JANUARY – 2020 JNANAGANGOTHRI Monthly Current Affairs E-Magazine
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Sl.No SUBJECT Pg Nos.
1 STATE 03
2 NATIONAL 06
3 INTERNATIONAL 41
4 SPORTS 51
5 SPECIAL DAYS 52
6 OBITUARY 55
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State 1. 107
th Indian Science Congress
Host by: The University of Agricultural
Sciences
Location: Bengaluru
Inauguration by: Prime Minister
NarendraModi
Theme: science and technology, rural
development‘.
Indian Science Congress Association
(ISCA): is a premier scientific organisation of
India with headquarters at Kolkata, West
Bengal. The association started in the year
1914 in Kolkata and it meets annually in the
first week of January. It has a membership of
more than 30,000 scientists.
2. Sunil Puranik is chairman of Karnataka
Film Academy
The State government appointed director,
producer and actor Sunil Puranik as chairman
of the Karnataka Film Academy. Mr. Puranik
has acted in over 25 films, including Kannada,
Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam, and in TV
serials. He is recipient of the Karnataka
Rajyotsava and Kempegowda awards.
3. ISRO-NITK jointly set up Regional
Academic Centre for Space
Location: National Institute of Technology
(NITK), Surathkal, Karnataka
The centre at NITK is the fourth regional
academic centre for related research and
development in India. The other centers are in
Malaviya National Institute of Technology,
Jaipur; Gauhati University; and in Kurukshetra
University.
MOU: Between National Institute of
Technology Karnataka (NITK)Indian Space
Research Organization (ISRO)to carry out
advanced joint research and development
activities in the area of space technology
applications
Benefit: The center will act as a facilitator for
the promotion of space technology activities in
the southern region comprising Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu,
Puducherry, Kerala and Lakshadweep.
4. Karnataka Nataka Academy announces
new list of awardees
The Lifetime achievement award announced to
senior actor, G.V. Sharada. It also announced
annual theatre awards to 25 artists.
The prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award
carry a cash prize of Rs. 50,000 while the
Nataka Academy Awards carry Rs. 25,000
each, the Charity Awards carry Rs.5,000 each.
President of the academy: Bhimsen
5. Challakere to be ISRO‟s astronaut training
hub
About: India‘s world-class facility for training
astronauts will be established at Challakere,
Chitradurga district of Karnataka.
ISRO Chairman: K. Sivan
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Training hub: Everything connected with
events and planning of the HSP [Human
Spaceflight Programme] will shift to campus
at Challakere. To establish a self-contained
facility there so that in future, whatever
training and activities doing in Russia for the
Gaganyaan crew can all be done by ISRO in
new training hub.
Gaganyaan mission: The first set of four
astronaut candidates for the first Gaganyaan
mission of 2022 are to train in Russia.
Science City: Challakereis also where premier
scientific establishments have set up adjoining
and interactive campuses on some 10,000
acres. Called the Science City, it houses
facilities of the ISRO, the Defense Research &
Development Organization‘s Advanced
Aeronautical Test Range, the Bhabha Atomic
Research Centre and the Indian Institute of
Science
6. Karnataka High Court sees highest number
of judges at 43
This is the highest number of judges the High
Court has ever had though the court‘s present
total sanctioned strength of the judges is 62.
The newly appointed judges are
MaralurIndrakumarArun,
Engalaguppe Seetharamaiah Indiresh, and
Ravi Venkappa Hosmani.
7. Karnataka State Film Awards 2018
A total of 31 film award winners were
declared, with RaghavendraRajkumar (for his
role in Ammana Mane) and Meghana Raj
honoured (for her role in IruvudellawaBittu)
honored in the Best Actor and Best Actress
categories in the Karnataka State Film Awards
2018.
List of winners: Best Actor: RaghavendraRajkumar
Best Actress: Meghana Raj honoured
Best Film: AaKaralaRatri
Rajkumar Award: Srinivas Murthy
PuttannaKanagal Award: P Sheshadri
Vishnuvardhan Award: BS Basavaraju
Best Director: DayalPadmanabhan
8. Karnataka ranks sixth in India Justice
Report 2019
Report by: Daksh, a city-based organisation
working on research in judiciary, a partner
with Tata Trusts
Parameters: evaluates justice delivery as a
function of performance of four pillars —
police, prisons, judiciary, and access to legal
aid over the last five years.
Karnataka ranks: overall ranking to six,
among 18 large and medium States, Third in
prisons and sixth in police. But it ranks 16th in
judiciary and seventh in legal aid
Top rankings: Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil
Nadu, Punjab, and Haryana rank ahead of the
State in that order.
9. An Industry Meet ahead of „Wings India
2020‟ starts in Bengaluru
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About: Indian aviation and technology leaders
gathered in Bengaluru for industry meet ahead
of ―Wings India 2020‖, Asia‘s largest civil
aviation event. Ministry of Civil Aviation: Pradeep Singh
Kharola Wings India 2020:A flagship event of the
Indian Civil Aviation industry will be held at
Begumpet Airport, Hyderabad from 12-15
March 2020. ‗Wings India 2020‘- a four-day event themed:
―Flying for All‘‘ is an international platform
focused on the new business acquisition,
investments, policy formation and regional
connectivity in the civil aviation industry. Aim: This summit aims to bring all players,
facilitators, and regulators of aviation
fraternity under one roof to explore
opportunities together. It‘s a platform for all
civil aviation sector stakeholders to achieve
greater synergies; learn from best practices of
each other.
10. Nadoja Manu Baligar conferred the
National Poet Kuvempu Award
RashtaKayi Kuvempu Award (25 thousand
cash) was presented to Kannada
SahityaParishad President Manu Baligar at
Kuvempu's 116th Jayanti, Kuvempu Cultural
Festival, organized by the Vivekanam
Rashtriya Kuvimpu Kalanichetana Institute at
Ravindra Kalakshetra in Bangalore.
11. Bengaluru's YashAradhya first motorsports
person to get PM RashtriyaBalPuraskar
YashAradhyareceived the award in a grand
ceremony held at the RashtrapatiBhavanfrom
President Ram NathKovind. The 17-year-old
has been scorching race tracks since the age of
nine. He has 13 championship wins including
over 65 podium finishes and 12 awards to his
credit. The PradhanMantriRashtriyaBalPuruskar:
is India's highest civilian honour bestowed
upon exceptional students from various fields
under the age of 18.
12. Nadoja Manu Baligar conferred the
National Poet Kuvempu Award
RashtaKayiKuvempuAward (25 thousand
cash) was presented to Kannada
SahityaParishad President Manu Baligar at
Kuvempu's 116th Jayanti, Kuvempu Cultural
Festival, organized by the Vivekanam
Rashtriya Kuvimpu Kalanichetana Institute at
RavindraKalakshetra in Bangalore.
13. Honorary Degree of Doctor of Science to
Dr.Prabhakar Kore
About: In recognition of his efforts to establish
and foster the collaboration, Thomas Jefferson
University (TJU), Philadelphia USA has decided
to present Dr. Prabhakar Kore an Honorary
Doctorate.
