Daily Current Affairs and GK | 16 and 17 January 2022

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

1. Reliance Industries inked an MoU with Gujarat government for investing 5.95 lakh crore.

• Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has signed an MoU with Gujarat Government for investing Rs 5.95 lakh crore in various projects.
• These projects will create around 10 lakhs direct or indirect employment opportunities in Gujarat.
• These projects are part of the Investment Promotion Activity for Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2022.
• Reliance will develop an eco-system for helping Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs.
• Reliance will also set up a 100GW renewable energy power project in Kutch, Banaskantha and Dholera.
• Reliance has also proposed to invest Rs 7,500 crore over 3 to 5 years for Jio Network up-gradation to 5G.
• Reliance will also set up a manufacturing facility of Solar PV Module, Energy-storage Battery, and Electrolyzer.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

2. WEF's online Davos summit began on 17 January.

• The World Economic Forum's five-day online Davos Agenda summit has begun on 17 January 2022.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered their special addresses on 'state of the world' on the first day.
• The two virtual sessions are expected to be organized - the first on COVID-19 and the second on technology cooperation in the fourth industrial revolution.
• The special sessions will be organized on the global economy, building future preparedness and accelerating a nature-positive economy.
• 'Davos Agenda 2022' will be the first global platform for world leaders to share their vision for 2022. It has been convened on the theme of 'The State of the World'.
• World Economic Forum (WEF):
  • It is an international non-government organization.
  • It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab.
  • Its headquarters is located in Cologny, Switzerland.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

3. Government set up first coal-to-methanol plant in India.

• India's first 'coal to methanol' (CTM) pilot plant has been dedicated to the country by Union Minister for Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey.
• The plant has been built by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).
• Pandey has also dedicated an exhibition on Products Developed Under Aatmanirbhar Bharat at the BHEL Hyderabad facility.
• BHEL's indigenously designed, constructed and installed 0.25 TPD (tonnes per day) capacity CTM pilot plant is now generating methanol with a purity of more than 99% from Indian high-ash coal.
• Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL):
  • BHEL is an Indian public sector company and India’s largest power generation equipment manufacturer.
  • Its CEO is Nalin Singhal.
  • Its headquarters is in New Delhi.
  • It was founded in 1964.

Topic: Personality in News

4. Pandit Birju Maharaj, legendary Kathak master, passed away.

• Pandit Birju Maharaj, India's leading Kathak exponent and recipient of the Padma Vibhushan award, died of a heart attack.
• On February 4, 1937, he was born as Brij Mohan Nath Mishra into a well-known family of Kathak dancers.
• Kathak:
  • Kathak is one of India's eight major classical dance styles.
  • Kathak is unique because it includes cultural influences from both Hindu and Muslim gharanas.
  • Kathak is derived from two words: Katha, which means "story," and Kathakar, which means "one who tells a story."
  • Jaipur Gharana, Banaras Gharana and Lucknow Gharana are famous schools of Kathak.

Topic: State News / Himachal Pradesh

5. Himachal Pradesh CM inaugurated 9th Women's National Ice Hockey Championship.

• The 9^th Women's National Ice Hockey Championship-2022 has been conducted at the Ice Skating Rink in Kaza, Lahaul Spiti district, in Himachal Pradesh.
• An ice hockey competition and development camp are being conducted at the national level for the first time in the state.
• Participants of this mega-event include teams from Himachal Pradesh, Telengana, Ladakh, the ITBP Ladakh, Chandigarh, and Delhi.
• The Swaran Jayanti Sports Policy 2021 has been recently approved by the State Government in order to increase sports activities in the state.
• The State Youth Services and Sports Department, in partnership with the Ladakh Women Ice Hockey Foundation, had organized the first Basic Ice Hockey Ten-day Coaching Camp in Kaza in 2019.
• Government will also establish small rinks in Lidang, Sagnam, Losar, Tabo, and Hikmi.
• Himachal Pradesh:
  • It is a state in north India that shares borders with Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Tibet.
  • It is located in the western Himalayas. It has 12 districts grouped into three divisions- Kangra, Mandi, and Shimla.
  • Summer capital of Himachal Pradesh is Shimla and the winter capital is Dharamshala.
  • Rajendra Arlekar is the current Governor of Himachal Pradesh and Chief Minister is Jai Ram Thakur.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

