Daily Current Affairs and GK | 15 November 2022

Topic: State News/ Manipur

1. 7^th edition of the Amur Falcon Festival was celebrated in the Tamenglong district of Manipur on 14 November.

• The festival is organized to spread awareness about the conservation of the Amur falcon.
• The Amur falcon is the world’s longest-flying migratory bird.
• The Manipur forest authority celebrated the Amur Falcon Festival in Tamenglong district headquarters.
• It is being organized from 2015 in the first or second week of November to strengthen the human-nature relationship.
• Amur falcons are protected under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and included under Scheduled IV.
• Amur falcons migrate to their wintering grounds in South Africa and reach India during October in Nagaland and Manipur.
• Amur falcon’s radio-tagging programme was started in Manipur in 2018 as part of an initiative to conserve wildlife.
• India is a signatory of an international agreement on the conservation of migratory birds of prey.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

2. 17^th G20 Summit begins in Bali, Indonesia.

• PM Modi along with other top global leaders is attending the summit.
• During the Summit, G20 Leaders will discuss different issues under the theme of “Recover Together, Recover Stronger”.
• The summit will focus on global economic recovery, global health architecture, digital transformation, sustainable energy transition and climate change.
• The working sessions will be also held as part of the G20 Summit Agenda.
• At the closing session of the Summit, the Indonesian President will hand over the G20 Presidency to India.
• India will formally assume the G20 Presidency on 1st December.
• The Prime Minister will also hold bilateral meetings with world leaders at the G20 summit.
• G20:
  • It is the main forum for international cooperation on financial and economic issues.
  • It comprises 19 countries and the European Union.
  • It was created in 1999.
  • It accounts for about 86 per cent of the gross world product and 75 per cent of global trade.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

3. National Sports Awards 2022 has been announced by Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry.

• The National Sports Awards 2022 winners will get their awards from President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 30th November 2022.
• Table Tennis player Sharath Kamal Achanta has been selected for Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award.
• Arjuna Awards will be given to 25 sportspersons. Some of them are given in the next table.

• Three coaches have been selected for Dronacharya Award in the lifetime category and four coaches in regular category.

• Dhyan Chand Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sports and Games will be given to four sportspersons.
• These sportspersons include Ashwini Akkunji C, Dharamvir Singh, B.C Suresh and Nir Bahadur Gurung.
• Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy 2022 will be given to Guru Nanak Dev University of Amritsar.

Topic: Sports

4. Sri Lanka will host 2024 Under-19 men’s T-20 World Cup.

• The 2026 edition will be organized in Zimbabwe and Namibia.
• The 2025 Under-19 women’s T20 World Cup will be held in Malaysia and Thailand.
• Bangladesh and Nepal will jointly host 2027 Under-19 women’s T20 World Cup.
• 2023 ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup will be the first edition of the ICC Women's Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
• 2023 ICC Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup is scheduled to be hosted by South Africa in 2023.

Topic: State News/ Haryana

5. International Gita Mahotsav will be organized in Kurukshetra from November 19 to December 6 in Haryana.

• President Draupadi Murmu will attend this grand festival of the Holy Gita and will participate in Gita Yagya at Brahma Sarovar.
• 21 special stone sculptures created by sculptors from all throughout the nation are based on themes from the Mahabharata and the Gita.
• A three-day International Gita Seminar will also be inaugurated by President at Kurukshetra University.
• In 2022, Nepal is the partner country, and Madhya Pradesh is the partner state of the festival.
• From November 19 to December 6, a Saras and Craft Mela will also be held.
• The Haryana CM also stated that six museums will be established at Kurukshetra at a cost of around Rs 250 crore, where episodes from the Mahabharata and the Gita will be displayed digitally.

(Source: News on Air)

Topic: National Appointment

6. Prasar Bharati appointed Senior IAS officer Gaurav Dwivedi as its new Chief Executive Officer.

• After the recommendation of the Selection Committee, the President appointed Gaurav Dwivedi for a period of five years.
• Prior to this, Mr. Dwivedi was the Chief Executive Officer of MyGovIndia, the government's citizen engagement platform.
• From 2017 to 2022, Shashi Shekhar Vempati had served as the CEO of Prasar Bharati.
• Doordarshan Director General Mayank Agarwal was given the additional charge of CEO Prasar Bharati on June 2022, after Mr. Vempati completed his five-year term.
• Prasar Bharati was formed in November 1997. It is headquartered in New Delhi.

(Source: News on Air)

Topic: Defence

7. 3^rd edition of pan-India coastal defence exercise Sea Vigil-22 started from 15 November 2022.

• It will be carried out along the entire 7,516 kilometer coastline and Exclusive Economic Zone of India.
• It will involve all the Coastal States and Union Territories.
• This exercise was conceptualized in 2018 to validate various initiatives put in place to improve maritime security since the 26/11 terror attack.
• The two-day exercise is being undertaken by the Indian Navy in coordination with the Coast Guard and other ministries.
• In addition to the Ministry of Defence, the conduct of Sea Vigil-22 is also being facilitated by the Ministries of Home Affairs, Ports Shipping and Waterways, Petroleum and Natural Gas etc.
• The exercise is a build-up to the major Theatre Level Readiness Operational Exercise (TROPEX). Indian Navy conducts TROPEX every two years. 

