Daily Current Affairs and GK | 14 February 2023
Main Headlines:
- 1. PM Modi launched year-long celebrations commemorating Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati’s 200th birth anniversary.
- 2. Angela Merkel has been awarded the Felix Houphouet-Boigny UNESCO Peace Prize in Yamoussoukro, the capital of the Ivory Coast.
- 3. 3-day long Digital Economy Working Group meeting begins in Lucknow.
- 4. Real Madrid wins its fifth Club World Cup.
- 5. Wolf Prize in Medicine has been awarded to Prof Daniel Drucker of Canada.
- 6. Saudi Arabia will send its first woman astronaut into space.
- 7. Financial Literacy Week (FLW) is being organized by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from February 13 to February 17, 2023.
- 8. Names of 19 individuals and two institutions announced by Bangladesh Government for 'Ekushey Padak'.
- 9. Maharashtra wins the highest number of medals in Khelo India Youth Games.
- 10. President inaugurates 2nd edition of Indian Rice Congress in Cuttack.
- 11. Mohammad Shahabuddin to become 22nd President of Bangladesh.
- 12. DHARA 2023, annual meeting of River Cities Alliance, held in Pune.
- 13. IIT Indore students won Global Best M-Gov Award.
- 14. India plans to introduce MIIRA to popularize millets on global level.
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Topic: Personality in News
1. PM Modi launched year-long celebrations commemorating Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati’s 200th birth anniversary.
- PM Modi inaugurated year-long celebrations in Delhi. He also released a logo for commemoration.
- He said that Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati revived the understanding of Vedas in social life.
- He pointed out that Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati launched a campaign against social discrimination and untouchability.
- Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati also made efforts to fight inequality.
- Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati:
- Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati was a social reformer. He was born on 12th February 1824.
- He founded Arya Samaj in 1875. He died on 30 October 1883. He wrote the book, Satyarth Prakash.
- He denounced idolatry and ritualistic worship. He believed in the authority of Vedas.
Topic: Awards and Prizes
2. Angela Merkel has been awarded the Felix Houphouet-Boigny UNESCO Peace Prize in Yamoussoukro, the capital of the Ivory Coast.
- The jury for Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize was impressed by Merkel's courageous decision in 2015 to open her country to refugees.
- 2018 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Denis Mukwege was the jury president.
- Mukwege said the jury was touched by her decision in 2015 to take in over 1.2 million refugees, especially from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and, Eritrea.
- Former German chancellor Angela Merkel said she will donate the prize money to an Ivorian NGO called "L'enfance en danger."
- In 1991, Nelson Mandela and Frederik Willem de Klerk received the award for their efforts to put an end to apartheid in South Africa.
- Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize:
- Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize is named after the first president of Ivory Coast.
- The prize carries $150,000 in prize money, a gold medal, and a certificate signed by UNESCO's director general.
- Since 1991, the prize has been given annually to organisations or people who have made remarkable contributions to peace and human rights throughout the world.
Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings
3. 3-day long Digital Economy Working Group meeting begins in Lucknow.
- Digital Economy Working Group meeting will be organized from 13 February to 15 February 2023.
- On the first day of the meeting, 36 esteemed speakers shared their expertise and insights.
- On the second day, thematic session on the crucial topics of Digital Public Infrastructure, Cybersecurity and Digital Skilling have been organized.
- An exhibition showcasing virtual realities and artificial intelligence and innovative solutions will be also organized.
- Digital Initiatives of the State of Uttar Pradesh will also be showcased at the meeting.
- During the meeting, four workshops will be organized on different themes, which are given below.
- Digital Public Infrastructure – Sharing implementation experiences of Digital Identity in various countries.
- Sharing of Cyber Security Solutions for MSMEs.
- Digital Public Infrastructure to boost the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals.
- Use of Geo-Spatial technologies for infrastructure and Product development in the digital economy
- Digital Economy Working Groups will also have three more physical events at Hyderabad, Pune, and Bengaluru in April, June and August respectively.
Topic: Sports
4. Real Madrid wins its fifth Club World Cup.
- Real Madrid won the Club World Cup by defeating Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal by 5-3 in the final in Rabat, Morocco.
- Madrid last won the club world cup in 2018 while it won the Club World Cup also in 2014, 2016 and 2017.
- Vinicius Junior and Fede Valverde scored two-two goals each while Karim Benzema scored one goal.
- Madrid also won three Intercontinental Cups in 1960, 1998 and 2002.
- The 2023 FIFA Club World Cup has been hosted by Morocco from 1-11 February.
- Chelsea was the winner of the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup.
- Real Madrid is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Topic: Awards and Prizes
5. Wolf Prize in Medicine has been awarded to Prof Daniel Drucker of Canada.
- The name of the eight winners for the 2023 Wolf Prize were announced.
