Daily Current Affairs and GK | 18 January 2022

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.

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 21^st 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.

(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 17^th January 2022 to 21^st 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 21^st 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.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: National News

10. Government is organizing 26^th 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 26^th 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.

(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.

(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.