Daily Current Affairs and GK | 25 March 2022

Topic: Art and Culture

1. Union Minister Smriti Irani inaugurated ten-day ‘Red Fort Festival - Bharat Bhagya Vidhata’ at Red Fort.

• This ten-day festival will be organized from 25^th March to 3^rd April 2022.
• “Matrubhumi” –Projection Mapping Show, Cultural Parade, Khao Galli, Live performances at Rang Manch, will be part of this festival.
• Bharat Bhagya Vidhata festival is being organized as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav by the Ministry of Culture.
• It is being organized to highlight the heritage and culture of every part of the country.
• The Ministry of Culture along with Red Fort’s “Monument Mitra”, Dalmia Bharat Ltd have conceptualized this mega event.
• Red Fort Festival - Bharat Bhagya Vidhata aims to promote heritage conservation and tourism.

(Source: PIB)

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

2. Government has set target of building 220 new airports by 2025.

• Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the government is planning to build 220 new airports by 2025.
• The government is planning to create 33 new domestic cargo terminals and 15 new flight training schools for pilots.
• He also said that Cargo flights for perishable food items will be increased by 30% in the upcoming years.
• The pilot license approval process will be simplified with the latest technology.
• The Government is aiming to increase the number of air passengers from 34.5 crores in 2018-19 to 40 crores in 2023-24.
• Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia also informed that two new airlines, Jet and Akasa, will soon launch their services in India.
• According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) data, 8.38 crore people have travelled on domestic flights in 2021.
• Note:
  • Indira Gandhi International Airport of New Delhi is the busiest airport in India, followed by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
  • India has 35 international airports and 123 airports have commercial flights facilities.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

3. SPDCL won two Green Energy Awards.

• Southern Power Distribution Company of Telangana Ltd has been honoured with two green energy awards at the 2^nd Green Urja Energy Efficiency Awards.
• It has been awarded Gold in the "Top Discom-Renewable Energy" category, and it has also won the award in the "Innovative Projects and Jury Choice (decentralized solar generation)" category.
• G Raghuma Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director of TSSPDCL, received the prizes virtually at the web-based event.
• The Discom has been chosen by the jury for its exceptional performance to meet agricultural demand by using distributed solar energy.
• Southern Power Distribution Company of Telangana Ltd (SPDCL):
  • The Telangana State Electricity Distribution Company, or TSSPDCL, is a state-owned electricity distribution company that serves Telangana's five southern districts.
  • On June 2, 2014, it was incorporated as a public limited company under the Companies Act, 1956.
  • Its headquarters is in Hyderabad.

Topic: State News / Bihar

4. Bihar becomes first state to implement dynamic maps to track land ownership.

• Bihar has become the first state in the country to implement the dynamic map for villages.
• Each time land ownership will change, the dynamic map will get automatically updated. The aim of this initiative is to reduce legal disputes.
• According to the Bihar government, the state has received around 37,000 cases of land disputes and other issues since February 2021.
• The plan to implement dynamic maps is seen as a move by the state government to address the issue of long-delayed land reforms.
• In December 2021, the state assembly enacted the Bihar Land Mutation Amendment Bill 2021, making map mutation mandatory.
• Now there will be three changes every time an update occurs, including:
  • A change in the text
  • A change in the land parcel
  • A modification of the survey map

Topic: Banking System

5. People's Co-operative Bank of Kanpur license has been revoked.

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revoked the license of Kanpur-based People's Co-operative Bank Limited, citing insufficient capital and earnings potential.
• The bank is not complying with various sections of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
• RBI has prohibited it from conducting business, which also includes acceptance of deposits and repayment of deposits.
• The Uttar Pradesh Commissioner for Cooperation and Registrar of Cooperative Societies has also been asked to issue an order for the bank's winding up and the appointment of a liquidator.
• On liquidation, every depositor would be entitled to receive deposit insurance claim up to Rs 5 lakh from Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

Topic: Sports

6. MS Dhoni has stepped down as the captain of Chennai Super Kings.

• MS Dhoni, who has led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) since the league's start in 2008, handed over the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja.
• Jadeja, who has been a key member of Chennai Super Kings since 2012, will be the team's third captain.
• This season and beyond, Dhoni will continue to represent the Chennai Super Kings.
• Chennai won the IPL title in 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021 as well as two Champions League T20 wins in 2010 and 2014 under his captaincy.
• CSK won their fourth title in 2021 last season by defeating Kolkata Knight Riders in the final.

Topic: State News/Maharashtra

7. The bill to make use of Marathi language mandatory in official works of local authorities has been unanimously passed by Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.

• The bill makes use of Marathi language mandatory in official works by local authorities including civic bodies and corporations established by state government.
• State-run corporations or local authority set up by state government or central government will have to use Marathi while interacting with people and in internal works.  
• The bill permits local authorities to use English or Hindi for certain government works, like communicating with foreign ambassadors.
• Complaints about implementation of the bill will be sent to a special district Marathi language committee.
• The Maharashtra Official Language Act of 1964 did not make it mandatory for local authorities to use Marathi in their official functions.
• Marathi is one of the 22 languages recognized in eighth schedule of the Constitution of India.