14. Bendre award for S.L. Bhyrappa
Da. Ra. Bendre National Memorial Trust,
Dharwad, has chosen writer S.L. Bhyrappa for
this year‘s ‗Ambikatanayadatta National
Award‘ (purse of ₹1 lakh).
Other awards won by S.L. Bhyrappa
Padma Shri award, 2016
Sahitya Akademi Fellowship, 2015
Saraswati Samman for his novel Mandra,2011
Sahitya Akademi Award, 1975
15. Karnataka Mini Olympicsin the U-14 age-
group
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Conducted by: the Department of Youth
Empowerment and Sports, Govt. of Karnataka;
the Sports Authority of Karnataka (SAK); and
the Karnataka Olympic Association (KOA)
Minister for Youth Empowerment and
Sports, Rural Development and Panchayati
Raj: K.S. Eshwarappa
About: The Karnataka Mini Olympic Games,
the first event of its sort in the country, a
week-long multi-sport event featuring 18
disciplines, will get under way at various
venues in the city from February
16. Kageri in 3-member panel to review
Speakers' powers
About: Karnataka Speaker
VishweshwarHegdeKageri has been drafted
into a three-member committee to review the
powers of presiding officers under the 10th
Schedule of the Constitution (anti-defection
law).
Other members: The committee is headed by
Rajasthan Speaker C P Joshi and Odisha
Speaker Surjya Narayan Patro is the other
member.
The committee was appointed in the wake of
debates surrounding the anti-defection law and
powers of the Speaker to adjudicate, which
came to fore after 17 legislators of the
Congress-JD(S) resigned, last year.
National 1. Entire Nagaland declared „disturbed area‟
for six more months
The entire state of Nagaland has been declared
a disturbed area for a period of six more
months under the Armed Forces (Special
Powers) Act, AFSPA,
Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act
(AFSPA): 1958 is an act of the Parliament of
India that grants special powers to the Indian
Armed Forces the power to maintain public
order in ―disturbed areas‖. According to The
Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1976
once declared ‗disturbed‘, the area has to
maintain status quo for a minimum of 3
months.
2. Government launches web portal to block
stolen, lost mobile phones in Delhi
Minister for Communications, Law &
Justice and Electronics &IT: Ravi Shankar
Prasad
Web portal: Central Equipment Identity
Register (CEIR)
The web portal was first launched in Mumbai.
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Facilitate: request for blocking of stolen or
lost mobile phone by customers; blocking of
such mobile phones across mobile networks;
sharing of traceability data with the Police; and
unblocking of recovered/ found stolen or lost
mobile phones.
3. Indian Navy bans use of smartphones, social
media at naval bases, warships
About: The Indian Navy has banned navy
personnel from using social media and
smartphones at naval bases, dockyards and
onboard warships.
Reason: The stringent step has been taken by
the force after seven Navy personnel were
caught leaking sensitive information to enemy
intelligence agencies on social media.
4. Railways rename RPF as Indian Railway
Protection Force Service
The Railways has renamed its security force
RPF (Railway Protection Force) as Indian
Railway Protection Force Service.
The ministry has accorded organized Group A
status to RPF and renamed it.
5. Finance minister launches $102 trillion
National Infra Pipeline plan
Finance Minister: Nirmala Sitharaman
A task force for the purpose, set up under
economic affairs secretary Atanu Chakraborty
The projects will be spread across 21
ministries and 18 states and Union Territories.
While the Centre and states will contribute
39% each of the projects cost, private sectors
will contribute 22% of the cost. By 2025
expected the private sector contribution to rise
to 30%. Out of the projects included in the
pipeline, 43% are under implementation, 33%
are at conceptual stage and 19% are under
development. The projects belong to sectors
such as power, including renewable, railways,
urban development, irrigation, mobility,
education, health, water and digital sector.
6. 11-day long „Dhanu Jatra‟ begins at Bargarh
in Odisha
About: The Jatra is based on the mythological
story of Lord Krishna and his demon uncle
King Kansa. It is about the episode of Krishna
and Balaram's visit to Mathura to witness the
Dhanu ceremony organized by their (maternal)
uncle King Kansa.
DhanuJatra: is the annual drama-based open-
air theatrical performance celebrated in and
around Bargarh city is considered to be the
world‘s largest open-air theatrical festival that
finds a mention in the Guinness Book of
World Records.
7. ITBP DG SS Deswal gets additional charge
of CRPF
Former DG: RR Bhatnagar
Deswal, a 1984-batch Haryana cadre IPS
officer, will hold the CRPF charge ―till the
appointment and joining of the successor or
until further orders.
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF):
is India's largest Central Armed Police Force
and also considered to be World's largest
Paramilitary Force. It functions under the
authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs
(MHA) of the Government of India.
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It came into existence as the Crown
Representative's Police on 27 July 1939. After
Indian Independence, it became the Central
Reserve Police Force on enactment of the
CRPF Act on 28 December 1949.
8. Civil aviation minister launched CACS and
e-BCAS Project
Minister of State (I/C) for Civil Aviation:
Hardeep S Puri
Centralised Access Control System:the
CACS project is aimed to digitize the
employee movement process at the airports.
This multi-layered security system
encompasses the uniqueness of the Airport
Entry Permit (AEP) users, biometric
authentication in addition to PIN-based
identity verification through contactless smart
card technology.
e-BCAS: It is a Training Module Project
envisaged to achieve a ―paperless office‖
under e-Governance initiative of GoI. It‘s
aimed at facilitating external stakeholders to
access BCAS system by digital automation.
9. RBI launches mobile app for visually
challenged
Mobile app: MANI (Mobile Aided Note
Identifier)
Objective: To help visually challenged people
to identify denomination of currency notes.
Application which can also work offline once it
is installed. Through the downloaded app, users
can scan the notes using the camera. The audio
output will give the result in Hindi and English.
RBI Governor:Shaktikanta Das
10. ISRO to set up second launch port
Location: Thoothukodi district in Tamilnadu
Reason: exclusively to launch small satellite
launch vehicles.
ISRO Chairman: K Sivan
Navic: On the lines of GPS navigation system
developed by America, the Indian navigation
system called Navic with the indigenous
atomic clock will be operational with mobile
phone manufacturers coming forward to install
the regional navigation device.
11. India may overtake Germany to become
fourth-largest economy by 2026
Report by: UK-based Centre for Economics
and Business Research (CEBR)
Highlights:
India is expected to become the fourth largest
economy by 2026 and the third largest by
2034.
India is also set to reach a GDP of $5 trillion
by 2026 - 2 years later than the current
government target
India has decisively overtaken both France and
the UK to become the world's fifth-largest
economy in 2019.
World Economic League Table: Is an annual
calculation by CEBR jointly published by
CEBR and Global Construction Perspectives.
The base data for 2019 is taken from the IMF
World Economic Outlook.
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12. Kerala becomes first state to pass Anti-CAA
resolution
About: The Kerala Assembly passed a
resolution demanding scrapping of the
controversial Citizenship Amendment Act
(CAA), becoming the first state in the country
to do so.
