Daily Current Affairs and GK | 19 October 2022

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

1. 41.5 crore Indians were lifted from poverty in the last 15 years: Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2022

• The Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2022 has been recently released. It covered 111 developing countries.
• As per the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2022, 22.8 crores in India are still multi-dimensionally poor. Out of the 22.8 crores, 9.7 crores are children.
• During 2005-06 and 2019-21, 41.5 crore people in India climbed out of poverty and the MPI value and incidence of poverty got halved.
• The MPI value has fallen from 0.283 in 2005-2006 to 0.122 in 2015-2016 to 0.069 in 2019-2021.
• As per the report, the poverty rate has fallen from 55.1% in 2005/06 to 16.4% in 2019/21 in India. All 10 MPI indicators have shown a significant reduction in their value.
• Globally, 610 crore people across 111 developing countries are living in multidimensional poverty. About half of them are living in severe poverty.
• Bihar, Jharkhand, Meghalaya, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan are the poorest states in India.
• The poverty rate of Bihar has fallen from 77.4% in 2005/2006 to 52.4% in 2015/2016 to 34.7% in 2019/202.
• India has the largest number of poor people around the world, followed by Nigeria.
• The poverty rate has fallen from 36.6 per cent in 2015-2016 to 21.2 per cent in 2019-2021 in rural areas and from 9.0 per cent to 5.5 per cent in urban areas.
• About 19.7 per cent of people living in female-headed households are living in poverty.
• The Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) 2022 report has been prepared jointly by the UNDP’s Human Development Report Office and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI).
• The MPI measures poverty across 10 indicators in three dimensions- health, education, and standard of living. The MPI value ranges from 0 to 1, and higher values imply higher poverty.

Topic: National Appointments

2. Former Indian cricketer Roger Binny has been appointed as the new (36th) President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

• He was elected unopposed during BCCI’s annual general meeting (AGM).
• He has become the first-ever former World Cup-winning person to become BCCI’s president. He replaced Sourav Ganguly.
• He was part of the 1983 Cricket World Cup winning squad of India.
• Jay Shah has been re-inducted as the secretary of the board.
• Ashish Shelar took over as the new treasurer of the board.
• Arun Singh Dhumal was appointed as a member of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council.
• Avishek Dalmiya was also appointed as an IPL Governing Council member.
• The BCCI also approved to conduct the inaugural edition of the Women's IPL in 2023.
• Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI):
  • It is India’s governing body for cricket.
  • It was established in December 1928.
  • It is headquartered in Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

Topic: National Appointments

3. Bharati Das assumed charge as the new Controller General of Accounts.

• She is a 1988-batch Indian Civil Accounts Service Officer.
• She is the 27th Controller General of Accounts, Ministry of Finance.
• She has served as Principal Chief Controller of Accounts (Pr. CCA) Central Board of Direct Taxes, Pr. CCA Ministry of External Affairs and Pr. CCA Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Controller General of Accounts:
  • It is responsible to maintain the account of the government.
  • It prepares monthly and annual analysis of expenditure, revenues, borrowings, and various fiscal indicators for the Union Government.
  • Controller General of Accounts (CGA), in the Department of Expenditure, is the Principal Accounting Adviser of Government of India.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

4. American historian Barbara Metcalf has been awarded the Sir Syed Excellence Award for 2022.

• Prof. Metcalf has been given the award by Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) on the 205^th birth anniversary of its founder Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.
• Prof. Metcalf said the histories of Muslims of India were understudied.
• Prof. Metcalf is a specialist in the history of South Asia, especially the colonial period.
• Prof. Metcalf has written extensively on the history of Muslim population of India and Pakistan.
• AMU gives a yearly International and National Sir Syed Excellence Award.
• The international award, given to Metcalf this year, carries a cash prize of Rs. 2,00,000.
• The national award of Rs 1,00,000 was given to the Maulana Azad Education Foundation in New Delhi.
• Sir Syed Excellence Award is given to scholars or organisations that produce seminal work in the areas of Sir Syed Studies, South Asian Studies, Literature, Medieval History, Social Reform, Communal Harmony, etc.

Topic: State News/ Punjab

5. Union Minister Shri Hardeep S. Puri inaugurates Asia's Largest Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) Plant at Sangrur, Punjab.

• The 20-acre plant has been commissioned by Verbio AG, one of Germany's leading Bioenergy companies, with a FDI of Rs 220 crore.
• The Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plant is a step in achieving the objectives of the Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) scheme, which was launched in October 2018.
• The aim of the scheme is to empower and liberate the rural economy by helping farmers, increasing India's domestic energy production and self-reliance, and reducing air pollution.
• In addition to this plant, 38 CBG/Biogas plants have been commissioned under the SATAT initiative.
• The current production of the plant is around 6 TPD CBG, but soon this plant will reach to the maximum capacity of producing 33 TPD CBG.
• This plant would consume 1,00,000 tonnes of paddy straw, which would be procured from 6-8 satellite sites within a 10 km radius of the plant.
• About 600-650 tonnes of FOM (Fermented Organic Manure) will be produced per day, which can be used for organic farming.
• The CBG plant will also provide employment to 390 people directly and 585 people indirectly.

