Daily Current Affairs and GK | 29 January 2021

Topic: Personality in News

1. Lala Lajpat Rai’s birth anniversary celebrated across the nation.

• The nation celebrated the birth anniversary of Lala Lajpat Rai on 28 January.
• He is remembered for his contribution to the freedom struggle of India.
• Lala Lajpat Rai:
  • He was born on 28 January 1865 in Punjab.
  • He is popularly known as Punjab Kesari and he was one of the trios of Lal-Bal-Pal.
  • He founded the Dayanand Anglo-Vedic School in Lahore.
  • He also founded the ‘Servants of the People Society’ at Lahore in 1921.
  • He had founded Punjab National Bank and Laxmi Insurance Company.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

2. Indian Railways set a record of running 3.5 km long freight train ‘Vasuki’.

• Indian Railway has achieved a new milestone by running a 3.5 km long freight train, ‘Vasuki’. It has set a new record of running the longest freight train.
• The train started the journey from Bhilai and reached Korba railway station in seven hours. This train has been operated by the South Eastern Central Railway zone.
• ‘Vasuki’ train is made up of five rakes of the goods train. It comprises of five engines and 295 rakes.
• It will reduce the cost and time for the transportation of goods.
• Earlier, the Indian Railways had done a trial of the Shesh-Naag train between Nagpur to Bilaspur. It was made up of 251 rakes. 

Topic: National News

3. Beating retreat ceremony 2021 held at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi.

• The beating retreat ceremony 2021 was held at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi.
• Beating retreat ceremony is held every year. The beating retreat ceremony is a sign of the end stage of Republic Day celebrations.
• As per Defence Ministry, the theme of the beating retreat ceremony in 2021 will be Indian tunes.
• Massed Band with Swarnim Vijay theme was entry band for Beating retreat ceremony 2021. It commemorated 50 years of India’s victory in 1971 war against Pakistan.
• Other bands followed massed Band with Swarnim Vijay theme and the ceremony ended with the popular tune of Sare Jahan se Acha.
• 15 Military Bands and 15 Pipes and Drums Bands from Regimental Centres and Battalions are taking part in the beating retreat ceremony in 2021.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: International News

4. Fifth joint meeting of India-Japan Act East Forum held in New Delhi on 28 January.

• Fifth joint meeting of India-Japan Act East Forum was held in New Delhi on 28 January.
• Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and Ambassador of Japan to India co-chaired the meeting.
• During the meeting, the progress of ongoing projects in North Eastern Region of India was reviewed.
• Various ongoing new projects under India-Japan bilateral cooperation were also discussed.
• India-Japan Act East Forum was established in 2017. Its first joint meeting was held in December 2017.
• It serves as a platform for collaboration between India and Japan in the North Eastern Region under the Act East Policy of India and Free and Open Indo-Pacific vision of Japan.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Environment and Ecology

5. Marine Mega Fauna Stranding Guidelines and National Marine Turtle Action Plan released by government.

• Marine Mega Fauna Stranding Guidelines and National Marine Turtle Action Plan have been released by government.
• During the virtual launch event, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar mentioned India’s vast coastline of over 7,500 km.
• India’s coastline is 7,516.6 km. This includes coastline of Lakshadweep Islands and Andaman & Nicobar Islands. India’s land frontier is nearly 15,200 km.
• While talking about India’s biodiversity, Union Environment Minister mentioned big mammals like whales, dolphins and dugongs.
• National Marine Turtle Action Plan provides ways and means of conservation of turtles.
• Turtles:
  • Turtles are reptiles with bony or cartilaginous shell. They are cold-blooded.
  • They are protected under Schedule I of Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. Olive Ridley Turtles, green sea turtles, leathery turtle and eastern mud turtle are types of turtles found in India. 

(News on AIR)

Topic: Environment and Ecology

6. Indo-French Year of the Environment launched in New Delhi on 28 January.

• Indo-French Year of the Environment has been launched by Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar and French Minister for Ecological Transition in New Delhi on 28 January.
• Union Environment Minister said that 26% of emission intensity reduction has been achieved.
• He said that India’s renewable energy capacity currently is 90 GW. It includes 36 GW of solar energy and 38 GW of wind energy.
• Union Environment Minister also said that partnership between India and France towards global environment protection will be an example for the rest of the world.
• There will be five main themes of Indo-French Year of the Environment 2021-2022 as given below.