Kerala CM: Pinarayi Vijayan
Citizenship amendment act: The Bill seeks
to grant Indian citizenship to illegal migrants
of Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, and Sikh, Parsiand
Christian communities coming from the
Muslim-majority South Asian countries of
Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. It also
seeks to relax the requirement of residence in
India from 11 years to 6 years for these
migrants.
13. SwachhSurvekshan League 2020
Result by: The Ministry of Housing and
Urban Affairs (MoHUA)
Highlight: Indore grabbed the title of India‘s
cleanest city for the fourth consecutive year.
Over 10 lakh population:
First quarter: Indore held the first position
followed by Bhopal and Surat.
Second quarter: Indore, Rajkot and Navi
Mumbai topped the charts.
1 Lakh to 10 Lakh Population:
First quarter: Jamshedpur from Jharkhand
stood first followed by New Delhi Municipal
Corporation (NDMC) and Chhattisgarh‘s
Bilaspur.
Second quarter: while Jamshedpur retained its
first position, second and third position was
replaced by Maharashtra‘s Chandrapur and
Madhya Pradesh‘s Khargone respectively.
Achievers among Cantonment Boards:
First quarter: St Thomas Mount Cantonment
stood first and Jhansi and Delhi Cantonment
held the second and third position respectively.
Second quarter: while Jhansi continued to
hold its second position, Delhi cantonment
moved up to the first place and Jalandhar
cantonment took over the third position.
Overall Ranking
First quarter, Indore, two of the cities of
Maharashtra – Junnar and Lonavala held the
second and third position respecetively.
Second quarter: Indore, Malkapur and
TalegaonDabhade from Maharashtra only
emerged as the second and third winner.
About SwachhSurvekshan League 2020
The SwachhSurvkeshan League 2020 was
launched by the MoHUA last year in June to
monitor and sustain the on-ground cleanliness
performance of cities across India. As part of
the SS league 2020, quarterly cleanliness
assessment of cities and towns in India was
conducted in three quarters – April to June,
July to September and October to December.
Each quarter carried a weightage of 2000
marks.
14. Sand delivery at doorstep in Andhra
Pradesh
About: The Andhra Pradesh Government is
planning to introduce door delivery of sand in
the New Year and as a pilot project it will first
be taken up in Krishna district and then
extended to other districts. The GPS will be
arranged for vehicles carrying sand and strict
steps will be taken to check smuggling of sand
to other states.
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Chief Minister: Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy.
15. Labour Ministry to launch 'Santusht' portal
'Santusht' portal: It helps for speedy
redressal of worker as well as employer
grievances and ensuring effective
implementation of labor laws at the grassroot
level
Initially, Santusht (Hindi for satisfied) would
monitor all services provided by retirement
fund body EPFO and health insurance and
services provider ESIC to formal sector
workers.
Workers and employers can lodge their
complaints on the portal, which would be
managed by an internal monitoring cell
comprising five to six officers.
16. G Babita Rayudu takes charge as Sebi's
executive director
Rayudu will handle legal affairs department,
enforcement department and special
enforcement cell.
17. Indian Railways integrate helpline numbers
into single number - 139
Indian Railways has integrated its helpline
numbers into a single number - 139 for quick
grievance redressal and enquiries by
passengers during their train journeys.
The new helpline number 139 will be available
in twelve languages. It will be based on an
Interactive Voice Response System; will take
over all the existing helpline numbers. It will
be easy for passengers to remember this
number and connect with Railways for all their
needs during train travel.
18. HRD Minister to inaugurate 28th edition of
World Book Fair
Union Minister for Human Resources
Development: Ramesh Pokhriyal
Organized by: National Book Trust
Theme: Gandhi:The Writers' Writer
Location: PragatiMaidan in New Delhi
Other features of the fair will include -- Theme
Pavilion, Authors' Corner, Seminars, Braille
Books, Children's Pavilion and Foreign
Countries' Pavilion.
19. KVIC opens first silk processing plant in
Gujarat
About: Khadi and Village Industries
Commission (KVIC) have opened its first Silk
processing plant in Surendranagar, Gujarat to
boost production of signature PatolaSaree,
while creating livelihoods for women.
PatolaSaree: the trademark Saree of Gujarat is
priced very high and is out of reach of
common women. The raw material is
purchased from Karnataka or West Bengal,
where silk processing units are situated. This
increases the cost of the fabric manifolds.
Chairman of KVIC: VK Saxena
20. Study in Gujarat‟ campaign launched
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Education department of Gujarat government
has launched ‗Study in Gujarat‘ campaign in
order to make Gujarat State an educational hub
at national and international level.
As a part of this campaign, a high level
delegation will hold road shows in western
Asian countries during 15th to 22nd January
2020.
22 private and government universities and 4
colleges are participating in ‗Study in Gujarat‘
campaign.
21. Maharashtra Govt launches „Cyber Safe
Women‟ initiative
Benefit: It will help in educating women about
how the web is used by anti-social elements
and child predators to commit various types of
crimes.
Chief Minister:Uddhav Thackeray
22. Forex reserves hit record high at $457.46 bn
About: The country‘s foreign exchange
reserves swelled by $ 2.520 billion to touch a
record high of $ 457.468 billion in the week to
December 27, according to RBI data.
The increase in reserves was mainly on
account of a gain in foreign currency assets,
major component of the overall reserves,
which surged by $ 2.203 billion to $ 424.936
billion.
Gold reserves: It was increased by $ 260
million to $ 27.392 billion. The country‘s
reserve position with the Fund, however,
increased by $ 58 million to $ 3.7 billion.
Special drawing rights: SDG with the
International Monetary Fund dipped by $ 2
million to $ 1.441 billion.
Forex reserves: are cash and other reserve
assets held by a central bank or other monetary
authority that are primarily available to
balance payments of the country, influence the
foreign exchange rate of its currency, and to
maintain confidence in financial markets.
Special drawing rights (SDR): refer to an
international type of monetary reserve
currency created by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) in 1969 that operates as a
supplement to the existing money reserves of
member countries.
Gold reserve: is the gold held by a national
central bank, intended mainly as a guarantee to
redeem promises to pay depositors, note
holders (e.g. paper money), or trading peers,
during the eras of the gold standard, and also
as a store of value, or to support the value of
the national currency.
23. Kochi to host global meet on marine
ecosystem
The third international symposium on marine
ecosystems – challenges and opportunities
(MECOS-3) in Central Marine Fisheries
Research Institute to be held inKochi, Kerala
from January 7 to 10
Organized by: the Marine Biological
Association of India
Focus: Discussions on a range of topics,
including the impact of the climate crisis on
marine ecosystems and an unusual warming of
the Arabian Sea and on the UN‘s sustainable
development goal-14 (life under water),
development of small-scale fisheries, recent
developments in aquaculture, eco-labelling and
green fishing technologies.
24. Javadekar to confer first „Antarrashtriya
Yoga Diwas Media Samman‟
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Information and Broadcasting
Minister:PrakashJavadekar
About: ‗Antarrashtriya Yoga Diwas Media
Samman‘ to 30 media houses Acknowledging
the positive role and responsibility of the
media in disseminating the outreach of Yoga
in India and abroad, the Ministry had instituted
the award in June last year to mark the
contribution of media in spreading the
message of Yoga.
