Daily Current Affairs and GK | 2 December 2022

Topic: Reports and Indices/Rankings

1. World Bank released the "Climate Investment Opportunities in India's Cooling Sector" report.

• The report has estimated that by 2050, India’s peak electricity demand is expected to come from space cooling.
• By 2040, market potential and investment opportunities in space cooling will be around $1.5 trillion in India.
• The demand for cooling will be eight times higher than the current level by 2037.
• It will lead to a demand for a new air-conditioner on every 15 seconds. It can increase annual greenhouse gas emissions by 435 percent in the next two decades.
• Due to heat stress-related productivity decline, around 34 million people in India may lose jobs.
• India is experiencing high temperatures every year. As per the report, around 160-200 million people could get affected by lethal heat waves annually by 2030.
• The World Bank's country director in India said that India’s cooling strategy can help save lives and livelihoods and reduce carbon emissions. India could also become a global hub for green cooling manufacturing.
• The report also noted that sustainable cooling can support India’s development by creating new jobs and boosting of the economy.
• The dominant fuel used for space cooling is electricity. ‘Space cooling’ is done by reducing the temperature of a room, building or living space by removing the heat from it.

Topic: State News/ Haryana

2. 24,75,380 Antodaya families would be provided intensive health check-up free of cost in the 1^st phase of Nirogi Haryana scheme.

• The scheme was launched by the President of India Droupadi Murmu in Kurukshetra on 29 November 2022.
• The scheme was launched in presence of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya and Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
• Under the scheme, six categories have been identified according to the age groups for the systematic check-up of all Antyodya families in the 1st phase.
• All beneficiaries will be assessed on over 25 parameters.
• In case any disease is detected, further investigation and treatment will be provided free of cost.
• Haryana’s Health and Family Welfare Minister Anil Vij said the programme would be rolled out at 32 sites across all districts in the state.
• In this year’s budget session, Haryana CM made this announcement that families with income less than 1.80 lakh (Antyodya families) would be medically examined free of cost.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Rankings

3. India is likely to receive $100 billion in remittances this year according to a World Bank report published on 30 November 2022.

• This is the first time a single country will reach that figure.
• Cash transfers to India from high-income countries increased to more than 36% in 2020-21 from 26% in 2016-17.
• The World Bank said that the share from five Gulf nations, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, declined from 54% to 28%.
• As per the World Bank, remittances earned by migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are expected to decline this year.
• World Bank report said that over the last few years, Indians have moved to high-skilled jobs in high-income countries like the US, UK and Singapore from low-skilled jobs of Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.
• As per the World Bank, India received $89.4 billion in remittances in 2021. It became the top recipient of remittances globally last year.
• World Bank said that it is expected that India’s remittance flows will account for only 3% of its GDP in 2022.
• Other top recipient countries of remittances in 2022 are expected to be Mexico, China, and the Philippines.
• Next year (2023) will be more challenging due to rising prices and slower economic growth around the world.
• In general, remittances to low and middle-income countries have increased by 5% in 2022 to around $626 billion.
• India and Nepal have seen an increase in remittances.
• Other countries in South Asia have seen a decline of over 10% in the last year.
• This decline is because of the end of government incentives introduced during the pandemic.

Topic: Important Days

4. International Day for the Abolition of Slavery: 2 December

• International Day for the Abolition of Slavery is a yearly event held on 2 December.
• It marks the date of the adoption of the United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others.
• United Nations General Assembly approved The Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others on December 2, 1949.
• This day focuses on eradicating contemporary forms of slavery like trafficking in persons, sexual exploitation, the worst forms of child labour, forced marriage, and the forced recruitment of children for use in armed conflict.
• International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is held on August 23.
• International Labour Organisation (ILO) has adopted a legally binding Protocol to strengthen global efforts to end forced labour. The protocol entered into force in November 2016.