6. A unique art workshop ‘Kala Kumbh’ organized by National Gallery of Modern Art.

• In New Delhi, the National Gallery of Modern Art has conducted a unique art workshop called Kala Kumbh.
• An art workshop has been organized to paint gigantic scrolls of approximately 750 metres in size, representing the tales of valour of unsung heroes of India's freedom movement.
• This year’s Republic Day celebration will include these large-scale artworks on giant scrolls.
• National Gallery of Modern Art:
  • It is a major art gallery under the Ministry of Culture.
  • Its main museum was established by the Government of India on 29 March 1954 at Jaipur House, New Delhi.
  • Apart from this, two branches were later established in Mumbai and Bangalore.
  • Presently, Adwaita Gadanayak is the Director-General of the National Gallery of Modern Art.

Topic: Sports

7. Lakshya Sen wins Men’s Singles title of India Open.

• Lakshya Sen has won the Men’s Singles title of the India Open in New Delhi on 16 January 2022.
• Pair of Satwik sairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty won Men’s Doubles trophy of India Open.
• World championship bronze medallist Lakshya defeated reigning World Champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore.
• India’s pair of Satwik sairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty defeated the Indonesian pair of Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan.
• India Open:
  • It is an annual badminton event. It has been held in India since 2008.
  • India Open 2022 was held at K. D. Jadhav Indoor Hall in New Delhi from 11 to 16 January 2022.
  • India Open 2022 is officially known as Yonex-Sunrise India Open 2022.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Awards and Prizes

8. Union Minister Piyush Goyal presents National Startup Awards 2021.

• A total of 46 Startups have been declared as winners of National Startup Awards 2021 along with 1 incubator and 1 accelerator.
• Applications were invited for National Startup Awards 2021 in 15 sectors and 49 sub-sectors.
• Six special categories were also introduced to recognize exceptional Startups contributing to the good of society.
• In the 2021 edition of awards, exceptional startups innovating solutions to promote Indic languages were also recognized.
• All applicants for National Startup Awards 2021 were evaluated against six broad parameters.
• On 15 January, PM Modi announced that January 16 will be celebrated as National Start-up Day.
• National Startup Awards were conceived by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade to recognize and reward outstanding Startups.

Topic: Reports and Indices

9. Oxfam report: Number of billionaires increased but Income of 84% households fell in 2021.

• The Oxfam report has found that the income of 84 percent of households has declined while the number of billionaires has increased from 102 to 142 in 2021.
• The Oxfam report titled “Inequality Kills” has been released ahead of the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda.
• India’s healthcare budget has declined by 10% from RE (revised estimates) of 2020-21. The budgetary allocation for social security schemes has declined from 1.5% to 0.6% of the total Union budget.
• The government has cut down the budgetary allocation to education by 6%.
• In 2021, the collective wealth of India’s 100 richest people reached a record high of Rs 57.3 lakh crore (USD 775 billion).
• During the pandemic, the wealth of Indian billionaires has increased from Rs 23.14 lakh crore to Rs 53.16 lakh crore. Currently, India has the third-highest number of billionaires in the world.
• According to this report, the bottom 50 percent of the population owns only 6% of the country's wealth in 2021.
• In 2020, women collectively lost Rs 59.11 lakh crore in earnings, and 1.3 crores fewer women are working as compared to 2019.
• In the last four years, indirect taxes as a share of the Union government revenue has increased while the proportion of corporate tax has declined.
• Oxfam India is a non-profit organization working to support child education, empowering women & fighting against inequality in India.