Jury head: Justice C. K. Prasad, Chairman
(Press Council of India).
The International Yoga Day: 21 of June,
since 2015.
25. Turtle rehab center comes up in Bihar
About: A first-of-its-kind rehabilitation center
for freshwater turtles will be inaugurated in
Bihar‘s Bhagalpur forest division in January
2020. The rehab center, spread over half a
hectare, will be able to shelter 500 turtles at a
time.
Benefit: center will play a significant role in
treating injured and sick these animals and
their proper upkeep before being returned to
their natural habitat.
Indicators of healthy aquatic ecosystems:
the turtles play a significant role in the river by
scavenging dead organic materials and
diseased fish, controlling fish population as
predators and controlling aquatic plants and
weeds. They are also described as indicators of
healthy aquatic ecosystems.
26. ISRO signs a pact with the astrophysics
institute
MoU: To pave the way for collaboration in the
establishment of optical facilities under the
NETRA Project to track space objects.
NETRA project: an early warning system is
being established in space to detect debris and
other hazards that could pose a danger to
India's space assets, such as satellites and
experimental platforms. Like other space
powers, NETRA will give the country its own
capacity to know the spatial situation.
The Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA):
with its headquarters in Bangalore is a
National Research Institute of India. IIA
conducts research primarily in the areas of
astronomy, astrophysics and related subjects. It
is widely recognized as a leading research
center for astrophysics in India.
27. One-fifth of country‟s forests prone to fires:
study
Report by: Forest Survey of India (FSI)(study
carried from 2004 to 2017).
Findings:
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About 21.40 % of forest cover in India is
prone to fires.
The total numbers of alerts issued for each
state from November 2018 to June 2019 were
29,547.
Mizoram recorded the highest number of fire
alerts (2,795).
The seven States of the north-eastern region
accounted for 10,210 fire alerts.
Major reasons for forest fires in the north-east
are slash-and-burn cultivation, commonly
called jhoom or jhum cultivation.
The overall green cover has increased in the
country; the forest cover in the north-east
particularly in Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh
and Nagaland.
Central Indian States also recorded a high
number of forest fire alerts, with Madhya
Pradesh accounting for 2,723 alerts.
28. „Lai Haraoba‟ festival begins in Tripura
Lai Haraoba: A ritualistic festival observed
by Manipuri meitei communities since ancient
times, began in Agartala. The five day long
festival is jointly organized by Department of
Information and Cultural Affairs, Government
of Tripura.
29. Rajiv RaiBhatnagar appointed as Advisor
to J&K LG
Former Director General of Central Reserve
Police Force (CRPF) Rajiv RaiBhatnagar has
been appointed as Advisor to the Lieutenant
Governor of Union Territory of Jammu and
Kashmir.
With this, the Lieutenant Governor of J&K
Union Territory, Girish Chandra Murmu will
have three Advisors. The other two Advisors -
K K Sharma and Farooq Khan were appointed
on November 14, 2019.
30. Mizoram govt to organize ZoKutpui
About: The Mizoram government will be
organizing ZoKutpui (festival) in at least 10
states across India and countries such as US,
Myanmar and Bangladesh.
The move is an attempt to unify and strengthen
the brotherhood among various Mizo tribes
living in different parts of the world.
First edition: will start on January 9 in
Vanghmun in Tripura and will be held over
three days.
Chief Minister:Zoramthanga
31. CISF to observe 2020 as 'year of mobility'
Focus: It will emphasize on taking all
measures for welfare of troops and their
families, creating infrastructure and logistics
like housing, acquiring new land and procuring
modern equipment, training with focus on
physical fitness and sports and leveraging
modern gadgetry and technology on duty.
CISF Director General (DG): Rajesh Ranjan
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32. Commerce and industry minister
inaugurates NSE knowledge hub in New
Delhi
Commerce and Industry & Railways
Minister:Piyush Goyal
The NSE Knowledge Hub: will enhance
skills and help academic institutions in
preparing future-ready talent for the financial
service industry. It is also available on mobile
and attempts to bring together world class
content and learners through this state- of- the-
art and future- ready platform.
33. India's GDP growth rate for 2019-20
estimated at 5%,
Report by: National Statistical Office (NSO)
India's GDP growth is seen dipping to an 11-
year low of the growth in real GDP during
2019-20 is estimated at 5 per cent as compared
to 6.8 per cent in 2018-19, mainly due to poor
showing by manufacturing and construction
sectors, government.
The manufacturing sector output growth will
decelerate to 2 per cent in 2019-20, down from
6.9 per cent in the previous financial year.
GDP data released by the government in
November 2018, the previous low in economic
growth was recorded at 3.1 per cent in 2008-
09.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had also
lowered its forecast for the economic growth
to 5 per cent while announcing its bi-monthly
monetary policy last month.
The estimated growth of real GVA (Gross
Value Added) in 2019-20 is 4.9 per cent as
against 6.6 per cent in 2018-19.
As regards, mining and quarrying sector, the
GVA at basic prices for 2019-20 is estimated
to grow at 1.5 per cent as compared to 1.3 per
cent in 2018-19.
The per capita income at current prices is
estimated at Rs 1,35,050, showing a rise of 6.8
per cent, as compared to Rs 1,26,406 during
2018-19 with the growth rate of 10.0 per cent.
34. 31st International Kite Festival launched in
Ahmedabad
The 31st International Kite Festival has been
launched at Sabarmati river front in
Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
The International Kite Festival: Every year,
Gujarat celebrates The International Kite
Festival (Uttarayan) is regarded as one of the
biggest festivals celebrated.
The festival of Uttarayan marks the day when
winter begins to turn into summer, according
to the Indian calendar. It is the sign for farmers
that the sun is back and that harvest season is
approaching which is called MakaraSankranti.
Chief Minister: Vijay Rupani
35. 2019 7th warmest year recorded in country
since 1901
Report by: Indian Metrological department.
Key findings: 2019 was recorded as the seventh warmest
year since 1901, but the heating was
substantially lower than the highest warming
observed in 2016.
Bihar was the most adversely affected state
during the year, which reported about 650
lives due to heavy rain and floods, heat wave,
lightning, thunderstorm and hailstorm.
The five warmest years on record are 2016
(0.71 degree Celsius), 2009 (0.541 degree
Celsius), 2017 (0.539 degree Celsius), 2010
(0.54 degree Celsius) and 2015 (0.42 degree
Celsius).
11 out of 15 warmest years were during the
recent past fifteen years (2005-2019).
The average temperature over India during the
year 2019 was above normal. During the year,
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annual mean surface air temperature, averaged
over the country, was 0.36 degree Celsius
above (1981-2010 period) average.
The annual rainfall in 2019 over the country as
a whole was 109 per cent of its long period
average (LPA) value for the period 1961-2010.
Heavy rain and flood related incidents
reportedly claimed over 850 lives. Of these,
306 lives were reported from Bihar alone, 136
from Maharashtra, 107 from Uttar Pradesh, 88
from Kerala, 80 from Rajasthan and 43 from
Karnataka.
Heat-wave conditions, which claimed about
350 lives. Of these, 293 lives were reported
from the worst affected state of Bihar alone
during June and 44 lives were reported from
Maharashtra.
