Daily Current Affairs and GK | 21 and 22 August 2022

Topic: State News/ Punjab

1. Government decided to change the name of Chandigarh International Airport.

• The Haryana and Punjab governments have agreed to name Chandigarh International Airport after Bhagat Singh.
• The airport will be known as Shaheed Bhagat Singh Airport.
• In another decision, the Punjab governor gave his assent to the Punjab State Legislature Members (Pension and Medical Facilities Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2022.
• It will limit the multiple pensions to former MLAs with Chief Minister. It will save around ₹100 crores in five years.

List of Airports in Punjab:

List of Airports in Haryana:

Topic: State News/Jharkhand

2. Jharkhand is India’s first state to use blockchain technology for seed distribution to farmers.

• Directorate of Agriculture, Jharkhand and SettleMint, India jointly announced the launch of seed distribution to farmers based on blockchain technology.
• SettleMint is a global blockchain technology company. Jharkhand is India’s 1^st state where blockchain is being used to track seed distribution.
• Blockchain technology is expected to be used to track the distribution of inputs, implements, etc. under all the schemes being implemented by the Directorate of Agriculture.
• Blockchain technology is a decentralized, distributed ledger that stores the record of ownership of digital assets.

Topic: Sports

3. Antim Panghal is the first Indian woman wrestler to win the Gold medal at the Under-20 World Wrestling Championship in Sofia, Bulgaria.

• To accomplish this feat, she defeated Atlyn Shagayeva of Kazakhstan in the 53kg weight class.
• India had never won any gold medal in women's wrestling at U20 World Championships.
• Antim Panghal is a wrestler who belongs to the Haryana state of India.
• Sonam Malik and Priyanka won silver medals in 62 kg and 65 kg respectively.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

4. India has achieved the milestone of more than one lakh (1,01,462) ODF Plus villages.

• The top five performing states are Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and Himachal Pradesh.
• Maximum number of villages have been declared as ODF (Open Defecation Free) Plus in these states.
• ODF Plus villages are sustaining their ODF status. Additionally, these villages have systems in place for managing solid and/or liquid waste.
• In 2014, PM Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission to make the country open defecation free.
• On 2^nd October 2019, rural India became open defecation free (ODF).
• The second phase of Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) was approved in 2020.
• Second Phase of the SBM-G is about appropriately managing all types of waste.
• Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) had introduced intermediate stages in the process of declaring a village as ODF Plus.

Topic: State News/ Maharashtra

5. 'Dahi-Handi' will be an official sport in Maharashtra.

• CM Eknath Shinde has announced that 'Dahi-Handi' will be recognised under the state’s sports category.
• He also announced that competitions known as "Pro-Dahi-Handi" will be held in the state.
• The tournament participant "Govinda" will get the job under the sport Maharashtra quota.
• The government will also provide an insurance cover of Rs 10 lakh for all 'Govindas'.
• Due to the number of severe incidents in this sport, the Supreme Court capped the height of "handi" to 20 feet.
• In 2017, the Bombay High Court also prohibited the participation of children below the age of 14 years.
• Dahi Handi:
  • It is commemorated on the occasion of Janmashtami, the birth of Lord Krishna.
  • Part of the Janmashtami festival is the Dahi Handi, which is made up of earthen pots filled with yogurt.
  • Young people, called "Govindas," dress in colourful clothes and form a human pyramid to reach the pot hanging in the air and break it.

Topic: Biotechnology and Diseases

6. India launched its first indigenous monkeypox test kit.

• The first indigenously developed RT-PCR kit for testing monkeypox disease has been launched at the Andhra Pradesh Medtech Zone (AMTZ).
• Ajay Kumar Sood, the center's principal scientific adviser, unveiled the kit, which has been developed by Transasia Bio-Medicals.
• The Transasia-Erba monkeypox RT-PCR kit is a highly sensitive but simple test with a specially prepared primer for high accuracy.
• The WHO has declared the Monkeypox infection a public health emergency of international concern.
• The kit would assist in the earlier detection and improved management of the infection.
• Monkeypox:
  • Monkeypox (MPX) is a viral zoonotic disease in which the symptoms are similar to smallpox.
  • Although the disease is clinically less severe. It is caused by the monkeypox virus which is a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae.
  • The disease is called monkeypox as it was first found in colonies of monkeys in 1958 and was later found in humans in 1970.
  • The symptoms of the virus usually show from 6 to 13 days.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

7. The second phase of the Grameen Udyami Project has been launched by NSDC in partnership with Seva Bharti and Yuva Vikas Society.

• It has been launched to augment skill training in tribal communities for their inclusive and sustainable growth.
• Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister of Tribal Affairs, launched the programme.
• He said Central Government has sanctioned a budget of 85,000 crore rupees exclusively for tribal areas. 
• Grameen Udyami Project:
  • It is a unique multiskilling project, funded by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
  • It aims to train 450 tribal students in Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.
  • It is being implemented in six states. These states are Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Gujarat.
  • This concept was crystallized by Minister of State Rajeev Chandrasekhar and tribal MPs.