Topic: Defence

10. INS Kochi undertakes PASSEX exercise with Russia’s Admiral Tributs.

• Russian ship Admiral Tributs and INS Kochi conducted the PASSEX exercise in the Arabian sea on 14 January.
• The exercise was organized to showcase cohesiveness and interoperability between the two navies.
• The missile cruiser Varyag and Russian tanker Boris Butoma also participated in this exercise.
• All the three Russian ships had arrived on a two-day "goodwill" visit at the port of Cochin.
• Tactical manoeuvres, cross-deck helicopter operations and seamanship activities were part of this naval exercise.
• India and Russia usually take part in naval exercises ‘Indra Navy’.
• INS Kochi:
  • It is an indigenously designed Kolkata-class stealth guided-missile destroyer.
  • It was constructed by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai.
  • It was commissioned to the Indian Navy on September 30, 2015.

Topic: Important Days

11. PM Modi declares 16 January as National Start-up Day.

• Prime Minister has announced that 16 January will be celebrated as National Start-up Day.
• National Startup Day will be celebrated to promote startup culture at the grassroot level.
• Prime Minister said that role of startups is significant in the economic development of India. At present, there are around 60000 startups in India.
• He said that this decade is being called the ‘techade of India’. Last year 16 thousand copyrights were granted which is four times than the copyright granted during 2013-14.
• In 2021, more than 28 thousand patents were granted and 2.5 lakh trademarks have been registered.
• Currently, India has around 82 unicorns and 42 startups have become unicorns last year.
• Startups are not just bringing innovations but are also evolving as major job creators.

Topic: National News

12. Government made 6 airbags mandatory in a vehicle carrying up to 8 passengers.

• The Road Transport Ministry has made it mandatory to provide six airbags in a vehicle carrying up to 8 passengers from October 2022.
• The Ministry has taken this decision in order to enhance the safety of occupants of the motor vehicle against lateral impact.
• The Road Transport Ministry has decided to enhance safety features by amending the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.
• The government has made mandatory fitment of the airbag for driver from 1 July 2019 and the airbag for co-passenger from 1 January 2022.
• According to the latest government data, total 1,16,496 road accidents have occurred on national highways (NHs) in 2020.
• Airbags are made of cotton, with a silicone coating on them. The airbag is filled with sodium azide gas. It prevents serious injuries during an accident.
• Allen K Breed was the inventor of airbags.

Topic: India and its neighbourhood

13. Pakistan launched its first National Security Policy.

• Pakistan government has formally launched its first-ever National Security Policy.
• It has been prepared by rigorous analysis and consultations led by the National Security Division.
• It is based on a citizen-centric framework and is focused on boosting Pakistan’s economy.
• National cohesion, securing an economic future, defense and territorial integrity, internal security, foreign policy in a changing world, and human security are the main themes of the National Security Policy 2022-2026.
• The main objective of this National Security Policy is to maintain peace in the region.
• It also throws light on Pakistan’s water security as well as population growth, terrorism, and foreign policy.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

14. DBT-BIRAC supported start-ups InnAccel & NIRAMAI received Global Women’s HealthTech Awards.

• The World Bank Group and the Consumer Technology Association awarded DBT-BIRAC supported start-ups InnAccel and NIRAMAI with Global Women’s HealthTech Awards.
• This award is given to innovative startups which use technology to improve women’s health and safety.
• This award was launched in August 2021. 70 companies from 35 countries submitted their innovative products and services for this award.
• NIRAMAI Health AnalytixPvt. Ltd, won this award for its software-based medical device. It can detect early-stage breast cancer in all age groups of women.
• This software is named ‘Thermalytix’. It is a machine learning and AI-based Computer Diagnostic Engine.
• InnAccel Technologies Pvt Ltd. has received this award for developing Fetal Lite based on fetal ECG signal extraction technology.
• The other winning startups selected by a panel of industry experts are Antiva Biosciences and UE LifeSciences.

(Source: News on AIR)