- The winners of the Wolf Prize for Science and Art are from five different countries. Three of the winners are from the United States.
- The award will be presented at an award ceremony in June held at the Knesset.
- Wolf Prize in Chemistry was awarded jointly to three scientists- Chuan He, Hiroaki Suga, and Jeffery W. Kelly.
- The Wolf Prize in Mathematics went to Ingrid Daubechies.
- Wolf Prize in the Arts was awarded to Nakaya from Japan and Richard Long from England.
- The Wolf Prize in Agriculture was given to Martinus Th Rien van Genuchten of the Federal University.
- Wolf Prize:
- Israel's Wolf Prize is being given since 1978.
- It is one of the prestigious awards for scientific and artistic achievements.
- The winners of the award received a monetary award of $100,000.
- It is given in different categories including Medicine, Agriculture, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics.
- Painting and Sculpting, Music, and Architecture are the art categories of Wolf Prize.
Topic: Space and IT
6. Saudi Arabia will send its first woman astronaut into space.
- Rayyana Barnawi will be the first woman astronaut from Saudi Arabia to go into space.
- She will join fellow male astronaut Ali Al-Qarni on a mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in the second quarter of 2023.
- Astronauts will be sent from the USA and will join the crew of the AX-2 space mission.
- In 2019, United Arab Emirates became the first Arab country to send an astronaut into space.
- 41-year-old Neyadi will become the first Arab astronaut to spend six months in space.
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is doing many reforms after he came into power in 2017 to change the image of Saudi Arabia.
- Women have been allowed to drive and travel abroad without a male guardian.
- Women’s contribution to the workforce has increased from 17% in 2016 to 37%.
- Saudi royal Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz is the first Arab Muslim to travel into space.
- Saudi Arabia has launched a space programme in 2022 to send astronauts into space.
Topic: Banking System
7. Financial Literacy Week (FLW) is being organized by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from February 13 to February 17, 2023.
- This year, the theme of FLW is “Good Financial Behaviour - Your Saviour.”
- The theme aligns with the overall strategic objectives of the National Strategy for Financial Education: 2020-2025.
- Its objective is to generate awareness among the general public, create financial resilience and sustain their interest.
- In this, the focus will be on creating awareness about savings, planning and budgeting and judicious use of digital financial services.
- During the month of February 2023, the RBI will undertake a centralized mass media campaign to disseminate financial awareness messages.
- Banks have also been advised to disseminate information and create awareness among their customers.
- Since 2016, the RBI has been organizing Financial Literacy Week (FLW) every year to disseminate financial education messages on a particular theme among public across the country.
Topic: Awards and Prizes
8. Names of 19 individuals and two institutions announced by Bangladesh Government for 'Ekushey Padak'.
- Bangladesh Government has announced the names of 19 individuals and two institutions for the award of 'Ekushey Padak', the country's second highest civilian award.
- On 12 February, the Ministry of Culture announced the names.
- The Ekushey Padak is given for outstanding contribution in various fields such as contribution to the language movement, liberation struggle, art and culture, journalism and social service.
- The award will be presented to three persons under the language movement category, one in the liberation struggle, eight in art and culture, and two in politics.
- Bidyanondo Foundation has been selected for the Ekushey Award 2023 in the social service category.
- The Foundation has been working among the underprivileged and marginalized sections of the society for many years.
- Bangladesh National Museum is the second institution selected for the award.
- Renowned artist Kanak Champa Chakma will get the award for painting, while Jayant Chattopadhyay has been selected under the recitation category.
- Nawaz Ali will get the award for Shilpakala.
- Started in 1976, the Ekushey Padak is awarded to individuals and institutions for notable contributions in their respective fields.
- Awarded institutions or individuals receive a certificate, a gold medal and a cash prize of Taka 4 lakh.
Topic: Sports
9. Maharashtra wins the highest number of medals in Khelo India Youth Games.
- Maharashtra stood first in the medals tally with a total of 161 medals including 56 gold, 55 silver, and 50 bronze.
- Haryana is in the second spot with a total of 128 medals including 41 gold, 32 silver, and 55 bronze.
- Madhya Pradesh came third with total 96 medals including 39 gold.
- During Khelo India Youth Games, 25 national records were broken. 19 records were broken in weight lifting.
- 5 thousand 812 players from 36 states and union territories took part in the Khelo India Youth Games.
- Khelo India Youth Games 2023 was hosted by Madhya Pradesh from January 30 to 11 February at 11 venues.
(Source: News on AIR)
Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings
10. President inaugurates 2nd edition of Indian Rice Congress in Cuttack.
- The Indian Rice Congress-2023 at ICAR- National Rice Research Institute was inaugurated by President Smt. Draupadi Murmu.