Topic: Personality in News

8. Syed Sibtey Razi passed away recently.

• He was the former Governor of Jharkhand. He served as Governor of Assam.
• He served as the Governor of Jharkhand from the year 2004- 2009.
• He was associated with Congress. He formed a socio-cultural association in Lucknow called 'Anjuman Adab-e-Atfal.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: International News

9. Greece announced to exit from the 'enhanced surveillance' framework of European Union.

• Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made this announcement. It will allow more freedom in policymaking and end the pain of 12 years.
• After the first bailout in 2010, Greece has implemented pension cuts, spending constraints, tax increases and bank control.
• Greece’s economic developments and policy have been monitored continuously since 2018.
• The exit from the framework will help Greece in regaining an “investment grade” credit rating.
• The surveillance framework's aim is to ensure the adoption of measures to tackle potential sources of economic difficulty and structural reforms to support sustainable economic growth.
• Greece:
  • It is a country in Southeast Europe.
  • It shares land borders with Albania, North Macedonia and Bulgaria and Turkey.
  • It has the longest coastline in the Mediterranean Basin.
  • Kyriakos Mitsotakis is the current Prime Minister.
  • Athens is the capital of Greece and the currency is Euro.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

10. 18 out of 20 cities of the world with the most severe increase in PM_2.5 pollution are from India: Study by HEI.

• Among the most populous cities in the world, Delhi has the highest average level of fine PM_2.5, according to a report by the Health Effects Institute (HEI).
• From 2010 to 2019, 18 of the 20 cities with the most severe increase in fine particle pollutants (PM_2.5) are from India.
• This report is focused on the two most harmful pollutants: fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂).
• This report has combined ground-based air quality data with satellites and models to produce air quality estimates for cities around the world.
• The report estimated that 1.7 million deaths have occurred due to PM_2.5 exposures in 7,239 cities. Asia, Africa, and Eastern and Central Europe are most affected by the health impacts of air pollution.
• India and Indonesia have seen the most severe increase in PM_2.5 pollution.
• Out of the 50 cities with the most severe increase in PM_2.5, 41 are from India and 9 are from Indonesia.
• Between 2010 to 2019, the 20 cities with the most decline in PM_2.5 pollution are from China.
• India, Nigeria, Peru, and Bangladesh city residents face many folds higher PM_2.5 exposures than the global average.
• Air pollution is responsible for one in nine deaths around the world.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

11. RBI released a report titled 'Governance, Efficiency and Soundness of Indian Banks'.

• As per this report, in recent years, banks in India have made significant progress in adhering to governance standards.
• But, the current level of compliance is not adequate to mark the existing governance structure as “socially efficient”.
• This report is based on the individual bank’s annual report from 2008-09 to 2017-18. This report used publicly available information on Corporate Good Governance.
• It also states that the Indian banking system was sound from 2008-09 to 2012-13. The decline in asset quality and profitability emerged in 2013-14.
• In the last few years, private banks have shown improvement in their soundness position. However, a low level of soundness is still a challenge for public-sector banks.
• It notes that noticeable asymmetries exist in the policy priorities of banks on the dimensions of governance and soundness.
• As per the report, private banks have performed relatively better in adhering to good governance norms relating to audit work, subsequent risk management and board effectiveness.
• Profit-efficient banks are sufficiently sound to keep up capital buffers and absorb shocks, which can reduce destabilizing effects.

Topic: Important Days

12. Akshay Urja Diwas 2022: 20 August

• Every year, Akshay Urja Diwas is observed on 20 August.
• This day also marks the birth anniversary of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
• Akshay Urja Diwas has been celebrated since 2004. It is observed to spread awareness about the development of renewable energy in India.
• The main aim of this day is to promote the use of renewable energy.
• Note:
  • In the current fiscal year, Rajasthan and Gujarat added the most renewable capacity (4.8 GW and 2.4 GW, respectively) till January 31, 2022.
  • Till June 2022, India's renewable energy capacity stood at 114.07 GW. India has set a target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy by 2022.
  • Biogas, Solar Energy, Wind energy, and hydroelectrical power are examples of renewable energy.

Topic: National Appointments

13. DCGI Venugopal Somani’s tenure has been extended for 3 months.

• Venugopal Somani’s tenure ended on 15 August.
• His term has been extended for three months or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
• Dr V G Somani was appointed Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for three years on August 14, 2019. 
• The Drugs Controller General of India heads the department of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization.
• DCGI has recently approved AstraZeneca’s drug Lynparza for patients with a high risk of early breast cancer.
• Drug Controller General of India (DCGI):
  • It is responsible for setting the standards for the manufacturing, import, sales, and distribution of drugs in India.
  • It approves licenses of specified categories of drugs, including blood products, vaccines, sera, etc.

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

14. Uttar Pradesh government released the draft of its Solar Energy Policy-2022.

• Uttar Pradesh government is planning to produce 16,000mw renewable power by 2026-27.
• As per the proposed policy, the state government will develop 20 solar cities in the next five years, covering 10 lakh households with solar rooftop installations.
• Important cities like Lucknow, Kanpur, Prayagraj, Agra, Varanasi, Ghaziabad, etc. have been selected for the rooftop installations.
• The draft of Solar Energy Policy-2022 could get approval cabinet after the completion of the solar policy 2017.
• The Solar Energy Policy 2017 of Uttar Pradesh had set a target of producing 10,000mw solar power by 2022, but less than 3,000mw were produced.
• Under the new policy, households can sell the excess power generated on their house to the distribution company.
• As per the Solar Energy Policy-2022, 21,000 un-electrified primary schools across the state will be covered with solar rooftop installations.
• The government will also install solar panels on the rooftop of Nagar Nigam assets.
• Public institutions such as hostels and training institutions will be asked to meet a part of their energy requirements from solar energy.
• The government is planning to utilize barren/un-cultivable government/private land in Bundelkhand for solar energy production.