Daily Current Affairs and GK | 11 and 12 December 2022

Topic: State News/ Chhattisgarh

1. Shishupal hillock will be developed as a tourist destination in Chhattisgarh.

• Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel announced that Shishupal hillock in Mahasamund district will be developed as a tourist destination.
• He also said that an interstate bus stand will be also built and a tap water scheme will be also launched in Saraipali town.
• He said that the Bhadra pond will be deepened and the rural haat market will be also upgraded.
• Baghel inaugurated the new Baloda police station. It will cover an area of 60 villages.
• Important tourist destinations & places in Chhattisgarh are given below:

Topic: State News/ Goa

2. Goa to host the first festival for persons with disabilities in January.

• The Purple Fest, the first-ever inclusive festival in the state for persons with disabilities (PwDs), will be organized in Panjim from January 6-8, 2023.
• It will be hosted by the Goa State Commission for Persons with Disabilities in association with the Directorate of Social Welfare and Entertainment Society of Goa.
• Many people from all over the country will participate in the festival.
• Music concerts, dance, Fun live performances, and stand-up comedy will be the main attractions of the festival.
• Sporting events, blind car rally, birdwatching and exhibitions will also be the part of the festival.
• The latest aids and products developed for PWDs will be also displayed during the festival. Live art camps will be also organized.
• Purple Fest will be free for Goan delegates and students with disabilities. The registration fee for the festival is INR 1,000 is for the rest of the delegates.

Topic: Defence

3. INS Mormugao to be commissioned in Mumbai on 19 December.

• The Indian Navy’s latest indigenous guided stealth destroyer Mormugao will be commissioned in Mumbai.
• INS Mormugao is equipped with surface-to-surface BrahMos missiles and Barak-8 long-range surface-to-air missiles.
• It has been built at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDSL) as part of the Project 15B destroyers or the Visakhapatnam class.
• It has around 72% indigenous content, which is more than its predecessors.
• The ship can accommodate a crew of 312 persons and has an endurance of 4,000 nautical miles. It can carry out 42-day-missions.
• It is propelled by a powerful Combined Gas and Gas Propulsion Plant (COGAG) and consists of four reversible Gas Turbines.
• The INS Mormugao will be commissioned after its maiden sortie on 19 December, 2021.
• It will increase the capabilities of the Indian Navy to provide maritime security.
• The commissioning of the ship would take place a day before the Goa Liberation Day, which is on December 19.
• INS Mormugao’s name has been kept on the Mormugao city of South Goa.

Topic: State News/Himachal Pradesh

4. Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has taken oath as Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh on 11 December 2022. 

• He has become the 15th Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. He has succeeded BJP leader Jai Ram Thakur as CM of Himachal Pradesh. 
• Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered him the oath of office and secrecy.
• Mukesh Agnihotri has taken oath as deputy Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
• In the Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections, the Congress party won an absolute majority.
• It secured 40 seats, six more seats than the required 34 seats in the 68-member House.

Topic: State News/Gujarat

5. Bhupendra Patel took oath as Gujarat CM for the second consecutive term on 12 December 2022.

• Governor Acharya Devvrat administered him the oath as the 18th Chief Minister of Gujarat.
• Patel was sworn in as the 17th Chief Minister of Gujarat on September 13, 2021.
• In the Gujarat assembly elections 2022, BJP created history with its 7th consecutive win.
• The BJP's voting share was 52.5%. It won 156 seats in 182-member Assembly.
• Patel broke his own record and once again won from the Ghatlodia constituency by a margin of 1,91,000 votes in the 2022 election.

Topic: Sports

6. Ishan Kishan becomes the fourth Indian to score a double century in one-day international cricket.

• He has also become the ninth batter to score a double century in one-day international cricket.
• Ishan Kishan made 210 runs of just 131 balls with 24 boundaries and 10 sixes in an ODI match against Bangladesh in Chittagong.
• He has also become the youngest and the fastest cricketer to score an ODI double century.
• Rohit Sharma has scored three double-centuries.
• Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar have also scored double centuries in the ODIs.

Topic: State News/ Andaman and Nicobar 

7. Centre has decided to name 21 uninhabited islands in the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar after the name of recipients of Param Vir Chakra.

• 16 islands are located in North and Middle Andaman district, five islands are located in South Andaman.
• The island numbered INAN370 in North and Middle Andaman has been named after Major Somnath Sharma. Now, it will be known as Somnath Dweep.
• Major Somnath Sharma was the first recipient of the Param Vir Chakra.
• He was posthumously awarded Param Vir Chakra for his gallantry and sacrifice during the Battle of Badgam.
• Another uninhabited island numbered 'INAN308' has been named Karam Singh Dweep after Captain Karam Singh.
• Captain Karam Singh was awarded the Param Vir Chakra for saving a forward post at Richmar Gali, south of Tithwal, a small border-village in Jammu and Kashmir.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

8. More than 2400 guns have been surrendered till date since the launch of the Air Gun Surrender Abhiyan campaign on March 17, 2021.

• Since the launch of the campaign, the people of Arunachal Pradesh are continuously extending their support.
• On December 7, around 30 airguns were surrendered during BASCON 5.0 festival held at Leparada district.
• BASCON festival celebrates the local tribal art and culture of the Galo tribe of Arunachal Pradesh.
• Department of Forest and Environment, Government of Arunachal Pradesh has launched Airgun Surrender Abhiyan.
• It is a mass green movement to control the decrease in the population of wildlife.
• The total forest area is 80% of the total land of Arunachal Pradesh. This is home to over 500 different species of flora and fauna.
• On 18 November 2021, the Forest Department of the Government of Arunachal Pradesh received the Conservation Award for its Airgun Surrender Abhiyan.
• Puinnyo Apum voluntarily surrendered his 22 caliber airgun worth Rs 3.5 lakh.
• This is the most expensive gun ever surrendered voluntarily by any individual.