Topic: National News

8. Government has extended applicability of NIP-2012 for HURL’s three units at Gorakhpur, Sindri and Barauni.

• Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has given approval to Department of Fertilizers’ proposal for extension of applicability of NIP -2012 for these three units of HURL.
• The commissioning of three units will add 38.1 lakh tonnes per annum urea production in the country.
• GAIL is supplying Natural Gas to these three units of HURL.
• The three units aim to meet the demand for urea in seven states (Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha).
• HURL-Gorakhpur unit has India’s first Air Operated Bullet Proof Rubber Dam of 65 mtrs length and 2 mtrs height.
• New Investment Policy (NIP) – 2012:
  • It was announced by the government on 2nd January, 2013.
  • Government had announced its amendment on 7^th October, 2014 to facilitate fresh investment in the urea sector and to make India self-sufficient in the urea sector.
• Hindustan Urvarak and Rasayan Limited (HURL):
  • It is a joint venture company by Coal India Limited (CIL), NTPC Limited (NTPC) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL).
  • It was incorporated on 15^th June, 2016. 

Topic: International News

9. India and Oman to enhance cooperation in the fields of Science and Technology.

• India and Oman have signed Programme of Cooperation (POC) in the field of Science and Technology for the period 2022 – 2025.
• Medicinal Plants and processing, Real-time Air Quality monitoring, and Development of an electronic platform for knowledge sharing in the field of Genetic Resources are the main identified areas of cooperation.
• Both countries will also enhance cooperation in the field of Bio-diesel Research, Training programs – Big-data, coding & testing, Blockchain, and FinTech solutions, etc.
• Both countries agreed to support joint scientific projects based on mutual interest. They will also encourage the exchange of scientists, researchers, experts, and specialists.
• The POC document has been signed during the bilateral meeting between Dr. S Jaishankar, Union Minister of External Affairs of the Government of India, and Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, Foreign Minister of Oman.
• This Programme of Cooperation (POC) has been signed in pursuance of the Agreement for Cooperation in Science and Technology signed between India and Oman in 1996.
• India is one of the top trading partners of Oman with a trade value of almost 7.5 billion US dollars. Oman is home to approximately six lakh 20 thousand Indian nationals.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Sports

10. India’s first SAI National Centre of Excellence for Mountain Terrain Biking and Bicycle Motocross will be set up in Shimla.

• The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and the Youth Services and Sports department of the Government of Himachal Pradesh will set up India’s first SAI National Centre of Excellence for Mountain Terrain Biking and Bicycle Motocross in Shimla.
• It will provide world-class facilities to Indian cyclists so that they could do better in the international competition. A High-Performance Center for Sports Science will be also set up at this center.
• This center will be set up at an altitude of 2000 meters above sea level with world-class infrastructure.
• It will have the capacity to train around 200 cyclists for Olympic-level preparations and have 1 XCO Olympic-level track and 1 BMX track.
• It will also have high-end equipment like breath and lactic analyzers, heart rate monitors, etc.

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

11. India climbed up five spots in global home price index.

• India has got 51st position in the global home price index Q4 2021. It was on the 56th position in Q4 2020.
• Property consultant Knight Frank has released a report titled 'Global House Price Index - Q4 2021’.
• In Q4 2021, housing prices in Turkey witnessed a growth of 59.6 percent, followed by New Zealand (22.6 percent), the Czech Republic (22.1 percent).
• Malaysia, Malta, and Morocco markets recorded a decline in prices by 0.7%, 3.1%, and 6.3% respectively, in 2021.
• Global House Price Index tracks the movement of residential prices in 56 countries. It tracks nominal and real price growth in local currencies.
• According to the report, housing prices in India have grown by 2.1%. Mumbai witnessed a growth of 1.4% in housing prices.
• As per this report, ten markets that have witnessed the strongest increase in house prices after the pandemic are mostly developed markets.
• The average annual price change was 10.3 percent across 56 countries.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Personality in News

12. Former Chief Justice of India R C Lahoti passed away at the age of 81.

• Justice Lahoti was appointed as the 35th Chief Justice of India on 1 June 2004.
• He also served as an independent director on the board of directors of the Press Trust of India.
• He was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court on December 9, 1998.
• He was arbitrator in the Rs 20,000 crore high-profile tax dispute case between Government and Vodafone.

Topic: Books and Authors

13. Gundappa Viswanath's autobiography released at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

• G.R. Viswanath’s autobiography ‘Wrist Assured’ has been unveiled at an event at the M Chinnaswamy stadium.
• The book was launched by two of India’s greatest cricketers and Viswanath’s teammates Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar.
• It is co-authored by senior sports journalist R Kaushik.
• Gundappa Viswanath played 91 Test matches for India and scored 6080 runs. He is the former captain of the Indian cricket team.
• Gundappa Viswanath received Col. C. K. Naidu Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009 by BCCI. It is the highest award in the field of Cricket in India.

Topic: Sports

14. Pranav Prashant Desai bagged India's first gold medal at World Para Athletics Grand Prix in Dubai.

• Sprinter Pranav Prashant Desai has won gold in the men's 200 meter T64 event. He finished the race in 24.42 seconds.
• He is a gold medallist at the Fazza Championships.
• T64 classification is for athletes with a leg amputation, who compete with prosthetics in a standing position.
• Iraq's Naas Ahmed created a world record in men's javelin F40 finals by throwing javelin to a distance of 39.08 meters.
• Currently, India is on the 15th position with four medals. Colombia is on the top of the medal tally with 13 medals.
• More than 450 athletes from 43 countries are participating in the World Para Athletics Grand Prix.

(Source: News on AIR)