Topic: Biotechnology and Diseases

5. Scientists discovered a new drought-resistant wheat gene suited for dry soil conditions.

• An international team of scientists discovered a new drought-resilient semi-dwarf wheat gene that can grow in drier soil conditions.
• The new "reduced height" or "semi-dwarf" gene, called Rht13, was discovered by scientists at the John Innes Centre collaborating with an international team of researchers.
• Because of the reduced height gene, seeds can be placed deeper in the soil, where it can get moisture easily.
• On November 23, the researchers published this study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal.
• Wheat varieties containing the Rht13 gene can be rapidly bred which will help farmers in growing low-altitude wheat under dry soil conditions, the study said.
• Reduced height genes have increased wheat yields worldwide since the 1960s during the Green Revolution.

Topic: Sports

6. India will host the third T20 World Cup cricket tournament for the Blind.

• The third T20 World Cup cricket tournament for the blind will be held from December 5 to 17.
• The participating countries for the World Cup 2022 are Australia, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and host nation India.
• Around 150 players from all countries will participate in the tournament that will be held across nine cities in India.
• The tournament is being organized to mark the World Disability Day celebrations universally.
• The day aims to promote understanding of disability issues and mobilize support for the dignity, rights, and well-being of persons with disabilities.
• The World Cup will be inaugurated on December 5 at Tau Devi Lal Indoor Stadium, Gurugram, followed by cultural events and other activities.

Topic: Art and Culture

7. Sylhet Festival 2022 was inaugurated at Silchar in the Barak Valley of Assam on 02 December 2022.

• Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region G Kishan Reddy and Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen inaugurated it.
• It is a 5-day long festival that is being jointly organised by the Ministry of Culture and India Foundation.
• State Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Mizoram Governor K Hari Babu and Assam Industries & Commerce and Public Enterprises and Cultural Affairs Minister Bimal Bora are also expected to attend the festival.
• The program is being held in the context of the historical relationship between Sylhet and Barak Valley of South Assam.
• Sylhet is a city located in eastern Bangladesh. It is located on the Surma River. It’s known for its Sufi shrines.
• Barak Valley is located in the southern region of Assam. It is named after the Barak River.

Topic: Personality in News

8. Kumble Sundar Rao passed away recently.

• He was a Yakshagana artist. He was an exponent of the Thenkuthittu style of Yakshagana.
• He was also a well-known Talamaddale artiste. He is known for his distinct style of dialogue delivery.
• He had served as an artiste in Surathkal and Dharmasthala yakshagana mela.
• He had served as president of Karnataka State Yakshagana Academy. 
• Talamaddale is an ancient form of performance dialogue in Southern India in the Karavali and Malnad regions of Karnataka and Kerala.
• Yakshagana:
  • It is a traditional theatre developed in certain districts in Karnataka and in Kasaragod district in Kerala.
  • It is sometimes simply called "Aata". Badagathittu and Thenkuthittu are two styles of Yakshagana.

Topic: National News

9. Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia launched ‘Digi Yatra’ for three Airports.

• Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia, launched Digi Yatra for the airports of New Delhi, Varanasi, and Bengaluru.
• It has been launched at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi.
• The Digi Yatra project was conceived by Digi Yatra Foundation under the Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• In the first phase, Digi Yatra will be launched at 7 airports. Digi Yatra will be also launched in the airports of Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, and Vijayawada by March 2023.
• This service is currently for domestic flight passengers only.
• Under Digi Yatra, a passenger will pass through airport checkpoints via paperless and contactless processing, with a facial recognition system (FRS) connected to the boarding pass.
• The DigiYatra app was also launched to help passengers with seamless check-in at airports.
• A one-time registration is required on the Digi Yatra app by using Aadhar-based validation and a self-image capture.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: International News

10. India assumed the Presidency of UN Security Council for month of December.

• For the second time, India assumed the Presidency of the 15-nation UN Security Council on 1 December in its two-year tenure.
• India's 2021-2022 term in the UN Security Council will end on 31 December 2022.
• India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador, Ruchira Kamboj, will sit in the president's seat.
• During India’s presidency, two high-level signature events will take place on the 14^th and 15^th of December on reformed Multilateralism and counter-Terrorism.
• A bust of Mahatma Gandhi will be inaugurated at the United Nations, which will be inaugurated by External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and UN Secretary-General Antonio Gutteres.
• Earlier, India assumed the Presidency of the UNSC as a non-permanent member in August 2021.

