to disruptions in the provision of malaria prevention, diagnosis, and treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In 2020, about 241 million cases were reported from 85 malaria-endemic countries. 95 percent cases of malaria have come from the Africa region.
• Twenty-nine countries accounted for 96 percent of malaria cases globally. Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Mozambique, Angola, and Burkina Faso represented 55 percent of malaria cases.
• India accounted for 83 percent of cases in the WHO South-East Asia Region. In 2016, Sri Lanka was certified as a malaria-free country.
• WHO has announced the WHO Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030.

Topic: Miscellaneous

8. Neeraj Chopra appointed as brand ambassador for Disney Byju's Early Learn App.

• Neeraj Chopra has been appointed as the brand ambassador of Disney Byju's Early Learn App.
• Neeraj Chopra will inspire young learners to learn more creatively and interactively. He is associated with 10+ major brands since the Olympics.
• Sanjay Dutt has been appointed as the brand ambassador of Arunachal Pradesh.
• Farhan Akhtar has been named as the new brand ambassador of Piramal Group.

Topic: Appointments

9. Olaf Scholz appointed as new Chancellor of Germany.

• Olaf Scholz has been appointed as the new Chancellor of Germany. He has replaced Angela Merkel.
• Olaf Scholz has served as the Labor and Social Affairs Minister in the first coalition government of Angela Merkel.
• After that, he has served as the vice chancellor and finance minister in Merkel’s grand coalition government.
• Olaf Scholz ended the 16years rule of Angela Merkel. He got 395 votes from lawmakers in the lower house of the Parliament.
• The fourth wave of coronavirus infections is the main challenge in front of Olaf Scholz’s government.
• The government of Germany is planning to increase the minimum wage to 12 euros ($13.50) per hour from the current 9.60 euros.
• Chancellor Angela Merkel was elected for her fourth term on March 14, 2018. German federal Parliament is known as Bundestag or Reichstag.

Topic: State News/Haryana

10. A 300-crore memorial-museum being constructed by Haryana government at Ambala is likely to be inaugurated by early next year.

• A 300-crore memorial-museum being constructed by the Haryana government at Ambala is likely to be inaugurated by early next year.
• The museum is being built by Haryana government to honour martyrs of the 1857 uprising. It is spread over a 22-acre site off the national highway passing Ambala.
• Shahid Smarak would highlight that it was Ambala, and not Meerut, from where the 1857 uprising actually began.
• The decision to build memorial to honour the martyrs of the First War of Independence was taken by Manohar Lal Khattar government in 2016.
• Architect-designer Renu Khanna was commissioned to build the memorial. Renu Khanna earlier built Ambala Gate and Chhapar Chiri War Memorial near Chandigarh.
• Historian KC Yadav used telegrams discovered by him as evidence to claim that the 1857 uprising actually started in Ambala, and not Meerut.
• Historian Neera Misra was taken as an advisor/ consultant for historical and cultural content verification for the project.

Topic: Reports and Indices

11. India ranked fourth most powerful country as per Lowy Institute Asia Power Index 2021.

• As per Lowy Institute Asia Power Index 2021, India is ranked the fourth most powerful country among the 26 countries and territories in Indo-Pacific.
• However, India’s position declined by two points from 2020. It performed best in the future resource measure.
• In the future resource measure, it finished behind only the US and China.
• The Power Index 2021 has pointed out that India has boosted its resilience and military capability in 2021.
• India gained the most in resilience parameter. It lost on the parameters of cultural influence, economic relationships, diplomatic influence, defence networks and economic capability as compared to last year.
• India retained a seventh place on defence networks parameter. India’s rank declined to 8th position for economic relationships.
• Lowy Institute is an independent think tank founded to conduct research about international issues from an Australian perspective.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

12. Ropesh Goyal wins 'Young Geospatial Scientist' award.

• Ropesh Goyal from IIT-Kanpur has won the 'Young Geospatial Scientist' award.
• Goyal has won the award in recognition of his unique contribution towards the development of the Indian Geoid Model and computation software.
• The award was presented to Goyal by Member of Space Commission, Government of India AS Kiran Kumar during the inaugural event of the DigiSmart India 2021 conference hosted by the Geospatial World.
• 'Young Geospatial Scientist' award is presented every year since 2011 to a promising scientist below 35 years of age in memory of Rachapudi Kamakshi.

Topic: Sports

13. Asian Youth Para Games: India won 41 medals.

• Indian para-athletes returned from the Asian Youth Para Games in Bahrain with a total of 41 medals, their best-ever performance.
• The Indian contingent in the continental para youth games in Riffa has won 12 gold, 15 silver, and 14 bronze medals.
• India won most medals in athletics including eight gold, six silver, and eight bronze.
• The Indian para shuttlers won 15 medals, including three players from Tokyo Paralympian Palak Kohli, Sanjana Kumari, and Hardik Makkar.
• India won three medals in swimming, including one silver and two bronze, as well as a silver in powerlifting.
• Para athletics, para badminton, boccia, goalball, para powerlifting, para swimming, para table tennis, para taekwondo, and wheelchair basketball were among the nine sports in which the competitors took part during the games.
• Asian Youth Para Games 2021 is the fourth edition. It was held from 2-6 December in Manama, Bahrain.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

14. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has launched a 'Certification Course on Home Energy Audit' initiative.

• The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has virtually launched the “Certification Course on Home Energy Audit (HEA)” on 8 December.
• The initiative has launched during "National Energy Conservation Week: 8th–14th December 2021", marked as Iconic Week under "Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav".
• A Home Energy Audit (HEA) enables for accurate accounting, quantification, verification, monitoring, and analysis of the energy consumption of various energy-consuming equipment and appliances in a home.
• Additionally, it submits a technical report with feasible solutions and recommendations for improving energy efficiency, with a cost-benefit analysis and action plan to reduce energy consumption.
• The certification programme will raise awareness among engineering/diploma college students about the importance and benefits of energy audits, energy efficiency, and conservation.
• India had announced intentions to raise non-fossil fuel power generation capacity to 500 GW by 2030 during the COP-26 session in Glasgow.
• India is implementing the world's largest renewable energy programme, with a goal of having 175 GW of clean energy capacity in place by 2022.

(Source: PIB)