Daily Current Affairs and GK | 21 October 2022

Topic: National News

1. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched the National Curriculum Framework for the Foundational Stage.

• He also launched the pilot project of ‘Balvatika 49 Kendriya Vidyalayas’.
• The National Curriculum Framework for foundational stage education of children is for the three to eight years age group.
• National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage, used ‘play,’ at the core of the conceptual, operational, and transactional approaches to curriculum organization, pedagogy, time and content organization, and the overall experience of the child.
• According to the National Curriculum Framework, early childhood care and education are key areas of development.
• The National Curriculum Framework will play a critical role in the implementation of the New Education Policy-2020.
• The National Curriculum Framework 2022 has four sections, which are given below:
  • National Curriculum Framework for School Education
  • National Curriculum Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education
  • National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education
  • National Curriculum Framework for Adult Education
• The NCF for the foundational stage has listed the ‘panchakosha’ concept for the education of children. Its five parts are given below:
  • Physical development (sharirik vikas)
  • Development of life energy (pranik vikas)
  • Emotional and mental development (manasik vikas)
  • Intellectual development (bauddhik vikas)
  • Spiritual development (chaitsik vikas).
• As per the NCF, the number of institutions offering relevant teacher education programmes is low and inadequate.
• NCERT has developed ‘Vidya pravesh’ for students entering class 1.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Awards and Prizes

2. Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs Shri Hardeep S. Puri felicitated the winners of the PMAY (U) Awards 2021.

• Madhya Pradesh has been ranked at second place in the country under the 'Best Performing State' category in PMAY-U scheme.
• Uttar Pradesh (1st), Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu (3rd) have achieved the top three positions in PMAY-U awards.
• Gujarat has got 5 ‘Special Category’ awards. J&K has been adjudged ‘Best performing UT’.
• Madhya Pradesh has received awards in eight categories in the 'PMAY Awards-2021: 150 Days Challenge’.
• State Urban Development and Housing Minister Bhupendra received the award on behalf of the state from PM Modi at the 'Indian Urban Housing Conclave ' in Rajkot in Gujarat.
• Madhya Pradesh shared the special category award with Gujarat in Best State for Convergence.
• It shared the award with Jharkhand and Arunachal Pradesh in Best State for Conducting Information, Education and Communication (IEC) Activity.
• It shared the award with Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat in Best Performing State Level Technical Cell (SLTC).
• PMAY-U Awards are scheduled annually to recognise the contribution of States, Union Territories and urban local bodies with regard to the implementation of PMAY-U.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

3. “Akash for Life” Space Conference is scheduled to be held at Dehradun from 5th to 7th November, 2022.

• It will be a three-day conference. It will showcase blending of traditional and modern knowledge through an extended integration of all schools of thought.
• All major scientific ministries and departments joined hands with Vijnana Bharati to organize first conference on Akash Tatva - Akash for Life.
• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said India’s ascent to the World Comity of Nations will happen via Space Technology.
• ‘Sumangalam’ campaign is being held all over India for finding the solutions to the environmental problems like global warming and climate with an Indian perspective.
• Five national conventions will be organized across India on the Panchmahabhoot, which consists of Aakash, Vaayu, Jal, Prithvi and Agni.

Topic: Important Days

4. Police Commemoration Day: 21 October

• It is observed every year on 21st October to honor the loyalty and supreme sacrifice of police personnel for the nation.
• On this day in 1959, 10 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were martyred during patrol duty at Indo- China border in an ambush laid by heavily armed Chinese troops.
• The Director General of Police (DGP) / Inspector General of Police (IGP) Conference held in 1962 decided to observe October 21 every year as Police Commemoration Day in order to honour the memory of these ten valiant Policemen.
• Home Minister Amit Shah paid tribute to martyred soldiers at National Police Memorial in Delhi on the occasion of Police Commemoration Day.

Topic: Government Scheme and Initiative

5. Education Ministry will organize a one-month-long “Kashi Tamil Sangamam”.

• It will be organized from 16th November to rediscover the centuries-old bond of knowledge and ancient civilizational linkage between Varanasi and Tamil Nadu.
• Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan informed that over 2400 Tamil people in 12 groups will visit Kashi for eight days to get familiarised with the ancient knowledge shared by these two ancient cities.
• He said that these people would come by train from Rameswaram, Chennai, and Coimbatore.
• He also informed that seminars, discussions, and lectures will be organized during this program.
• On this occasion, Shri Pradhan also launched a website for the process of registration related to this one-month event.
• This program will be organized under “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat” as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• IIT Madras and Banaras Hindu University will be the host partners of this mega event.