Lightning and thunderstorm reportedly
claimed over 380 lives. Of these, 125 lives
were reported from Jharkhand,73 from Bihar,
51 from Maharashtra and 24 each from
Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
36. HP CM launches My Gov portal, CM app
Highlight: Himachal Pradesh with the launch
of this app has become 11th State to have this
facility.
My Gov Himachal Portal and Chief
Minister App: A platform to build a partnership between
Citizens and Government with the help of
technology for growth and development of
India.
It will help people of the State to communicate
their views, suggestions, feedback as well
discontentment if any.
People would be able to get firsthand and
prompt information regarding various policies
and programmes of Government framed for
their welfare.
The general public can also give their valuable
suggestions for making the policies and
programmes more effective and result
oriented.
Himachal Chief Minister: Jai Ram Thakur
37. West Bengal Govt to provide insurance
coverage of Rs 5 lakh to Ganga Sagar
pilgrims
GangasagarMela: Pilgrims assemble at Sagar
Island to take a holy dip at the confluence of
the Hooghly River and the Bay of Bengal on
the occasion of MakarSankranti and offer
Pooja at the Kapil Muni temple.
Chief Minister:Mamata Banerjee
38. Kochi to host Global Investors Meet on 9-10
Jan
ASCEND 2020: Global Investors Meet will
held in Kochi, Kerala, 18 mega projects the
state government will highlight at the meet.
Projects: a Kochi-to-Palakkad integrated
manufacturing cluster, a defence park at
Ottapalam and an electronic hardware park in
Ernakulam district, fiberboard plant in
Perumbavoor and integrated solid waste
management systems at Thiruvananthapuram,
Thrissur and Malappuram.
39. Centre notifies new Wetland Conservation
Rules
New rule: which prohibit setting up or
expansion of industries and disposal of
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construction and demolition waste within the
wetlands.
A wetland or Ramsar sites:It is a land area
that is saturated with water, either permanently
or seasonally, and it takes on the
characteristics of a distinct ecosystem.
Ramsar sites in India: There are total 27
recognized Ramsar sites in India.The
Sunderban Reserve Forest, spread over 4,260
sq. km. with over 2,000 sq. km. of mangrove
forests and creeks, was declared a Ramsar Site
on 1 February 2019 making it the 27th Ramsar
site in India.
The Ramsar Convention:Is an international
treaty for the conservation and sustainable use
of wetlands. It is also known as the
Convention on Wetlands. It is named after the
city of Ramsar in Iran, where the Convention
was signed in 1971.
40. Cabinet approves agreement between India
and Mongolia
Chaired by: Prime Minister NarendraModi
Agreement: On Cooperation in the
Exploration and Uses of Outer Space for
Peaceful and Civilian Purposes.
Benefits: This Agreement would lead to
develop a joint activity in the field of
application of space technologies for the
benefit of humanity. Thus all sections and
regions of the country will get benefited.
41. Cabinet approves MoU between India and
United Kingdom
Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU):Between the Indian Railways and
Department for International Development
(Government of United Kingdom)
Reason: For Enabling Energy Self Sufficiency
for Indian Railways
42. Cabinet approves MoU between India and
Sweden on cooperation in Polar Science
MoU: between Ministry of Earth Sciences
(MoES), India and Ministry of Education and
Research, Sweden.
Benefits: The collaboration between India and
Sweden in polar science will enable sharing of
the expertise available with both Countries.
43. Gujarat to set up Vikram Sarabhai
Children Innovation Center in state
Gujarat Chief Minister:Vijay Rupani
Objective: To identify, nurture and promote
children‘s innovation in the state.
Children‟s Innovation Festival – CIF: has
been organized by Gujarat University Start-ups
and Entrepreneurship Council (GUSEC) - an
incubation centre set up by Gujarat University
in partnership with UNICEF. CIF initiative
was conceptualized to identify, nurture and
support children‘s innovations in the state.
44. The Pulses Conclave 2020
About: India Pulses and Grains Association
(IPGA), the nodal body for India's pulses trade
and industry announced that the fifth edition
'The Pulses Conclave'
Location: Amby Valley City in Lonavala,
Maharashtra.
Highlishts: IPGA expects close to 1500 trade
stakeholders from India and key pulses
exporting countries like the USA, Australia,
Canada, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Uganda,
Tanzania, Mozambique, Malawi, etc. to
participate in 'The Pulses Conclave 2020' (TPC
2020).
Agenda: As a part of its agenda, will not just
discuss increasing domestic production and
consumption but will also bring to fore other
areas of the trade like improving processing
efficiencies, increasing consumption, exports,
value addition, protein extraction, post-harvest
crop management, etc.
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45. Residential builder finance with buyer
guarantee scheme
About: State Bank of India has announced a
'residential builder finance with buyer
guarantee' (RBBG) scheme.
Aim: It aims at giving a push to residential
sales and improves homebuyers' confidence.
Focus: The scheme will focus on affordable
housing projects priced up to 2.50 crore rupees
in 10 cities initially
Under RBBG, the guarantee would be given
by the bank till the project gets the occupation
certificate (OC).
46. 3. Census India-2021 to begin on 1st April
Census India-2021 will begin on 1st of April
this year and will end on 30th of September.
Census India-2021 will be conducted through
a mobile phone application, moving away
from the traditional pen and paper.
Enumerators of the census will seek the
information of mobile number of the head of
the family, information related to toilets, TV,
Internet, vehicles owned, source of drinking
water besides asking other questions during
the house listing phase of the exercise.
47. India to host naval drill Milan 2020 in
March
Minister of State for Defense:ShripadNaik
Participation: which will witness the
participation of several countries,41 nations
from South Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa and
Europe that share defense cooperation with
India have been invited for the drill.
The areas of cooperation include capacity
building, marine domain awareness, training,
hydrography, technical assistance, operational
exercise.
48. Home Minister dedicates National Cyber
Crime Reporting Portal
Location: New Delhi
About: Home MinisterAmit Shah inaugurated
the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre
(I4C) and also dedicated National Cyber
Crime Reporting Portal to the nation.
The scheme to set up I4C was approved in
October 2018 at an estimated cost of around
416 crore rupees.
National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (www.cybercrime.gov.in): is a citizen-centric
initiative that will enable citizens to report
cyber-crimes online through the portal.
49. DPIIT launches paperless licensing process
About: The Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), has
launched paperless licensing process for road
tankers for transportation of petroleum.
Highlight: Moving towards digitization, the
process will include filing the applications
online. Applicants, at each stage of processing
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of the application, will be intimated via SMS
and email, whether discrepancy or grant of
license or approval.
DPIIT: is a central government department
under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
It is responsible for formulation and
implementation of promotional and
developmental measures for growth of the
industrial sector, keeping in view the national
priorities and socio-economic objectives.
The Department in its current form came into
being on 27 January 2019, when the erstwhile
Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion
was renamed to Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
50. Government releases State Energy
Efficiency Index 2019
Minister of State (Independent Charge)
Power and New & Renewable Energy: R K
Singh
Index by: Bureau of Energy Efficiency in
association with Alliance for an Energy
Efficient Economy.