Topic: Indian Economy

11. India's economic growth rate was recorded at 6.3 percent in the second quarter.

• India's economic growth rate slowed down to 6.3 percent in July-September 2022.
• According to the data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO), the GDP growth rate was 8.4 percent in the July-September quarter of the last financial year, 2021-22.
• Whereas, the growth rate in Q1 of this financial year was 13.5 percent.
• The country’s gross value added (GVA) grew 5.6 percent, against 8.3 percent a year ago.
• There has been a decline of 4.3 percent in the manufacturing sector in the July-September quarter, which was 5.6 percent in the previous quarter.
• At the same time, the mining sector declined sharply by 2.8 percent as against 14.5 percent in the second quarter of last year.
• The agriculture sector grew by 4.6 percent in the July-September quarter.
• The sector, including trade, hospitality, and tourism, saw a growth of 14.7 percent as compared to 9.6 percent in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
• The construction sector registered a growth of 6.6 percent in the quarter.
• Rating agency ICRA had projected the GDP growth rate to be 6.5 percent in the July-September 2022 quarter, while the State Bank of India report projected it to be 5.8 percent.
• At the same time, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had estimated the economic growth rate for July to September at 6.1-6.3 percent.
• China's economic growth rate was 3.9 percent in the July-September quarter this year.

Topic: Personality in News

12. Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin passed away at the age of 96.

• On November 30, 2022, he died of leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai.
• In 1996, he was the first Chinese President to visit India, when India and China moved towards normalizing bilateral relations.
• Jiang was China's President from 1993 to 2003.
• Leading a split Communist Party after the Tiananmen crackdown of 1989, Zemin introduced market-oriented reforms in China.
• It was during Zemin's tenure that Hong Kong returned from British rule in 1997 and China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Committees/ Commissions/ Taskforces

13. Kirit Parikh Committee on gas pricing submits its report.

• The committee on gas pricing headed by Kirit Parikh has submitted its report to the Petroleum Ministry.
• The recommendations of the committee are as follows:
  • A minimum floor price of $ 4 per million British thermal unit and a cap price of $ 6.5 per million British thermal unit on gas from old or legacy fields and complete pricing freedom from 1 January 2026.
  • Linking of domestic gas price with international prices.
  • Removal of price cap in the next 3 years.
  • Gas under Administered Pricing Mechanism (APM) to be treated differently.
• Under the current system, price is reviewed twice in a year- 1 April and 1 October- depending on prices in gas surplus countries like Canada, US and Russia in a year with a lag of one quarter.
• APM gas produced by ONGC and OIL in their allocated field is fixed by the government.

Topic: Important Days

14. National Pollution Control Day 2022: 2 December

• Every year in India, National Pollution Control Day is observed on 2 December.
• The day is observed to honor and memorize the death of thousands of people caused due to Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
• Bhopal Gas Tragedy occurred on 2 and 3 December in 1984. Around 45 tonnes of Methyl Isocyanate (MIC) leaked from an insecticide plant in Bhopal killing thousands of people.
• Indian laws that prevent and control pollution:
  • Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1974
  • Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act of 1977
  • Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1981
  • Environment (Protection) Act of 1986
  • Environment (Protection) Rules of 1986
  • Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules of 1989
  • Manufacture, Storage, Import, Export & Storage of Hazardous Micro- Organisms Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells Rules of 1989
  • Chemical Accidents (Emergency, Planning, Preparedness and Response) Rules of 1996
  • Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules of 1998
  • Recycled Plastics Manufacture and Usage Rules of 1999
  • Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation) Rules of 2000
  • Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules of 2000
  • Municipal Solid Waste (Management & Handling) Rules of 2000
  • Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules of 2001
  • Environment Impact Assessment Notification of 2006
  • The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010
  • Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016
  • Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016
  • Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016
  • Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016
  • E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2016
  • Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2016