Topic: Art and Culture

9. 13^th edition of the ‘Under the Sal Tree’ theatre festival will begin on 15 December in Assam.

• The festival will be celebrated at Badungduppa Kalakendra at Rampur in Assam’s Goalpara district.
• It is a unique theatre festival, which is celebrated in the midst of the sal tree plantation.
• This year, the festival has got support from the Chief Minister of Assam, Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council, Indian Oil Limited Corporation, and Bongaigaon Refinery.
• It is organized without the use of any artificial devices. Even a microphone is not used for enhancing the voice of actors.
• The organizers use bamboo and straw to build the stage and sitting arrangements. This year, seven plays will be displayed in the three-day festival.
• In the earlier editions of the festival, theatre groups from South Korea, Brazil, Poland, and neighbouring Bangladesh also participated in the festival.
• It is organized to spread the message of the importance of co-existing with nature and establishing a symbiotic relationship.
• The festival was started in 2008. Late Sukracharjya Rabha gets international recognition for the open-air theatre festival titled under the Sal Tree. Sukracharjya Rabha is one of the acclaimed theatre personalities of the region.

Topic: State News/ Assam

10. Barsapara Cricket Stadium is set to host the first ODI of the India-Sri Lanka series on 10 January.

• Barsapara Cricket Stadium will host the first match of the three-match ODI series between India-Sri Lanka on January 10.
• The stadium has hosted T20 Internationals, and last hosted a match between India and South Africa on October 2, 2022.
• The series against the Sri Lankans will be followed by two more home series against New Zealand and Australia.
• Barsapara Cricket Stadium:
  • It is also known as Assam Cricket Association Stadium. It has been built at a cost of Rs 2300 crore.
  • It was inaugurated by Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal on 10 October 2017.
  • It is the largest sports stadium in Northeast India.
  • It has hosted many domestic and international cricket matches.
  • Then Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had laid the foundation stone of the stadium in June 2004.

Topic: State News/ Arunachal Pradesh

11. In Arunachal Pradesh, a new songbird has been found in the mountains.

• During an expedition to Arunachal Pradesh, a group of six birdwatchers said that they had discovered a new species of Wren Babbler.
• In March, a team of birdwatchers from Bengaluru, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, and two Arunachal Pradesh guides started expedition to climb Mugaphi Peak in search of the rare Grey-bellied Wren Babbler.
• The grey-bellied wren babbler is found mostly in Myanmar, with some reported in China and Thailand.
• The team has named the new bird as Lisu Wren Babbler, after the Lisu community of the Arunachal Pradesh.
• To scientifically proof that a new species or subspecies of Wren Babbler has been discovered, it will be necessary to compare the genetic material of the newly discovered bird with that of other Wren Babbler species.
• Wren Babbler:
  • The wren-babbler is any of about 20 species of small Asian birds belonging to the babbler family Timaliidae (order Passeriformes).
  • They are 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 in) long, with a rather short tail. Their beak is short and straight.
  • They occur mainly in southern Asia. In India, Naga wren babbler is found in Nagaland and Manipur.

Topic: State News/ Andhra Pradesh

12. Koushal-2022 awards presented by Andhra Pradesh Governor to students.

• Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan attended the State Level Koushal 2022 award presentation programme as the chief guest.
• On 9 December, the award program was held at the School of Planning and Architecture auditorium in Vijayawada.
• The Koushal is a State-level science talent test launched in 2018.
• Bharatiya Vijnana Mandali (BVM) and Andhra Pradesh State Council of Science & Technology jointly conducted this event.
• KOUSHAL encourages the children to reason critically, solve problems with team spirit and make them discover the Indian contribution to the world in the field of science and technology.
• 55,012 students from 2,431 schools in all 26 districts took part in the competition, which was held only for government school students.

Topic: State News/ Arunachal Pradesh

13. Arunachal government launched 7^th edition of ‘Seva Aapke Dwar 2.0’ campaign.

• The campaign was launched at Gossang village in Upper Siang District.
• The main aim of the camp was to ensure that the benefits of government schemes and services reach the doorsteps of people living in the state.
• ‘Seva Aapke Dwar 2.0’ is the second edition of the Sarkar Apke Dwar (SAD) programme.
• Seva Aapke Dwar 2.0 is different from SAD programme as it is based on actual need of villagers.
• Sarkar Apke Dwar was passed in the 2018-19 budget of the state. It aimed at delivering all government services to citizens- e-ILP, Scheduled Tribe certificates, Residence certificates, Aadhar enrolment, income certificate, driving licences, renewal of arms licenses, and other government schemes.

Topic: State News/ Assam

14. Ministry of Railways allocated Rs 250 crore for the revamp of Silchar Railway station.

• Silchar Railway station is located in Cachar district in Southern Assam.
• Silchar Railway station is one of the oldest station in India.
• It has been built by the Assam Bengal Railway, a company in British India.
• The Detailed project report will be approved in 2023 and the first phase of redevelopment work will be completed in 2024.
• The Ministry of Railway has also allocated Rs 280 crore and Rs 200 crore for the redevelopment of the Guwahati and Rangia rail stations respectively.