Topic: International News

6. India re-elected as the President of International Solar Alliance.

• In the General Assembly of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), India has been re-elected as the President and France as the Co-President.
• Union Minister of Energy and New and Renewable Energy, RK Singh has been re-elected as the President of the International Solar Alliance.
• Crissoula Zacharopoulou, French Minister of State for Development, has been re-elected as Co-President.
• On 17 October, the 4-day International Solar Alliance meeting began under India’s Presidentship.
• In this meeting, participants from 110 countries will share their experiences towards a low-carbon economy by promoting solar energy.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

7. PM Modi inaugurated Indian Urban Housing Conclave-2022 (IUHC-2022).

• IUHC is a three-day event being organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India from 19-21 October 2022 at Rajkot, Gujarat.
• This Conclave is a platform for all stakeholders to demonstrate their technologies.
• It will help in devising a roadmap for achieving the vision of “Future Ready Urban India”.
• The event is being organized in physical as well as virtual mode. It consists of the following components.
• Inauguration of Light House Project (LHP) Rajkot, Gujarat: PM Modi will inaugurate the LHP Rajkot and hand it over to the beneficiaries during the event.
• National Exhibition on Innovative construction practices
• Exhibition on best practices adopted by States/UTs under PMAY-U including Gujarat
• Deliberations on Affordable Housing Discourses
• Felicitation of PMAY (U) Awards 2021: MoHUA has introduced annual awards for excellence in implementation of PMAY (U). The winners for PMAY (U) Awards 2021 will be felicitated during the event.
• About LHP Rajkot, Gujarat:
  • The LHP at Rajkot, is one of the 6 LHPS being constructed by MoHUA in 6 States.
  • In LHP Rajkot, ‘Monolithic Concrete Construction using Tunnel Formwork’, a global innovative technology from France has been used for construction of 1,144 houses.
• About Light House Projects:
  • PM Modi laid foundation stone of 6 LHPs on 1 January 2021. Locations for six Light House Projects (LHPs) are at Indore, Rajkot, Chennai, Ranchi, Agartala and Lucknow.
  • PM inaugurated LHP Chennai on 26th May 2022. LHP Rajkot is ready for inauguration. The other four LHPs are at advance stages of construction.
• About PMAY-U:
  • PMAY-U is being implemented by MoHUA since June 2015 for providing all-weather pucca houses with all basic amenities for all eligible families/ beneficiaries in urban areas.
  • The Scheme has been extended up to 31st December 2024 to complete all houses sanctioned till 31st March 2022.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

8. Shehan Karunatilaka won the Booker Prize 2022 for his novel ‘The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida’.

• Shehan Karunatilaka is a Sri Lankan author. His debut novel from 2011, ‘Chinaman’, had won the Commonwealth Prize.
• Karunatilaka has become the second Sri Lankan to win the prize.
• Michael Ondaatje was the first Sri Lankan to win the prize. Ondaatje won the prize for ‘The English Patient’ in 1992.
• ‘The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida’ tells the story of the photographer of its title.
• Damon Galgut, a South African writer, had won the Booker Prize 2021 for his novel "The Promise."
• Booker Prize:
  • It was launched in 1969.
  • It is a literary prize awarded every year for the best novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland.
  • The winner receives £50,000, and £2,500 is given to all the shortlisted authors.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

9. FAO and WFP warn that food insecurity will deteriorate further in 19 hotspots.

• The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) have issued an early warning for urgent humanitarian action in 19 hunger hotspots.
• According to the Global Report on Food Crisis 2022 Mid-year Update, 205 million people are expected to face acute food insecurity.
• Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia, and Yemen are at the highest alert level.
• The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Kenya, the Sahel region, Sudan, and the Syrian Arab Republic are at a very high concern level.
• Since the June 2022 edition, Guatemala, Honduras, and Malawi have been added to the list of hotspot countries.
• These 19 hotspots include 17 countries and 2 regional clusters which could face high levels of acute food insecurity and livelihoods will be at risk in these regions.
• In Afghanistan, around 6 million people are expected to be in ‘Emergency’ conditions by November.
• The average rainy season, high food prices, and persistent conflict in Somalia can lead to extreme food deprivation.
• In six hotspots – Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Yemen- humanitarian actions are critical for preventing further starvation and death.