Parameters: the rational comparison,
States/UTs are categorised into 4 groups based
on aggregated Total Primary Energy Supply
(TPES) required to meet the state‘s actual
energy demand (electricity, coal, oil, gas, etc.)
across sectors.
Progressive states/UTs: Under four
categories based on TPES, Haryana, Kerala,
Karnataka, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh,
Uttarakhand, Pondicherry and Chandigarh
have been evaluated as progressive states/UTs
in the State Energy Efficiency Index 2019.
51. 'AmmaVodi' Scheme About: The Andhra Pradesh government
launched the ‗AmmaVodi‘ scheme.
AmmaVodi: Mothers and guardians of school-
going children from lower income groups will
get financial assistance of Rs 15,000 annually
under the scheme.
Andhra Pradesh chief minister: YS Jagan
Mohan Reddy
52. I-T sets up control room with toll free
number
About: The Income-Tax Department has
launched a 24x7 control room to monitor black
money and illegal inducements in poll-bound
Delhi.
The facility will also host a toll-free number-
1800117574 - where people can inform the
department about any activity of use of money
power, illegal distribution of cash among other
such election-related crimes.
53. Naval variant of Light Combat Aircraft
makes its first successful landing
About: The naval version of indigenous Light
Combat Aircraft, LCA, made its first
successful landing on the aircraft carrier INS
Vikramaditya.
Developed by: Defense Research and
Development Organization, DRDO
Highlight: With the successful landing of
Light Combat Aircraft, LCA on aircraft carrier
INS Vikramaditya, India has entered into the
club of selected nations having the capability
to design a fighter jet which can land on an
aircraft carrier.
Light Combat Aircraft: LCA is the smallest
and lightest Multi-Role Supersonic Fighter
Aircraft of its class. The LCA programme
intends to further expand and advance India's
indigenous aerospace capabilities.
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INS Vikramaditya: is the Indian Navy‘s
largest short take-off, but assisted recovery
(STOBAR) aircraft carrier and warship
converted from the Russian Navy‘s
decommissioned Admiral Gorshkov vertical
take-off and landing (VTOL) missile cruiser
carrier. INS Vikramaditya was commissioned
into service in November 2013.
Defense Minister: Rajnath Singh
DRDO Chairman: Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy
54. 150th celebration of Kolkata Port Trust
About: Prime Minister Modi also dedicated a
Commemorative Stamp to mark 150 years of
Kolkata port trust to nation. He announced the
renaming of the Kolkata Port Trust to Dr.
Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Port.
Highlights: Later the Prime Minister handed over a
Cheque of Rs 501 Crore towards final
installment to meet the deficit of pension fund
of retired and existing employees of the
Kolkata Port Trust.
He also felicitated two oldest pensioners of the
Trust- 105 years old NaginaBhagat and 100
years old Naresh Chandra Chakraborty.
Prime Minister also inaugurated the upgraded
Ship Repair Facility of Cochin- Kolkata Ship
Repair Unit at NetajiSubhas Dry Dock. He
also inaugurated the Full Rake Handling
Facility for smooth cargo movement and
improving turnaround time.
The Prime Minister launched mechanization of
Berth No. 3 at Haldia Dock and inaugurated
the KaushalVikas Kendra and
PritilataChhatriAvas for 200 tribal girl students
from Sundarbans.
55. Dharmendra Pradhan launches
PURVODAYA
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas &
Steel: DharmendraPradhan
PURVODAYA: Purvodaya in steel sector is
aimed at driving accelerated development of
Eastern India through establishment of
integrated steel hub in Kolkata, West Bengal.
Objective:To enable swift capacity addition
and improve overall competitiveness of steel
producers both in terms of cost and quality.
Eastern states of India (Odisha, Jharkhand,
Chhattisgarh, West Bengal) and Northern part
of Andhra Pradesh collectively hold 80% of
the country‘s iron ore, 100% of coking coal
and significant portion of chromite, bauxite
and dolomite reserves.
56. SmritiIrani launches Yashaswini Scheme
for Women entrepreneurship in Goa
Yashaswini scheme: Women self-help groups
will be given interest free loans of uptoRs Five
lakh for business.
Adarsha Satari Mahila Mandal Guleli -Sattari,
Umang Self-Help Group, Salcete, Phoenix
Womens Wing Self-Help Group Valpoi -Sattari
were given loans under newly launched
Yashaswini scheme.
Union Minister for Women and Child
Development and Textiles:Smriti Irani
Chief Minister:Pramod Sawant
57. Coast Guard exercise Sahyog-Kaijin‟
Conducted b/w: India and Japan
Location: Chennai
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Japan Coast Guard Ship: ‗Echigo‘
participated
Sahyog-Kaijin: This is the 19th such exercise
being conducted between the two Coast
Guards since 2000.
Aim: It is aimed at further strengthening
bilateral ties and mutual understanding
between the two Coast Guards. It is set to
enhance interoperability in communication and
Search and Rescue procedures and sharing of
best practices.
Director-General of Indian Coast Guard:
Krishnaswamy Natarajan.
58. Govt. launches Central accident database
management system
Developed by: Indian Institute of Technology-
Madras (IIT-M)
Integrated Road Accident Database
(IRAD): that will help in analyzing causes of
road crashes and in devising safety
interventions to reduce such accidents in the
country.
The project costs Rs.258 crore and is being
supported by the World Bank.
Union Minister for Road Transport and
Highways:NitinGadkari
Initial stage: The system will be first piloted
in the six States with highest fatalities from
road crashes — Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar
Pradesh.
How it works: The IRAD mobile application
will enable police personnel to enter details
about a road accident, following which a
unique ID will be created for the incident. An
engineer from the local body will receive an
alert. He or she will then visit the accident
siteand feed the required details. Data thus
collected will be analyzed by a team at IIT-M,
suggests if corrective measures in road design
need to be taken.
Over speeding: India sees the largest number
of road fatalities in the world. More than 1.5
lakh people lost their lives in road crashes in
the country in 2018. Of the total people killed
in road crashes in 2018, 48% were between 18
years and 35 years old, and more than 60% of
such fatalities were due to overspending.
59. IOC launches special NATO class diesel for
Indian Navy
About: State-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC)
has developed a special class diesel
conforming to NATO grade for use in ships
and vessels of Indian Navy.
Vice Admiral: G S Pabby
Highlight:
IOC has upgraded the specifications of
HFHSD- IN 512 fuel required for Indian Naval
ships. The upgraded fuel now exceeds the MIL
DTL 16844M specifications which is
considered benchmark standard across in the
world.
The fuel possesses the best rheological and
detergent characteristics validated against most
stringent military specifications. It also has
lesser environmental impact due to low
Sulphur content and would result in the better
performance of engines.
This fuel will facilitate the Indian Navy to
enhance its global footprint and will allow
India to fuel the vessels of friendly foreign
countries at places where fuel conforming to
NATO grade is supplied.
IOC refineries were the first ones to make
available 0.5 per cent SulphurMarpol Fuel Oil
that will reduce stack emissions from the
ships.
