Daily Current Affairs and GK | 28 January 2021
Main Headlines:
- 1. Introduction of the ICC Player of the Month awards announced by International Cricket Council (ICC).
- 2. India ranked seventh in Global Climate Risk Index 2021.
- 3. World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda Summit to be addressed by PM Modi.
- 4. Indian Defence Minister and National Security Adviser speaks to their American counterpart.
- 5. Union IT and Communications Minister will launch virtual intelligence tool Tejas and ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal.
- 6. India inked an agreement with International Energy Agency for global energy security.
- 7. US will remain part of World Health Organisation.
- 8. Ladakh MP unfurled national flag at highest location.
- 9. Madhya Pradesh Government launched ‘PANKH Abhiyan’ on the occasion of National Girl Child Day.
- 10. CCEA approved increase in Minimum Support Price (MSP) of copra.
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Topic: Sports
1. Introduction of the ICC Player of the Month awards announced by International Cricket Council (ICC).
- Introduction of the ICC Player of the Month awards has been announced by International Cricket Council (ICC).
- ICC Player of the Month awards will recognize the best performances of both male and female cricketers across all forms of international cricket.
- An independent ICC Voting Academy will vote for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month and ICC Women’s Player of the Month.
- It will comprise former players, broadcasters, and journalists from all over the world. It will team up with fans to vote.
- International Cricket Council:
- The International Cricket Council is the global governing body of cricket.
- It was established in 1909 by the representatives of Australia, England, and South Africa as the Imperial Cricket Conference.
- It is headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Topic: Reports and Indices
2. India ranked seventh in Global Climate Risk Index 2021.
- India ranked seventh in Global Climate Risk Index 2021, released on 25 January by Bonn (Germany) based environmental think tank, Germanwatch.
- Mozambique and Zimbabwe are ranked first and second place, respectively, in the Global Climate Risk Index 2021. Afghanistan is ranked sixth.
- In terms of fatalities in 2019 and losses in million US dollars, India is ranked first. Puerto Rico is ranked first in the list of ten most affected countries from 2000-2019.
- As per the report, India witnessed monsoon conditions for a month longer than usual. The report says that a total of eight tropical cyclones occurred in 2019 during the Northern Indian Ocean cyclone season.
- Out of the eight cyclones, six became very severe. Cyclone Fani in May 2019 was the worst cyclone.
- Global Climate Adaptation Summit (CAS) 2021 was held online on 25 and 26 January. The Netherlands hosted it.
- Global Climate Risk Index 2021 is the 16th edition of the annual Global Climate Risk Index. It is released annually by Bonn (Germany) based environmental think tank, Germanwatch.
(Source: News on AIR)
Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings
3. World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda Summit to be addressed by PM Modi.
- PM Modi will address the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda Summit.
- WEF’s Davos Agenda Summit is being organized on 25-29 January 2021. WEF’s Davos Agenda will be a sign of the launch of the Great Reset Initiative of World Economic Forum.
- During the summit, architect Sir David Adjaye and photographer Sebastião Salgado won 27th annual Crystal Award.
- WEF founder Klaus Schwab’s latest book titled ‘Stakeholder Capitalism: A Global Economy that Works for Progress, People and Planet’ was released.
- The report, ‘Upskilling for Shared Prosperity’ was released during the online summit. WEF’s annual meeting will be held in May in Singapore.
- World Economic Forum (WEF):
- It was founded in January 1971 by Klaus Schwab.
- It is headquartered in Cologny, Switzerland.
- Its motto is “committed to improving the state of the world”.
Topic: International News
4. Indian Defence Minister and National Security Adviser speaks to their American counterpart.
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh spoke to US Defence Secretary Lloyd J Austin.
- National Security Adviser Ajit Doval talks to US counterpart Jake Sullivan. He congratulated him on his appointment as National Security Advisor of the US.
- Both leaders have discussed various issues, including terrorism, maritime security, cybersecurity, etc.
- Both countries have agreed upon working together on common strategic and security interests.
- Lloyd Austin is appointed as United States Secretary of Defense.
- National Security Adviser (India):
- It is an executive agency responsible for advising the Prime Minister on national security policy and international affairs matters.
- He is equivalent to the rank of Union Cabinet Minister.
India – US Relationship |
Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) signed in 2020 |
COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement) signed in 2018 |
|
Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) signed in 2016 |
|
Becomes “Major Defence Partner” in 2016 |
(Source: News on AIR)
Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives
5. Union IT and Communications Minister will launch virtual intelligence tool Tejas and ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal.
