Daily Current Affairs and GK | 18 January 2022

By PendulumEdu | Last Modified: 18 Jan 2022 19:02 PM IST

BIGGEST SALE EVER get 35% Off
Use Coupon code HOLI24

six months current affairs 2023 july december Rs.199/- Read More
half yearly financial awareness july december 2023 Rs.199/- Read More
half yearly current affairs jan july 2023 in detail Rs.219/- Read More
half yearly current affairs jul dec 2023 in detail Rs.219/- Read More


Half Yearly (Jul- Dec 2023 , Detailed)
2023 e Book

Current Affairs

Available in English & Hindi(eBook)

Buy Now ( Hindi ) Preview Buy Now (English)

Topic: State News/ Kerala

1. Kumbalangi becomes India’s First Sanitary Napkin-free Village.

  • Kumbalangi village of Ernakukulum district has been declared as the First Sanitary Napkin-free Village of India.
  • Under the Avalkayi (for her) initiative, around 5,000 menstrual cups have been distributed to women aged 18 and above.
  • ‘Avalkayi’ (for her) scheme was implemented with the help of HLL Management Academy and Indian Oil Corporation.
  • The menstrual cups will help reduce pollution caused by synthetic napkins and ensure personal hygiene for working women and students.
  • The Menstrual cup is a safe and affordable alternative to pads and tampons.
  • Earlier, Kumbalangi was also declared as India’s first model tourism village.

Topic: National News

2. Common Services Centers launched Yogyata app to provide skill-based vocational education.

  • ‘Common Services Centers’ have launched the "Yogyata" app to provide vocational education and skill enhancement training to youths of rural areas.
  • The Yogyata app will provide courses on many subjects like Cyber Security, CAD, and 3D printing, etc.
  • The Yogyata app will help in making youths employable and providing quality education.
  • The training material provided to the youths would be based on the annual fee.
  • Common Services Centers:
    • Common Services Centers (CSC) are physical facilities for delivering e-services of Government in rural areas.
    • Common Services Centers (CSC) provide Government to Consumer (G2C), Business to Consumer (B2C), and Business to Business (B2B) services.

Topic: Agriculture

3. Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya developed new varieties of oats, wheat & rice.

  • Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwavidyalaya (JNKVV), located in Jabalpur, has developed two varieties each of oats and wheat, one variety of rice, and three varieties of niger.
  • These new varieties will ensure the quality production of crops and will help in increasing the income of farmers.
  • These new varieties were tested in various agro-climatic conditions of the state.
  • These new varieties have several good traits such as high-grain yield, resistance to diseases, good grain quality, etc.
  • Out of new varieties, JO 05-304 variety of oats is suitable for production in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan.
  • The new varieties of wheat - MP 1323 and MP 1358 and rice JR 10 - can be grown in specific areas of Madhya Pradesh.
  • All three varieties of wheat can be grown in the irrigated and non-irrigated areas of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

Topic: Defence

4. Government launched an online portal to resolve pension-related grievances.

  • The Defence Ministry has set up an online portal to resolve pension-related grievances of ex-servicemen (ESM) and their dependents.
  • Raksha Pension Shikayat Nivaran Portal will help military pensioners in knowing their status of grievances.
  • The portal will send the information related to grievances through SMS and email to the applicants.
  • Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW) has allocated ₹320 crores to Armed Forces Flag Day Fund (AFFDF) for removing the pending backlog of applications for welfare schemes.
  • The Directorate General of Resettlement has issued 22,278 job letters to freshly retired personals.
  • Directorate General of Resettlement works under the aegis of the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW). Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare is a department under the Ministry of Defence.

 

Related Study Material
Evolution and History of the Indian Constitution Preamble of the Indian Constitution
Major sources of Indian Constitution President of India
Governor of a State Joint Military Exercises of India with other Countries
Indus Valley Civilization Padma Awardees 2021 Winners
 

Topic: Geography

5. An underwater volcano erupted near Tonga.

  • An underwater volcano erupted near Tonga, a collection of islands in the South Pacific Ocean.
  • The volcano which erupted is named the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano, and is around 65 km north of Tonga’s capital Nukuʻalofa.
  • This volcano is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire and it last erupted in 2015.
  • It is one of the most energetic volcanic explosions of the 21st century.
  • NOTE:
    • A volcano can be active, dormant, or extinct stage.
    • When the mantle of the Earth melts, it comes out in the form of lava through cracks on the Earth’s surface.
    • There are around 1,350 active volcanoes in the world.

Topic: Appointments

6. Narendra Goenka appointed as AEPC’s new Chairman.

  • Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) has appointed Shri Narendra Kumar Goenka as its new Chairman.
  • He has taken charge from Padma Shri Dr. A Sakthivel.
  • Mr.Goenka has been a member of the Council for more than 20 years.
  • Exports of apparel increased by 22% to 1.46 billion dollars in December 2021, compared to 1.20 billion dollars in December 2020.
  • Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC):
    • Under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Textiles, the AEPC is India's official organisation of apparel exporters.
    • The company was founded in 1978.
    • Its headquarters is in Gurugram.

Topic: International News

7. China and Iran started implementing a broad strategic accord.

  • China announced that it would start implementing a strategic agreement with Iran, bolstering economic and political ties between the two nations.
  • Foreign ministers of both countries have agreed to expand cooperation in areas such as energy, infrastructure, industrial capacity, research and technology, and medical and health care.
  • Additionally, the bilateral collaboration will be strengthened in the field of agriculture, fisheries, cybersecurity, education, film, and personnel training.
  • Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and Wang Keqiang inked the $400 billion deal on March 27, 2021, during Wang's trip to Tehran.
  • The agreement was envisaged in 2016 when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Iran immediately after the global powers and Iran inked a nuclear deal.
  • Iran:
    • Iran is located in Western Asia.
    • Its capital and largest city is Tehran.
    • Its President is Ebrahim Raisi.
 

