Daily Current Affairs and GK | 7 December 2022

Topic: Reports and Indices/Ranking

1. ILO released Global Wage Report 2022-23.

• This ILO flagship report has provided clear picture of wage trends globally and by region.
• This edition of the Global Wage Report has shown that wages and the purchasing power of households have decreased in the last three years.
• First the COVID-19 pandemic then the global rise in inflation has dented the purchasing power of households.
• The rise in the cost of living that began in 2021 and has intensified rapidly during 2022.
• In Asia and the Pacific, real wage growth had slowed down to 1.0 per cent in 2020, but it has increased to 3.5 per cent in 2021.
• In the European Union, real wage growth was slowed to 0.4 per cent in 2020 but increased to 1.3 per cent in 2021.
• Among G-20 countries, average real wage growth slowed from 3.4 per cent in 2019 to 2.4 per cent in 2020. It rebounded to 4.5 per cent in 2021.
• Monthly wage inequality has increased in 10 out of 22 countries.
• The gender pay gap has increased in 9 countries and decreased in 13 countries, among 22 countries.
• Productivity growth is a key factor for achieving real wage growth. For 52 high-income countries, real wage growth has been lower than productivity growth since 2000.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

2. Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched the creation of an integrated "Agriculture Investment Portal".

• He launched creation of portal by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare during the meeting with Co-Chairperson of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ms. Melinda French Gates.
• He said “Krishi Nivesh Portal” (Agriculture Investment Portal) will be a centralized one-stop portal for agri-investors to get benefits of various government schemes related to agriculture and allied sectors.
• Government has increased the budget for the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare from Rs 21933.50 crore (2013-14) to Rs 124000 crore (2022-23). This is a 465% increase.
• Rs 8513.62 crore have been allocated during 2022-23 to the Department of Agricultural Research and Education for development of several new high yielding, biotic/ abiotic stress tolerant, varieties of seed, etc.
• Union Minister said that government has allocated over Rs 1.5 lakh crore for agriculture and allied sectors under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.

Topic: Personality in News

3. Yoginder K. Alagh passed away recently.

• He was a noted agricultural economist and former Union Minister.
• He is known for his “inclusive approach to development”.
• He was the chairperson of Institute of Rural Management Anand from 2006-2012.
• He served as the Vice-Chancellor of the Jawahar Lal Nehru University from 1992 to 1996.
• At the university, he raised non-government funding from zero to 25% and pushed the university towards globalization.
• He re-organised Indian planning on an agro-climactic basis as the Chairman of Agricultural Prices Commission during 1982-1983.
• He also chaired the Expert Group on Cauvery Dispute.

Topic: Indian Polity

4. Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah will introduce the Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2022 in Lok Sabha.

• The bill seeks to amend the Multi-State Co-operative societies Act 2002.
• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will introduce Anti-Maritime Piracy Bill, 2019 for consideration and passing.
• It seeks to make special provisions for repression of piracy on high seas and to provide for punishment for the offence of piracy.
• Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav will move the Wildlife Protection Bill, 2022 in Rajya Sabha.
• This bill seeks to amend Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. It has already been passed by the Lok Sabha.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

5. Virtual Drone E-learning platform has been inaugurated at Agni College of Technology.

• On 6 December, the Virtual Drone E-learning platform inaugurated by Information and Broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur at Agni College of Technology at Chengalpet near Chennai.
• The Minister flagged off the Drone Yatra as well.
• Shri Thakur said that drone technology is necessary for defence, agriculture, horticulture, cinema and can be a substitute for many sectors.
• The Minister stated that Garuda Aerospace Technology in Chengalpet District will train at least one lakh drone pilots under the Make in India scheme in two years.
• India is making significant progress towards cutting edge developments in drone technology.
• The drone technology can be used to stop illegal mining and can make a huge impact on agriculture.

Topic: Important Days

6. India and Bangladesh celebrated “Maitri Divas” on December 6.

• On 6 December, the 51st anniversary of ‘Maitri Diwas’ marking the recognition given by India to Bangladesh in 1971 was celebrated in Dhaka.
• Freedom fighters, parliamentarians, civil society members, media, dignitaries and other prominent people participated in the event organized by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.
• Bangladesh Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammal Haque was the chief guest on the occasion.
• The decision to celebrate 6th December as ‘Maitri Diwas’ was taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during Prime Minister Modi's state visit to Bangladesh in March 2021.
• It is the day on which India recognized Bangladesh as the new country in 1971.
• India was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic ties with Bangladesh.
• Maitri Divas is observed to strengthen the ties between India and Bangladesh.

Topic: Defence

7. 7^th edition of Exercise Sangam commenced from 01 December 2022 at Goa.

• Exercise Sangam is a joint Naval Special Forces exercise between Indian Navy MARCOs and US Navy SEALs. It was first conducted in 1994. 
• In 7th edition, personnel from SEAL Team Five based at San Diego, USA and Indian Navy MARCOs from INS Abhimanyu are participating.
• The exercise is planned for a duration of three weeks. It aims at exchange of ideas and experiences on various aspects of Maritime Special Operations.
• The Marine Commandos, abbreviated to MARCOS and officially known as the Marine Commando Force, are the Special Operations Forces unit of the Indian Navy.
• The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the primary special operations force of U.S. Navy.