IOC prepared a specification comprises of 22
parameters against the 20 parameters of MIL
specs for the supply of diesel exclusively for
Indian Navy. The customized HFHSD- IN 512
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has the unique combination of low pour and
Cold filter plugging point (CFPP) and High
Flash Point.
It has the highest cetane number amongst all
marine diesel fuel and exceeds MIL-DTL
16884M specifications in terms of Fuel
Hygiene parameters and other critical
properties.
60. Dibrugarh awarded with Plastic Waste
Management Award 2020
About: Dibrugarh district has been awarded
the Plastic Waste Management Award -2020
for being the best district of India in plastic
waste management category during Swachhta
Hi Sewa 2019.
Organized: the Department of Drinking Water
and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Govt of
India
Swachhta hi Seva 2019: a massive nationwide
awareness and mobilization campaign on
Swachhta, was launched by Prime Minister
NarendraModi at Mathura on September 11,
2019.
61. Fifth edition of Raisina Dialogue
Location: New Delhi on Jan 14.
Organized by: Ministry of External Affairs
and the Observer Research Foundation
The three-day conclave will bring together 700
international participants, of which 40 per cent
of the speakers will be women, emphasizing
India's commitment to gender equality.
Inaugural session: During the inaugural
session, attended by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, Danish PM and ex-NATO Secretary
General Anders Rasmussen, New Zealand
Prime Minister Helen Clark, former Afghan
President Hamid Karzai, former Canadian
Prime Minister Stephen Harper, former
Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt,
Rasmussen, former Bhutanese premier
TsheringTobgay and former South Korean
Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, discussed
global challenges.
Raisina Dialogue: is a multilateral conference
committed to addressing the most challenging
issues facing the global community. Every
year, global leaders in policy, business, media
and civil society are hosted in New Delhi to
discuss cooperation on a wide range of
pertinent international policy matters.
62. Michael Debabrata Patra appointed as RBI
Deputy Governor
He will be the fourth Deputy Governor of the
RBI and has been appointed to the post for a
period of three years.
MrPatra, who is looking after the Monetary
Policy Department as the Executive Director,
is likely to retain the department, which was
handled by Acharya, as the Deputy Governor.
The RBI, headed by Governor Shaktikanta
Das, can have a maximum of four Deputy
Governors. N S Vishwanathan, B P Kanungo
and M K Jain are the other Deputy Governors
working at the central bank.
63. India, Bangladesh sign MoU
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MoU:
For content exchange programme between All
India Radio and Bangladesh Betar
Coproduction of biopic on Bangladesh
founding father Shiek Mujibar Rahman
Sheikh MujiburRahman:was a Bangladeshi
politician and statesman. He is often called the
father of Bengali nation. He served as the first
President of Bangladesh and later as the Prime
Minister of Bangladesh
Information and Broadcasting Minister:Prakash Javadekar
64. Indian Railways and SBI sign MoU
Memorandum of Understanding: Between
Indian Railways‘ South Central Railway
(SCR) and State Bank of India (SBI) for
‗doorstep banking‘.
About: The MoU will help in direct pickup of
earnings covering all 585 Railway stations
over SCR Zone. With the facility of direct pick
up of cash from all the railway stations it will
save the tedious and complex activity of
movement of cash earnings through 'cash
safes' by trains.
65. Government unveils draft of rare diseases
policy
Report by: Ministry of health and family welfare
The government is in the process of setting up a
National Registry for Rare Diseases at ICMR with
the objective of creating a database of various rare
diseases.
The registry is expected to yield enough
information to be able to arrive at a definition of
rare diseases best suited to the country.
Highlights:
The government will provide a financial
support of up to Rs 15 lakh under its Rashtriya
Arogaya Nidhi scheme for one-time treatment
of rare diseases.
Beneficiaries would not be limited to Below
Poverty Line families, but will also cover 40
per cent of the population eligible as per norms
of the Ayushman Bharat-PradhanMantri Jan
ArogyaYojana for their treatment in
government tertiary hospitals only.
Rare diseases categorized under Group 1, such
as Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSDs),
immune deficiency disorders, chronic
granulomatous disease, osteopetrosis, Fabry's
disease and liver or kidney transplant, will be
funded under the scheme.
Toset up a digital platform for voluntary
individual and corporate donors to contribute
to the treatment cost of patients of rare
diseases.
Patients suffering from rare diseases,
especially Lysosomal Storage Disorders
(LSDs), often lead a very incapacitating life.
Only about 450 diseases have been recorded in
India from tertiary care hospitals that are
globally considered as rare diseases
The most commonly reported diseases include
Haemophilia, Thalassemia, Sickle-cell
Anaemia and Primary Immuno Deficiency in
children, auto-immune diseases, Lysosomal
storage disorders such as Pompe disease,
Hirschsprung disease, Gaucher's disease,
Cystic Fibrosis, Hemangiomas and certain
forms of muscular dystrophies.
66. Fifth edition of Raisina Dialogue
Location: New Delhi on Jan 14.
Organized by: Ministry of External Affairs
and the Observer Research Foundation
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The three-day conclave will bring together 700
international participants, of which 40 per cent
of the speakers will be women, emphasizing
India's commitment to gender equality.
Inaugural session: During the inaugural
session, attended by Prime Minister
NarendraModi, Danish PM and ex-NATO
Secretary General Anders Rasmussen, New
Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark, former
Afghan President Hamid Karzai, former
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper,
former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt,
Rasmussen, former Bhutanese premier
TsheringTobgay and former South Korean
Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, discussed
global challenges.
Raisina Dialogue: is a multilateral conference
committed to addressing the most challenging
issues facing the global community. Every
year, global leaders in policy, business, media
and civil society are hosted in New Delhi to
discuss cooperation on a wide range of
pertinent international policy matters.
67. Michael Debabrata Patra appointed as RBI
Deputy Governor
He will be the fourth Deputy Governor of the
RBI and has been appointed to the post for a
period of three years.
MrPatra, who is looking after the Monetary
Policy Department as the Executive Director,
is likely to retain the department, which was
handled by Acharya, as the Deputy Governor.
The RBI, headed by Governor Shaktikanta
Das, can have a maximum of four Deputy
Governors. N S Vishwanathan, B P Kanungo
and M K Jain are the other Deputy Governors
working at the central bank.
68. India, Bangladesh sign MoU
MoU:
For content exchange programme between All
India Radio and Bangladesh Betar
Coproduction of biopic on Bangladesh
founding father ShiekMujibarRahman
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman:was a Bangladeshi
politician and statesman. He is often called the
father of Bengali nation. He served as the first
President of Bangladesh and later as the Prime
Minister of Bangladesh
Information and Broadcasting
Minister:Prakash Javadekar
69. Indian Railways and SBI sign MoU Memorandum of Understanding: Between
Indian Railways‘ South Central Railway
(SCR) and State Bank of India (SBI) for
‗doorstep banking‘.
About: The MoU will help in direct pickup of
earnings covering all 585 Railway stations
over SCR Zone. With the facility of direct pick
up of cash from all the railway stations it will
save the tedious and complex activity of
movement of cash earnings through 'cash
safes' by trains.