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

8. UGC organized a workshop on IPR for Universities and Colleges.

  • As part of the Ministry of Education's week-long programs, the University Grants Commission conducted an online workshop on Intellectual Property Rights for universities and colleges.
  • The webinar addressed important aspects of IPR for Higher Education Institutions and was a significant step in promoting IPR awareness.
  • Prof. Rajnish Jain, Secretary UGC, emphasized the significance of IPR in terms of the country's image and its relevance in expanding the country's knowledge pool.
  • University Grant Commission (UGC):
    • It is a statutory body constituted as per the UGC Act 1956 under the HRD Ministry.
    • It is headquartered in New Delhi.
    • It is responsible for maintaining the standards of higher education in India.
    • It provides recognition to the Universities in India as well as grant funds to such universities/ colleges.

online workshop on Intellectual Property Rights for universities and colleges

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

9. Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry launched ‘Open Data Week’.

  • Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has launched ‘Open Data Week’ to encourage the adoption of open data and promote innovation across the country.
  • ‘Open Data Week’ will be organized from 17th January 2022 to 21st January 2022. The main objective of this week is to spread awareness about the benefits of open data. 
  • All 100 smart cities will publish high-quality datasets and data blogs on the Smart Cities Open Data Portal.
  • On 21st January, Data Day will be celebrated by all smart cities. On this occasion, seminars, hackathons, demonstrations, and training on different data tracks identified by the cities will be organized.
  • New combinations of data can create new knowledge and insights, which will help the government in solving common problems of citizens.
  • The government will also organize ‘Smart Cities: Smart Urbanization’ conference in February in Surat.

Open Data Week

(Source: PIB)

Topic: National News

10. Government is organizing 26th CISO Deep Dive Training program under Cyber Surakshit Bharat initiative.

  • Under the Cyber Surakshit Bharat initiative, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is organizing the 26th CISO Deep Dive Training program.
  • It covers many topics including Governance Risk and Compliance and Data Privacy, Network Security, End Point Security, Application and Data Security.
  • It will be organized from 17th January 2022 to 22nd January 2022.
  • This training program is a part of a series of workshops organized by the National e-Governance Department of the Ministry under the Cyber ​​Safe India Initiative.
  • The training will provide a better understanding of the emerging cyber threat landscape and best practices in cyber security.
  • The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology had launched Cyber Security Program in 2018 in order to empower CISOs and train them to meet these challenges of Cyber Security.
  • Cyber Surakshit Bharat Yojana:
    • It was launched by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
    • It is an initiative to improve the cyber security system in India under the Digital India vision.
    • It was launched in cooperation with National e-Governance Division (NeGD) and various industry partners in India.

Topic: National News

11. MeitY invited applications for its Chips to Startup programme.

  • The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has sought applications from 100 academia, R&D organisations, start-ups and MSMEs under its Chips to Startup (C2S) Programme.
  • Chips to Startup (C2S) Programme will provide an incentive package to companies involved in the manufacturing and design of semiconductors.
  • It will provide training to 85,000 high-quality and qualified engineers in the field of Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) and Embedded System Design.
  • This scheme will be a key component in the Electronics System Design & Manufacturing (ESDM).
  • C-DAC (Centre for Development of Advanced Computing) will be the nodal agency for this programme.
  • The C2S Programme focus on quality manpower training, research and development, hardware IPs design, System design, etc.
  • In December 2021, the Union government had approved a Rs 76,000 crore scheme for boosting the manufacturing of semiconductors in India.

 Chips to Startup (C2S) Programme

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: State News/ Himachal Pradesh

12. Himachal Pradesh became first ‘smoke-free state’.

  • Himachal Pradesh has become the first ‘smoke-free state’ in India.
  • It has achieved this feat with the help of many welfare schemes like Ujjwala Yojana, Himachal Grihini Suvidha scheme, etc.
  • Himachal Pradesh has also become the first 100% LPG-enabled state in the country.
  • Himachal Pradesh government had started the Grihini Suvidha Yojana to provide free gas LPG cylinders in the state.
  • Cooking food on traditional chulha has adverse effects on health as well as on the environment.
  • Traditional chulha produces a lot of smoke due to the incomplete combustion of wood. It is one of the largest sources of pollutants in rural India.
  • According to a report by the Lancet, about one million deaths occur annually in India due to household air pollution.

Himachal Pradesh became first ‘smoke-free state’

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Personality in News

13. A noted social activist Shanti Devi passed away.

  • A renowned social activist Shanti Devi has passed away at the age of 88.
  • Shanti Devi began social work at an early age and founded an ashram at Gobarapalli locality in Rayagada.
  • She worked for the development and education of tribal girls. She was also associated with the Bhoodan Movement.
  • She also worked for the rehabilitation and vocational training of orphans and destitute children.
  • She was felicitated with the Jamunalal Bazaz Award, Radhanath Rath Peace Award, and Padma Shri in 2021.

Topic: National News

14. Union MSME Minister inaugurated MSME Pavilion in World Expo 2020 Dubai.

  • Union MSME Minister Narayan Rane has virtually inaugurated MSME Pavilion in World Expo 2020 Dubai.
  • The World Expo 2020 has been organized by the Bureau International des Expositions under the “Connecting Minds, Creating Future” theme.
  • The Union Minister also launched the Khadi India Film produced by KVIC.
  • MSME contributes around 30% to the GDP and 48% to the overall exports from India.
  • The Government has started various initiatives to boost finance facilitation, capacity building & skill training, facilitating market linkages, technology up-gradation, etc. for the development of MSMEs.
 

 

 

0
COMMENTS

Comments


Share Blog


x