(Source: News on Air)

Topic: International News

6. British Prime Minister Liz Truss resigned in less than seven weeks.

• She said she could not live up to the expectations for which she was selected.
• Ms Truss said her Conservative Party would choose its new leader by next week.
• Ms Truss, 46, was able to stay as prime minister for only 45 days. This was the shortest tenure of any prime minister in Britain.
• Earlier, Conservative Party officials gathered in Downing Street and pressured the Prime Minister to resign.
• The crisis deepened for her due to the resignation of the Home Minister recently.
• Even before this, the campaign to remove Ms Truss from the post of Prime Minister had started and many MPs openly demanded her resignation.
• With the exit of Liz Truss, her political rival and former UK finance minister Rishi Sunak, Pennymordont and Britain's Defense Minister Ben Wallace are being considered as the preferred prime ministerial candidates.

(Source: News on Air)

Topic: Economy/Banking/Finance

7. China’s total trade surplus with India has exceeded $1 trillion.

• In 2021, annual trade crossed $100 billion for the first time, reaching $125.6 billion.
• Trade relations between India and China began to boom in the early 2000s.
• Trade relations were mainly driven by India’s imports of Chinese machinery and other equipment.
• They increased from $3 billion in the year 2000 to $42 billion in 2008.
• 2008 was the year when China became India’s largest trading partner.
• China’s trade with India is unbalanced and the balance of trade between them has crossed $1.2 trillion.
• Chinese imports of Indian seafood have recently shown robust growth.
• The surpluses over a period of time lead to the problem of current account deficit for India.
• The trade imbalance between China and India may surpass even last year’s figure.
• In the six months that ended June, India’s imports from China increased 34.5% to reach a record $57.51 billion.
• India’s exports to China shrank by 35%, accounting for only $9.57 billion of the $67.08 billion bilateral trade.
• India’s major imports last year were electrical and mechanical machinery, chemicals used in industrial production, active pharmaceutical ingredients and auto components.

Topic: Space and IT

8. ISRO is planning to launch Chandrayaan-3 in June 2023.

• Chandrayaan-3 will be ISRO’s third mission to the moon.
• ISRO plans to launch it with more robust lunar rover onboard which is crucial for future inter-planetary explorations.
• As per ISRO Chairman S Somnath, Chandrayaan-3 (C-3) launch will be in June next year from the Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3).
• ISRO also plans the first test flight of the 'abort mission' for Gaganyaan, the country's first human spaceflight, early next year.
• After conducting successful abort missions and uncrewed test flights, ISRO plans to fly Indian astronauts into orbit by the end of 2024.
• Chandrayaan-2:
  • It was launched on July 22, 2019, by a GSLV Mark III M1 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh.
  • The names of the lander and rover of Chandrayaan-2 are Vikram and Pragyaan, respectively.
  • On 7 September 2019, ISRO lost contact with Vikram lander.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

9. Tamil Nadu government formed a State-level Committee for the conservation of Vultures.

• The committee includes senior officials from the Forest Department and other experts.
• With a two-year term, it will map vulture populations throughout the State and monitor the conservation and recovery of current vulture sites.
• This committee will also work to eliminate the use of toxic veterinary drugs, which are the main cause of vulture fatalities.
• The availability of food is a key factor in determining vulture populations.
• India’s vulture population between 1993 and 2003 declined by 96%.
• The Central government launched action plans in 2006 and 2020 for the conservation of species at the national level. Vultures almost went extinct in India at the beginning of the 21st century.
• Four species of vulture are found in Tamil Nadu — the Oriental white-backed vulture, the long-billed vulture, the red-headed vulture, and the Egyptian vulture.
• Vultures play an extremely critical role as nature’s scavengers, keeping the environment clean.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

10. Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj organized a two-day National Training Workshop on People’s Plan Campaign-2022 in New Delhi.

