Daily Current Affairs and GK | 21 June 2022

Topic: Books and Authors

1. PM unveiled a book titled ‘Bhartiya Samvidhan: Ankahi Kahani’.

• ‘Bhartiya Samvidhan: Ankahi Kahani’ has been wriiten by Ram Bahadur Rai.
• PM Modi said that the Constitution of India is not just a book, but an idea and commitment.
• The book has been released on the day (June 18) when then-President Rajendra Prasad gave his assent to the first amendment to the Constitution in 1951.
• Ram Bahadur Rai is a journalist and former news editor of Hindi daily ‘Jansatta’.
• Manjil se Jyada Safar, Shashwat Vidrohi Rajneta, Rahvari ke Sawal, etc. are some famous works of Ram Bahadur Rai.

Topic: International Appointments

2. Gustavo Petro has been elected as President of Colombia.

• Gustavo Petro has won Colombia's Presidential Elections by defeating Rodolfo Hernandez.
• Francia Marquez will become the first black woman Vice President of Colombia.
• She will be the country's first Afro-Colombian woman Vice-President.
• Gustavo Petro is a former member of the M-19 guerrilla movement.
• Colombia:
  • It is located in South America. Bogotá is its capital.
  • It is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north and Venezuela to the east.
  • It is bordered by Brazil to the southeast. It is bordered by Ecuador and Peru to the south. It is bordered by Panama to the northwest.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Sports

3. 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first World Cup to be hosted by three different countries.

• 2026 men's World Cup will be the first-ever world cup to feature 48 teams. It will be organized in US, Mexico, and Canada.
• FIFA announced that the 2026 World Cup will be held in 11 US cities. It will be held at three host sites in Mexico and two in Canada.
• The US will host the World Cup for the second time. Mexico will host for the third time.
• It will be the first time a men’s World Cup match has been held in Canada.  It hosted the Women’s World Cup in 2015.
• 2022 FIFA World Cup will be held in Qatar from 21 November to 18 December 2022. It will be the last tournament to involve 32 teams.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

4. CIET has won the UNESCO’s King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa Prize.

• CIET has won this award for the use of ICT (Information and Communications Technology) in Education for 2021.
• Two best projects are selected for the award annually by the international jury.
• The winner gets US$ 25,000, a medal and, a diploma during a ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.
• The ceremony will be held on June 24, 2022. The prize rewards individuals and organisations.
• Central Institute of Educational Technology (CIET):
  • It is a constituent unit of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
  • It is an autonomous organization formed in 1984 for promoting the use of mass media technology for expanding the quality of education at the school level.

Topic: National News

5. MoHUA has launched the NIPUN project for the promotion of upskilling of Nirman workers.

• In New Delhi, Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri launched a new scheme named the National Initiative for Promoting Upskilling of Nirman Workers (NIPUN).
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs started NIPUN under its flagship scheme the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM).
• The aim of the scheme is to train over 1 lakh construction workers through new skilling and upskilling programs, as well as provide them with opportunities in other countries.
• The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) will be the Implementation Partner for the project NIPUN. NSDC is the nodal agency under the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE).
• Project implementation is divided into three parts:
  • Training through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) at construction sites.
  • Training through Fresh Skilling by Plumbing and Infrastructure SSC.
  • International Placement through industries, builders, and contractors.

Topic: Books and Authors

6. Dr. Sonu Phogat's book 'Ashtang Yoga' is released by Haryana's CM.

• On the occasion of the 8th International Yoga Day, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal unveiled a book titled 'Ashtang Yoga' by Dr Sonu Phogat.
• He stated that various IYD programs are being held in Haryana.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

7. The winners of the Prime Minister's award for outstanding contribution for promotion of Yoga for the year 2021 have been announced.

• Ayush Ministry said two individuals and two organisations have been chosen for the award. The winners are given below.
  • Bhikkhu Sanghasena from Ladakh
  • Marcus Vinicius Rojo Rodrigues from Brazil
  • The Divine Life Society from Uttarakhand
  • British Wheel of Yoga from United Kingdom
• Prime Minister's award for outstanding contribution for promotion of Yoga:
  • It was announced by the Prime Minister on the occasion of the 2nd International Day of Yoga celebrations at Chandigarh in 2016.
  • The winners of the award will be given a trophy, certificate and cash award of 25 lakh rupees.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Defence

8. A new air squadron created in the Indian Coast Guard in Chennai on 20 June 2022.

• It is named 840 squadron and Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Mark-III aircraft inducted into it.
• The aircraft was received in presence of Inspector General AP Badola, Commander of the eastern Coast Guard Region.
• This is the first such aircraft to be deployed by the defence force in the eastern region.
• Three more Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) aircrafts will be added in the inventory of the new Squadron (840 squadron) in the near future.
• The aircraft is having Beyond the Visual Range detection. It is an indigenous aircraft designed and developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