Topic: Important Days

7. Qutub Minar will be one of the fifty landmarks to be lit up on second annual World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day on 30 January.

• Qutub Minar will be one of the fifty landmarks to be lit up on second annual World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day on 30 January.
• On World NTD day 2021, fifty landmarks representing 25 nations across the world will be lit up.
• NTDs affect one in five people around the world. India has world’s largest absolute burden of at least 11 of major NTDs.

• Qutub Minar in New Delhi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Qutb-ud-din Aibak began its construction and Iltutmish finished its construction. It is the highest tower in India. It was built in 13^th century.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: Important Days

8. Data Privacy Day: 28 January

• Data Privacy Day is celebrated every year on 28 January to raise awareness about the protection of personal data and privacy.
• It is celebrated to mark the anniversary of the “Convention 108”, which was signed on 28 January 1981. It is the first legally binding treaty for data privacy and protection.
• The Council of Europe had started celebrating the Data Protection Day from 2006. Now, it is celebrated globally as Data Privacy Day.
• The main objective of this day is to spread awareness among businesses and users about the ways to protect personal information.
• The theme for Data Privacy Day 2021 is “Own Your Privacy”.

Topic: Committees/ Commissions/Taskforces

9. Nandita Hazarika joined SC committee on elephant corridor case.

• Supreme Court has appointed Nandita Hazarika as a member of the Technical Committee established for the implementation of the ‘elephant corridor’.
• The committee will hear the complaints of land owners against the action taken by the Collector for the implementation of ‘elephant corridor’ in the Nilgiri district. 
• In 2018, the Supreme Court had directed the Tamil Nadu government to close the resort and hotels on the elephant corridor.
• The elephant corridor is situated in the Sigur Plateau of Nilgiri District. It connects the Western and the Eastern Ghats. The elephants cross Singur plateau in search of food and water.
• Elephant corridors are narrow strips of land that connect two large habitats of elephants.
• Asiatic Elephant:
  • Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve has around 6,300 elephants.
  • It is listed as “endangered” in IUCN Red List.
  • Karnataka has the highest number of elephants.
  • India has about 101 elephant corridors.

Topic: Important Days

10. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs celebrated International Customs Day on 26 January.

• International Customs Day is observed every year on 26 January to highlight the contribution of customs officials and agencies.
• The theme of the International Customs Day 2021 is “Customs bolstering Recovery, Renewal and Resilience for a sustainable supply chain”.
• In India, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has celebrated this day by giving World Customs Organisation Certificate of Merit Award.
• CBIC has taken many steps for the Faceless, Contactless and Paperless Customs clearance processes.
• Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC):
  • It was established on 1 January 1964. It is headquartered in New Delhi. It is headed by Muttoli Ajit Kumar (M. Ajit Kumar).
  • It is a part of the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance.
  • After GST, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) has been renamed as Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs.
  • It formulates and implements policies for Central GST, Central Excise Duty and Custom/Import Duty.

Topic: Corporates/Companies

11. Reliance Jio becomes the fifth strongest brand globally.

• Reliance Jio has been ranked fifth in “Brand Finance Global 500 ranking 2021” of the strongest brands. It has got a score of 91.7 and an AAA+ brand strength rating.
• Jio is the largest mobile network operator in India and the third-largest mobile network operator in the world.
• Chinese mobile app WeChat is on the top position while Ferrari (93.9) is on the second position of this list. Sberbank and Coca-Cola are on the third and fourth position respectively.
• Brand Finance is an independent branded business valuation consultancy.
• Reliance Jio:
  • It was founded in 2016.
  • It is an Indian telecommunications company and a subsidiary of Jio Platforms.
  • Its headquarters is located in Mumbai.
  • Mukesh Ambani is the Chairman of Reliance Jio.