• During the two-day workshop, the guidelines for the revamped People’s Plan Campaign-2022 and Handbook on the revamped Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) Portal were launched.
• The two-day National Training Workshop on People’s Plan Campaign–2022 was organized on the 19th and 20th of October 2022.
• Officers from different ministries, central and state government departments took part in this event.
• Elected representatives and functionaries of Panchayati Raj Institutions also participated in the event.
• Shri Sunil Kumar, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, emphasized the importance of convergence of the Village Poverty Reduction Plan (VPRP) with the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP).
• On this occasion, Revamped eGramSwaraj Portal – Thematic Planning for preparation of thematic Panchayat Development Plans – Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP), Block Panchayat Development Plan (BPDP) and District Panchayat Development Plan (DPDP) was also launched.
• The Ministry of Panchayati Raj organizes the People’s Plan Campaign (PPC) every year (Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas) from 2nd October to 31st December.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

11. Government is planning to launch Swadesh Darshan 2 in identified destinations of 15 states.

• Under the Swadesh Darshan 2 scheme, 15 states with two or three destinations will get financial support to strengthen tourist infrastructure.
• Prayagraj, Chitrakoot, Khajuraho, Jhansi, and Gwalior are among the cities that have been identified.
• The first phase of the ‘Swadesh Darshan 2’ will be launched in January 2023.
• Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra are part of the first phase of the scheme.
• Recently, the government has revamped the Swadesh Darshan scheme as Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0) to develop sustainable and responsible destinations with a tourist and destination-centric approach.
• The Swadesh Darshan Scheme was launched by the government in 2014-15 for the integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits.
• Swadesh Darshan 2.0 (SD2.0) will create jobs and attract investments in the tourism and hospitality sector.
• The scheme has been revamped with the mantra of “vocal for local”.

Topic: Sports

12. Fifth Khelo India Youth Games 2022 will be organized in Madhya Pradesh.

• Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Anurag Singh Thakur, announced that the Fifth Khelo India Youth Games 2022 will be held in Madhya Pradesh from January 31 to February 11, 2023.
• The Khelo India Youth Games will be organized at eight locations and more than 8,500 athletes and sportspersons will take part in it.
• The games will be held at different places, including Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior, Ujjain, and Jabalpur.
• Khelo India Youth Games was launched in 2018. It is an effective platform for youths to showcase their performances and talents in sports.
• The Khelo India Youth Games is a part of the revamped national programme for the development of sports.
• The first Khelo India Youth Games were hosted by New Delhi, and Haryana was the winner of the first edition.
• The fourth edition of the Khelo India Youth Games was held in Panchkula.

Topic: International Appointments

13. Ulf Kristersson elected as the new Prime Minister of Sweden.

• Conservative leader Ulf Kristersson has been elected as the new Prime Minister of Sweden.
• He received 176 votes in favour and 173 against. He will form a three-party government with the Christian Democrats and the Liberals.
• Ulf Kristersson belongs to the Moderate Party. Kristersson has taken the place of Magdalena Andersson.
• The new government is planning to cut taxes and begin the process of building new nuclear power plants.
• Around 200 Swedish businesses are currently present in India and have invested $1.7 billion in India.
• India and Sweden’s relationship was established in 1949.
• Sweden:
  • Sweden is a Scandinavian country with thousands of coastal islands and inland lakes.
  • Its capital is Stockholm and the currency is Swedish Krona.
  • It shares a border with Norway, Finland, and Denmark.
  • It is the third-largest country in the European Union.
  • Ulf Kristersson is the current Prime Minister.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Rankings

14. UIDAI topped the Grievance Redressal Index for the second consecutive month.

• For September 2022, UIDAI has topped once again amongst all Group A Ministries, Departments and Autonomous Bodies for resolving public grievances.
• UIDAI is a top performer in resolving Public Grievances received through Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS).
• Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) releases the Grievance Redressal Index.
• UIDAI has a strong grievance redressal ecosystem. UIDAI is gradually rolling out state-of-the-art Open-Source CRM solutions.
• UIDAI’s strong grievance redressal ecosystem enables it to resolve around 92% of CRM Grievances within a week.
• Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI):
  • It was established as a statutory authority under the Aadhaar Act 2016.
  • It works under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
  • Dr. Saurabh Garg is the Chief Executive Officer of the Unique Identification Authority of India.