- Rice production in India has increased from 89 million tonnes in 2010 to 130 MT in 2022.
- India is the second-largest producer of rice and the largest exporter of rice.
- President said that rice is the basis of food security in India and also a major factor for our economy.
- Rice cultivation in India:
- It is the main Kharif crop and it is sown after the onset of the southwest monsoon.
- West Bengal is the highest rice-producing state in India.
- Basmati Rice, Jasmine Rice, Mogra Rice, Black Rice, etc. are the main varieties of rice in India.
- Rice is mainly produced in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Punjab, Bihar, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, and Kerala.
- Biofortification of rice has been started to increase its nutritional value.
Topic: International Appointments
11. Mohammad Shahabuddin to become 22nd President of Bangladesh.
- Mohammad Shahbuddin Chuppu has been nominated as the next President of Bangladesh by the Awami League. Awami League has the absolute majority in Parliament (305 out of 350 seats).
- He will be elected unopposed and will replace President Mohammad Abdul Hamid.
- Abdul Hamid is the longest serving President of Bangladesh and his term will end in April.
- President of Bangladesh:
- He is the head of state of Bangladesh and commander in chief of Bangladesh Armed Forces.
- President is elected by indirect voting in Parliament.
- He holds office for a five year term.
- He/she cannot hold office for more than two terms as per the Constitution.
Topic: Summits/Meetings/Conferences
12. DHARA 2023, annual meeting of River Cities Alliance, held in Pune.
- On 13-14 February 2023, the yearly meeting of members of River Cities Alliance (RCA), DHARA was organised in Pune.
- DHARA stands for Driving Holistic Action for Urban Rivers. It was organised by National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA).
- DHARA 2023 provided a platform for senior officials of the 95-member river cities in India to co-learn and discuss solutions for managing local water bodies.
- DHARA has strong synergies with Urban20 initiative under the ambit of India’s G20 presidency.
- River Cities Alliance (RCA):
- RCA was launched by Minister of Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat in November 2021.
- It started with 30 cities and now has 95 cities as members.
- It is launched as dedicated platform for river cities in India to ideate, discuss and exchange information for sustainable management of urban rivers.
- It is a first of its kind alliance in the world. It is the successful partnership between two ministries- Ministry of Jal Shakti and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
- It focuses on three broad themes:
- Networking
- Capacity Building
- Technical Support
Topic: Awards and Prizes
13. IIT Indore students won Global Best M-Gov Award.
- Egyptian President Abel Fattah Al-Sisi presented Niyati Totala and Neel Kapeshkumar Parikh of IIT Indore Global Best M-Gov Award.
- The students won AED 1 million by winning the gold medal at the World Government Summit 2023 in Dubai.
- These students created “Blockbill” app. Blockbill is a blockchain based receipt generation app that creates digital receipts for all transactions of users.
- “M-Gov Award” and “GovTech Award” are annual awards organised by the UAE government. They are presented as part of the World Government Summit.
- These are given to encourage students, researchers, government agencies and institutions, private companies and startups to create innovative solutions using next-gen technologies to solve evolving local and global challenges.
Topic: International News
14. India plans to introduce MIIRA to popularize millets on global level.
- During India’s G20 presidency, the top priority in agriculture for India is food security and nutrition, following which India plans to launch MIIRA- global initiative to encourage consumption and production of millets.
- Draft charter of MIIRA is ready and will be placed for approval at 1st meeting of the G-20 Agricultural Deputies at Indore from 13-15 February 2023.
- MIIRA stands for Millet International Initiative for Research and Awareness. It aimed at coordinating millet research programmes at the international level.
- It will be launched considering the millets’ nutritional value and climate resilient nature.
- India plans to provide “seed money” for this initiative to start off, and each G20 member will be required to pay membership fee.
- The secretariat of MIIRA would be in New Delhi and India will ensure flow of investment from its industry and research bodies.
- UNGA declared 2023 as International Year of Millets.
- Millets are rich in calcium, iron, and fibers. Bajra, Ragi, Canary, Jawar, and Buckwheat are the varieties of millets exported by India.
- India produces one-fifth of the world’s total millets.
- Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are India’s top five millet producing states.
- Share of export of millets is nearly 1% of the total millet production.
- In Budget 2023, Finance Minister addressed millets as “Shree Anna” and said that Indian Institute of Millet Research, Hyderabad will act as Centre of Excellence.
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Personality in News :
Famous painter Lalitha Lajmi passed away at the age of 90.
- She was the sister of late actor, director, producer Guru Dutt.
- Lalitha Lajmi was born in 1932 in Kolkata.
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