Topic: Geography

8. A low pressure area over south Andaman Sea intensified into a cyclonic storm Mandous on 6 December 2022.

• It is likely to move towards north Tamil Nadu-Puducherry and South Andhra Pradesh by 8 December 2022.
• Indian Meteorological Department has forecast light to moderate rainfall in parts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal area.
• The moderate rainfall may intensify into heavy rainfall.
• The cyclone will be called Mandous. The name Mandous has been suggested by United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• Mandous means a treasure box in the Arabic language.
• Cyclone:
  • The term cyclone refers to a weather condition in which a very low-pressure system is formed and very high-speed winds revolve around it.  
  • The calm area in the centre of cyclone is called the eye.

Topic: National News

9. ‘Technotex 2023’ will be held in Mumbai from 22-24 February, 2023.

• ‘Technotex 2023’ is an opportunity for startup entrepreneurs in the textile sector to get connected with the leaders of the Industry.
• It will be the largest event of technical textile industry in India and is focussed on networking opportunities for CEOs, manufacturers, purchase managers, and suppliers.
• The event will be organized by the Ministry of Textiles in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce Industry under the National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM).
• The Union Minister of State for Textiles, Darshana Jardosh, addressed the curtain raiser event for Technotex 2023.
• The curtain raiser event was organized to give a brief about the event to Foreign Missions in India, Media Houses, and the leading technical textile industry.
• Note:
  • India is one of the world's largest producers of Textiles and Apparel.
  • The textile industry is the second-largest employment generating sector in India.
  • India’s exports of textiles and apparel are expected to reach $100 bn in the next 5 years.

Topic: State News/ Uttar Pradesh

10. UP government presented supplementary budget of about Rs 34,000 crore for 2022-23.

• Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna proposed the demands for a supplementary grant of Rs 33,769 crore.
• It includes revenue account of Rs 13,756 crore and capital account of Rs 20,012 crore.
• The government proposed Rs 200 crore for the Pradhan Mantri Gatishakti Yojana and Rs 100 crore for start-ups and incubators.
• The government has allocated Rs 5 crore for the establishment of a music college at Hariharpur in Azamgarh.
• Rs 2,000 crore has been allocated for the widening and strengthening of roads, and Rs 300 crore for the distribution of free tablets and smartphones to youths.
• The government made the highest allocation of Rs 8,000 crore for developing private industrial parks and hubs.
• The government has allocated Rs 899 crore for the Smart City project.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

11. India hosted first India-Central Asia meeting of National Security Advisors.

• The first India-Central Asia meeting of the National Security Advisors (NSAs) was held in New Delhi.
• Top security officials of Central Asian countries including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan participated in the conclave.
• NSA of India Ajit Doval said that connectivity with Central Asian countries is India’s key priority. Also, he said that countering terror financing should be priority for all.
• He also said that the security situation in Afghanistan is an important concern for all.
• The top security officials agreed to India’s proposal to include the Chabahar port within the framework of INSTC.
• National Security Advisor (NSA) is the senior official on the National Security Council of India. He is the chief advisor to the PM on national security policy and international matters. He has the same rank as that of a Union cabinet minister.

Topic: Indian Economy

12. World Bank raised India’s GDP growth forecast from 6.5% to 6.9% for FY 2022-23.

• World Bank predicted that Indian economy will grow at 6.9%.
• It said that despite the challenging external environment, India has shown resilience and is expected to achieve strong GDP growth.
• India will remain one of the fastest growing major economies due to strong domestic demand.
• World Bank said that Indian economy is relatively less affected from global spillovers (global slowdown) as it has a large domestic market and is comparatively less exposed to international trade flows.  
• It expects inflation at 7.1% in current fiscal year.
• For the next fiscal year, it slashed the growth rate from 7% to 6.6%.

Topic: Sports

13. 11^th edition of Admiral’s Cup Sailing Regatta started in Kerala.

• It will end on 10^th December 2022 and is being hosted by Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala.
• The races will be conducted in Ettikulam Bay.
• It is organised as a fleet race in a single crew Olympic class Laser radial sailboat.
• Teams from 27 countries like Australia, Germany, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the UK, the USA, Japan, and Myanmar are participating in the annual sailing event. 
• Admiral’s Cup Sailing Regatta was established in 2010 under the burgee of Yachting Association of India.
• The last Admiral's Cup was conducted from 8-14 Dec 2019.

Topic: Personality in News

14. Author of “City of Joy” Dominique Lapierre passed away.

• Renowned French author Dominique Lapierre passed away at the age of 91.
• He was born in 1931. He wrote the famous book “Is Paris Burning?”
• His 1985 novel “City of Joy” was about the hardships of a rickshaw puller in Kolkata.
• He also wrote books like O Jerusalem, Five Past Midnight in Bhopal.
• He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008.