9. Guidelines for PLI Scheme for Telecom and Networking Products have been amended.

• In the new guidelines, the Design-led Manufacturing proposal with additional incentive rates has been introduced.
• The PLI Scheme for Telecom and Networking Products has been amended to give an additional incentive rate of 1 % over and above existing incentive rates to Design-Led Manufacturing.
• The amended guidelines have also removed the condition of 15% cap on investment to be made for research and development.
• The government has also approved 11 new telecom and networking products to the existing list.
• In the Union Budget 2022-23, a Scheme for design-led manufacturing as part of the PLI Scheme has been proposed to create a strong ecosystem for 5G.
• The Telecom equipment manufacturer using 50% of Made in India components are eligible for the design-linked incentive.
• The Department of Telecommunications has invited applications from Design-led manufacturers for promoting design-led manufacturing in India.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

10. A new species of bamboo-dwelling bat found in Ri Bhoi district of Meghalaya.

• This new species has been found in the forest of the Nongkhyllem Wildlife Sanctuary.
• The newly found species has been named ‘Glischropus meghalayanus’.
• It is the first time a thick-thumbed bat has been found in South Asia.
• Thick-thumbed bats belong to the Glischropus genus. The newly discovered species is small in size and has a dark brown colour. 
• Bamboo-dwelling bats live in the internodes of bamboos.
• A total of 131 bat species are known in India. Meghalaya has the highest bat diversity in India.

Topic: Space and IT

11. Government declared IT resources of ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and NPCI as ‘critical information infrastructure’.

• The Union Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) issued a notification in this regard on 16 June 2022.
• According to Information Technology Act 2000, “Critical Information Infrastructure” has been defined as “computer resource, the incapacitation or destruction of which shall have a debilitating impact on national security, economy, public health or safety”.
• Government can declare any data, database, IT network or communications infrastructure as Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) to protect the digital asset.
• The National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) is the nodal agency to protect the Critical Information Infrastructure in India. It was formed in 2014.
• CIIs will be protected from unauthorized access, modification, use, disclosure, disruption, and incapacitation.
• Any person who attempts to get access to a protected system violates a law. He can be punished with a jail term of up to 10 years.

Topic: International News

12. Japan to attend NATO summit for the first time.

• Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will attend the NATO summit in Madrid on 28-30 June.
• Sweden and Finland will also send their delegation to the summit.
• ‘Yoon Suk-yeol’ will be the first leader of South Korea to attend the NATO summit.
• Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has recently announced the strengthening of Japan’s military capability and budget.
• Japan is not a member of NATO. Sweden and Finland have recently applied to join NATO.
• North Atlantic Treaty Organization:
  • It is an intergovernmental political and military alliance of 30 countries.
  • It was constituted in 1949 with the North Atlantic Treaty, which regulates the functioning of NATO.
  • Its headquarters is located in Brussels, Belgium.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

13. Employees' State Insurance Scheme to be implemented in the entire country by end of this year.

• The government has decided to implement the Employees' State Insurance (ESI) scheme in the entire country by the end of 2022.
• At present, ESI Scheme is fully implemented in 443 districts and partially implemented in 153 districts. Around 148 districts are not covered under ESI Scheme.
• ESI Corporation has decided to set up 23 new 100-bedded hospitals and 62 dispensaries across the country. 48 dispensaries will be opened in Maharashtra, 12 dispensaries in Delhi and 2 dispensaries in Haryana.
• ESI Corporation has also decided to start Certificate Courses in its Medical Colleges for Health Care Link Workers.
• Two cath labs at ESIC Medical College and Hospital at Sanathnagar, Telangana and Alwar, Rajasthan will be also established.
• Employees' State Insurance Corporation:
  • It was founded in 1952.
  • It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
  • It was set up under the ESI Act 1948 for the implementation of the ESI scheme.
  • Mukhmeet S Bhatia is the Director-General of Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC).

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Important Days

14. International Yoga Day: 21 June

• It is observed every year on 21^st June to raise awareness regarding the benefits of practising Yoga.
• During the 69^th session of the UN General Assembly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed the International Yoga Day.
• International Yoga Day was adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 2014.
• “Yoga for Humanity” is the theme for International Yoga Day 2022.
• 21^st June was selected as it is the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere.
• In Uttar Pradesh, more than 3.5 crore people will take part in the yoga practice. Yog abhyaas program was organised in Uttarakhand.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead a Yoga Day event in Mysuru.
• Benefits of Yoga:

(Source: News on AIR)