Topic: Environment and Ecology

8. Pakistan and Bangladesh will be among the first recipients of funding from a G7 ‘Global Shield’ initiative.

• G7 ‘Global Shield’ initiative aims to provide funding to countries suffering climate disasters.
• The Global Shield is being coordinated by G7 president Germany.
• It aims to provide climate-vulnerable countries with rapid access to insurance and disaster protection funds after a flood or drought.
• It is being developed in collaboration with the ‘V20’ group of 58 climate-vulnerable economies.
• Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Fiji, Ghana, Pakistan, the Philippines and Senegal are listed as some of the initial recipients of Global Shield packages.
• 'Global Shield' plan launched at the COP27 climate summit aims to rapidly deliver money to poor nations after disasters.
• It is backed by 170 million euros ($175.17 million) in funding from Germany and 40 million euros from other donors including Denmark and Ireland.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

9. Shlok Mukherjee wins Doodle for Google contest 2022.

• Shlok Mukherjee from Kolkata has won the Doodle for Google contest 2022.
• He won the award for his inspiring Doodle titled ‘India on the centre stage’.
• Shlok’s Doodle was featured on Google.co.in for 24 hours on November 14th, 2022.
• The theme of the contest was “In the next 25 years, my India will”.
• Actors Neena Gupta, Alika Bhat, Kuriakose Vaisian and the Google Doodle team were part of the judging panel.
• The panel evaluated entries based on artistic merit, approach, and relevance to the theme.
• The Doodle for Google competition’s aim is to encourage creativity and imagination in young people.
• In addition to the national winner, 4 group winners were also selected.

Topic: Miscellaneous

10. 53^rd edition of the International Film Festival of India will be organized in Goa from 20 to 28 November 2022.

• Around 280 films from 79 countries will be screened this year.
• 25 feature films and 20 non-feature films from India will be showcased in the ‘Indian Panorama’.
• The Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to Spanish film director Carlos Saura.
• Caravans will be deployed throughout Goa, and movies will be screened.
• It will be jointly organized by the Directorate of Film Festivals, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the government of Goa.
• The feature film jury, headed by Vinod Ganatra, comprised 12 members.
• The ‘Homage’ section will include fifteen Indian and five international films.
• Shigmotsav (Spring Festival) on 26th November and Goa Carnival on 27th November 2022 will be the main attraction.

Topic: International News

11. East Timor will join as the 11th member of ASEAN.

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has given its in-principle approval to join East Timor as its 11th member.
• The nation is officially known as Timor Leste.
• The half-island nation will also be given observer status at important ASEAN gatherings.
• East Timorese voted in a 1999 U.N.-supervised referendum for independence from the brutal occupation by neighboring Indonesia.
• In 2002, the United Nations officially recognised the country, making it the youngest democratic country in Asia.
• The resource-rich country of 1.3 million people immediately began the process of joining ASEAN, but formally applied for membership in 2011.
• East Timor:
  • It is an island country in Southeast Asia.
  • It consists of the eastern half of the island of Timor, the Okus exclave on the northwestern half, and the smaller islands of Atauro and Jaco.
  • Its capital is Dili. Its currency is the United States dollar (USD).
  • Its President is José Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister is Taur Matan Ruak.

Topic: State news/Andhra Pradesh

12. 55th National Library Week inaugurated in Vijayawada on 14th November.

• All libraries in Andhra Pradesh will celebrate 55th National Library Week from 14th November.
• State ministers Teneti Vanitha, Botcha Satyanarayana, and Jogi Ramesh inaugurated a week-long function at Tummalapalli Kalakshetram.
• The celebrations will also give impetus to the 'We Love Reading' initiative of the Department of School Education.
• On November 16, veterans like SR Ranganathan, Pathuri Nagabhushanam, and Ayyanki Venkataramanaiah will be paid tributes for their contribution to the library movement in the state.
• Ayyanki Venkataramanya was the first person to initiate the Library Week celebrations every 14th of November.

Topic: Indian Economy

13. India’s industrial production increased 3.1% in September.

• In September 2021, the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had grown 4.4%.
• A contraction of 0.8 percent was recorded in the previous month (August). 
• According to the IIP data released by National Statistical Office, the manufacturing sector’s output increased by 1.8% in September 2022.
• The mining output grew 4.6% and power generation increased 11.6% during September 2022.
• The rise in September industrial growth to 3.1% was led by better performance of the mining and electricity sectors.

Topic: International Appointments

14. Slovenia has elected Natasa Pirc Musar as its first female President.

• Natasa Pirc Musar has been elected Slovenia’s first female President after beating her conservative rival in the second round of elections on 13 November.
• Ms. Pirc Musar won almost 54% of the vote. She defeated Mr. Logar who got just over 46% votes.
• She will succeed Borut Pahor as the President of Slovenia.
• Slovenia:
  • It is located in central Europe. Ljubljana is its capital and largest city.
  • It is bordered by Austria to the north, Italy to the west, Croatia to the southeast, Hungary to the northeast, and the Adriatic Sea to the southwest.
  • The Prime minister of Slovenia is the head of the Government and is nominated by the president.

(Source: News on AIR)