Topic: Sports

10. Indian junior women's team clinched 10m air pistol gold medal at the ISSF World Championship.

• Esha Singh, Shikha Narwal, and Varsha Singh won the gold medal at the ISSF Rifle/Pistol World Championship 2022 in Cairo, Egypt.
• The Indian women’s team defeated China’s Zhao Nan, Wang Siyu, and Shen Yiyao by 16-6.
• It is India’s sixth gold medal at the ISSF Rifle/Pistol World Championship 2022.
• In another event, Indian javelin thrower DP Manu bagged gold in the men's event at National Open Athletics Championships.
• Rohit Yadav won the silver medal and Kishore Kumar Jena won the bronze medal.

Topic: National News

11. Union Finance Minister took part in a discussion on a paper during Development Committee Dinner meeting of World Bank in Washington DC.

• The paper is titled “Learning Losses: What to do about the Heavy Cost of COVID on Children, Youth, and Future Productivity”.
• She shared India-specific experience on learning losses due to COVID-19. She also shared the ways to overcome them.
• She shared two steps undertaken by India with respect to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on loss of learning.
• India carried out National Achievement Survey (NAS) in November 2021. NAS covered 3.4 million students of grades III, V, VII and X, to evaluate learning competencies.
• NAS showed a drop in national average performance to 9% as compared to NAS 2017 for comparable grades.
• India carried out a National Foundation Learning Study for grade III students in March 2022.
• It was the world's largest sample for one-on-one assessment.
• Union Finance Minister said India became the first country in the world to provide QR coded textbooks to elementary school children through DIKSHA platform.
• DIKSHA has been identified as one of the 12 Digital Global Goods by India.
• India has recently launched Vidyanjali 2.0 online platform.
• Vidyanjali 2.0 online platform is to connect volunteers directly with schools of their choice and to help expedite learning recovery.
• India has launched an Integrated Teacher training programme NISHTHA (National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers for Holistic Advancement).

Topic: Environment and Ecology

12. A tiger from Ranthambore Tiger Reserve has been shifted to Sariska Tiger Reserve.

• The tiger was codenamed T-113. Now, the number of tigers in Sariska Tiger Reserve has increased to 25.
• The tiger has been shifted because majority of tigers in Sariska have aged.
• The number of tigers in Sariska was 24 including 10 females, 7 males and 7 cubs.
• The shifting has been done in an effort to boost the tiger population in Sariska Tiger Reserve.
• Sariska Tiger Reserve is a tiger reserve in Alwar district, Rajasthan. It is the first reserve in the world with successfully relocated tigers.

Topic: Agriculture and allied sectors

13. Union Cabinet approves increase in MSP for 6 Rabi crops for marketing season 2023-24.

• Union Cabinet and CCEA decided to raise the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 6 Rabi crops.
• The Cabinet has accepted all the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). CACP recommended increase in MSP up to 9% on 6 Rabi crops.
• The highest increase has been announced for lentils- Rs. 500.
• The following is the MSP for all 6 Rabi crops:
  • Wheat- Rs. 2125 per tonne
  • Barley- Rs. 1735 per tonne
  • Gram- Rs. 5335 per tonne
  • Lentils- Rs. 6000 per tonne
  • Mustard and Rapeseed- Rs. 5450 per tonne
  • Safflower- Rs. 5650 per tonne
• The step has been taken to fulfil the announcement made in Budget 2018-19 by the government to increase the MSP to 1.5 times the cost of production in India.
• Minimum Support Price (MSP) is the minimum price fixed by the central government for the crops to protect the farmers from loss by purchasing the crop from the farmers in case the market price falls below this minimum price.

Topic: Indian Polity

14. Committee on Official Language submitted its 11^th volume of the report to President.

• Committee on Official Language headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah has submitted the report to President Droupadi Murmu.
• Under Section 4 of the Official Languages Act, 1963, the Committee of Parliament on Official Language was formed in 1976.
• As per Section 4 of the Act, a Committee on Official Language should be set up in either house of the Parliament with prior sanction of the President and passed by both the houses of the Parliament.
• Union Home Minister is the head of the Committee and the committee has a total of 30 members, including 20 members from Lok Sabha and 10 members from Rajya Sabha.
• The committee is tasked to review the progress made in the use of Hindi for official purposes and to recommend the ways to increase use of Hindi in official communication.  
• The Committee submits its report to the President who shall laid the report before each House of Parliament and also send the report to all the State governments.
• The first report was submitted by the committee in 1987. 9th report was submitted in 2011 by the committee headed by then Home Minister P Chidambaram.
• As per the Rules and Regulations (of the Official Languages Act) 1976, the law is implemented only in ‘A’ category states including Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and the UTs of Delhi and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, as Hindi is official language here.
• States like Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Punjab, and the UTs of Chandigarh, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli are included in region ‘B’. States where the use of Hindi is less than 65% fall under region ‘C’.