- Union IT and Communications Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will launch virtual intelligence tool Tejas and ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal. He will launch it on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of National Informatics Centre Services Inc (NICSI).
- He will also launch ‘e-Auction India’ for conducting online auction by the government organizations.
- Tejas: It is a virtual intelligence tool, which will convert critical data into important information. It will help policy decisions and improve the efficiency of government services.
- ‘Work from Anywhere’ portal: It will help government employees to access applications like e-office, calendar, mail, and other departmental applications. It will also help in departmental communications.
- National Informatics Centre Services Inc (NICSI):
- It was established in 1995.
- It is a company under the National Informatics Centre.
- It is responsible for providing and procuring IT solutions for multiple e-governance projects.
Topic: MoUs/Agreements
6. India inked an agreement with International Energy Agency for global energy security.
- India has signed a strategic partnership agreement with the International Energy Agency (IEA) for cooperation on global energy security, stability and sustainability on 27 January 2021.
- The partnership will build mutual trust and will also help in the exchange of knowledge in the field of energy.
- This agreement has been signed by Power Secretary Sanjiv Nandan Sahai and IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol.
- The IEA Secretariat will be responsible for the implementation of the cooperative activities in India.
- International Energy Agency (IEA):
- It is an autonomous body within the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
- It recommends policies to enhance the security, affordability and sustainability of energy.
- It was established in 1974 and currently, it has 30 members.
- India is an associate member of the IEA.
- It releases the World Energy Outlook report
(Source: News on AIR)
Topic: International News
7. US will remain part of World Health Organisation.
- US President Joe Biden announced that the US would remain part of the World Health Organisation. India and other countries of the world have welcomed this decision.
- The United States will work together with other member countries in this fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The Post-COVID-19 world will be a more challenging era for the WHO. It needs to be more empowered to provide health care facilities in member countries.
- World Health Organization (WHO):
- It is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health.
- It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
- It was established on 7 April 1948.
- It is comprised of 194 members.
- Its current Director-General is Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Topic: State News/ Ladakh
8. Ladakh MP unfurled national flag at highest location.
- Ladakh MP Jamayang Tsering Namgyal unfurled the National Flag at an altitude of 15000ft (4571mtr) on Stongday Top. It has been unfurled on the occasion of 72nd Republic Day.
- Stongday is located in Zanskar Sub Division in Kargil.
- He has set a record of unfurling the National Flag at the highest altitude and the lowest temperature of -35 degrees Celsius.
- The main attraction of the location is the snow sculptured National Emblem.
- At present, the country’s tallest flag is hoisted at the Attari border at the height of 360 feet.
- Indian National flag:
- It has strips of saffron, white and green colour with Ashoka Chakra (24 spoke wheel) in the center.
- The ratio of length to breadth of the National flag should be 3:2.
- The first national flag in India was hoisted on 7 August 1906 in the Parsee Bagan Square (Green Park) in Kolkata.
- It was designed by Pingali Venkayya.
(Source: News on AIR)
Topic: State News/ Madhya Pradesh
9. Madhya Pradesh Government launched ‘PANKH Abhiyan’ on the occasion of National Girl Child Day.
- Madhya Pradesh CM has launched the ‘PANKH Abhiyan’ to empower the girl child on the occasion of National Girl Child Day.
- It has been launched under the ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’ scheme.
- The CM has also announced scholarships under Ladli Laxmi Yojana.
- PANKH Abhiyan:
- P stands for protection, A for awareness of their rights, N for nutrition, K for knowledge and H for health.
- It has been launched for one year.
- Ladli Laxmi Yojana:
- It was launched by the Madhya Pradesh government in 2007.
- It aims to improve the sex ratio, education and health status of girl children.
- It provides financial assistance for the educational and marriage expenses of girls.
Topic: Agriculture
10. CCEA approved increase in Minimum Support Price (MSP) of copra.
- Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved an increase in Minimum Support Price (MSP) of copra.
- MSP of copra has been kept at Rs 10,335 per quintal for the 2021 season. It is an increase of Rs 375 over 2020 rates.
- Minimum Support Price (MSP) is made available for 23 crops on the basis of recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP). The names of 23 crops are given below.
Cereals |
Pulses |
Oilseeds |
Commercial crops |
Paddy, wheat, maize, bajra, jowar, ragi and barley |
Chana, arhar/tur, urad, moong and masur |
Rapeseed-mustard, groundnut, soyabean, sunflower, sesamum, safflower and nigerseed |
Cotton, sugarcane, copra, raw jute |
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