70. Government unveils draft of rare diseases
policy
Report by: Ministry of health and family
welfare
The government is in the process of setting up
a National Registry for Rare Diseases at ICMR
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with the objective of creating a database of
various rare diseases.
The registry is expected to yield enough
information to be able to arrive at a definition
of rare diseases best suited to the country.
Highlights:
The government will provide a financial
support of up to Rs 15 lakh under its
RashtriyaArogayaNidhi scheme for one-time
treatment of rare diseases.
Beneficiaries would not be limited to Below
Poverty Line families, but will also cover 40
per cent of the population eligible as per norms
of the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan
Arogya Yojana for their treatment in
government tertiary hospitals only.
Rare diseases categorized under Group 1, such
as Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSDs),
immune deficiency disorders, chronic
granulomatous disease, osteopetrosis, Fabry's
disease and liver or kidney transplant, will be
funded under the scheme.
To set up a digital platform for voluntary
individual and corporate donors to contribute
to the treatment cost of patients of rare
diseases.
Patients suffering from rare diseases,
especially Lysosomal Storage Disorders
(LSDs), often lead a very incapacitating life.
Only about 450 diseases have been recorded in
India from tertiary care hospitals that are
globally considered as rare diseases
The most commonly reported diseases include
Haemophilia, Thalassemia, Sickle-cell
Anaemia and Primary Immuno Deficiency in
children, auto-immune diseases, Lysosomal
storage disorders such as Pompe disease,
Hirschsprung disease, Gaucher's disease,
Cystic Fibrosis, Hemangiomas and certain
forms of muscular dystrophies.
71. Mega campaign on fuel conservation
'Saksham' to be launched
Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister:DharmendraPradhan
Saksham: A people centric fuel conservation
mega campaign of Petroleum Conservation
Research Association (PCRA)
During this campaign, PCRA along with Oil
and Gas companies will carry out various
activities like ‗Saksham‘ cycle Day,
cyclothons, and seminars for housewives on
adopting simple fuel saving measure.
Aim: This campaign aims to spread the
message of fuel conservation and greener
environment across India.
72. Anand Prakash Maheshwari takes over as
the new DG of CRPF The 1984-batch IPS officer of Uttar Pradesh
cadre was appointed the new CRPF chief after
its earlier DG R RBhatnagar retired on
December 31.
Maheshwari took over the charge from ITBP
Director General S S Deswal who was given
the additional charge to head the CRPF.
CRPF: is the world's largest paramilitary force
with about 3.25 lakh personnel
73. AlokKansal takes over as General Manager
of Western Railway
AlokKansal, a senior officer of the 1983 batch
of Indian Railway Service of Engineers (IRSE)
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took over the charge as General Manager of
Western Railway.
Prior to his posting as General Manager of W.
Rly, Alok Kansal served as Principal
Executive Director/Civil Engineering
(Planning) at Railway Board.
74. Kerala govt has invoked to challenge
citizenship law under Article 131
About: The CPM-led Kerala government the
first state government to challenge the Act
sought to declare the law as violative of the
principles of equality, freedom and secularism
enshrined in the Constitution.
Citizenship Amendment Act: The new law,
which seeks to give citizenship to six non-
Muslim minority communities from Pakistan,
Bangladesh and Afghanistan, passed by
Parliament in December last year.
Article 131: of the Indian Constitution states:
―Original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court:
Subject to the provisions of this Constitution,
the Supreme Court shall, to the exclusion of
any other court, have original jurisdiction in
any dispute:
Between the Government of India and one or
more States; if and insofar as the dispute
involves any question (whether of law or fact)
on which the existence or extent of a legal
right depends…‖
Article 131, therefore, allows a state to file a
suit in the Supreme Court in case of any
dispute that it may have with the central
government, invoking the court‘s ―original
jurisdiction‖.
75. 3 Kerala cities in Economist list of world's
fastest growing urban regions
Three Kerala cities: Malappuram (rank 1),
Kozhikode (Rank 4) and Kollam (rank 10)—
are among the top-10 fastest growing urban
regions, in terms of population, in the world.
Rankings by: the Economist Intelligence Unit
(EIU).
Other countries: One city from Vietnam (Can
Tho), three from China (Suqian, Suzhou and
Putian), one from Nigeria (Abuja), one from
UAE (Sharjah), and one from Oman (Muscat)
find their place in the list.
Economist Intelligence Unit:which is a part
of the popular Economist Magazine, provides
forecasting and advisory services through
research and analysis.
Growth percentage: The ranking stated that
Malappuram grew 44 per cent from 2015 to
2020,Kozhikode had a growth rate of 34.5 per
cent in the past five years, while Kollam had
31.1 per cent.
Can Tho region in Vietnam secured the second
spot, Suqian in China came third. Thrissur has
secured the 13th spot with a growth rate of
30.2 per cent.
Other Indian cities:Surat (27) and Thiruppur
(30)
76. Madhuri Vijay bags Crossword Book
Award
About: Bengaluru-born, US-based writer
Author Madhuri Vijay has added a resplendent
feather to her literary cap by winning the
coveted Crossword Book Award for her debut
novel on Kashmir.
Novel: ''The Far Field''
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Previous awards: In the 32-year-old author
was crowned the winner of the JCB Prize for
Literature, India''s richest literary award worth
Rs. 25 lakh, and also bagged the Tata
Literature Live First Book Award.
Crossword Book Awards : Currently in its
17th edition, the Crossword Book Awards
were founded in 1998 as an Indian counter to
international literary honours like the Booker
Prize, Commonwealth Writers'' Prize and the
Pulitzer Prize.
The awards celebrate the best and popular
Indian writing and come with a cash prize of
Rs. 3 lakh for winners in the jury award
category, and Rs. 1 lakh for winners in the
popular choice section.
Some of the famous Crossword Book Award
recipients include Rushdie, Seth, Amitav
Ghosh, William Dalrymple and Pankaj Mishra.
77. Vasdev Mohi to be conferred with 29th
Saraswati Samman
About: Eminent Sindhi writer VasdevMohi
will be conferred with 29th SaraswatiSamman.
He has been selected for this prestigious
literary award for his short stories collection-
Chequebook.
Saraswati Samman: is an annual award for
outstanding prose or poetry literary works in
any of the 22 languages of India listed in
Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India.
It was instituted in 1991 by the K. K. Birla
Foundation. It consists of Rs 15lakh, a citation
and a plaque. Candidates are selected from
literary works published in the previous ten
years by a panel that included scholars and
former award winners
78. Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurates special
exhibition on „Indian Heritage in Digital
Space‟
Union Minister of State for Culture and
Tourism: Prahlad Singh Patel
About: a month long special exhibition first of
its kind in India titled Indian Heritage in
Digital Space and a two day long first
international heritage symposium inagurated in
New Delhi.
Organized by: Ministry of State for Culture
and Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi
Aim:To create digital installations using 3D
laser scan data, AR, holographic projections
and 3D fabrication, to provide interactive and
immersive experiences showcasing the glory
of Hampi and five Indian monuments namely
KashiVishwanath Temple, Varanasi;
TajMahal, Agra; Sun Temple,Konark;
Ramachandra Temple, Hampi ; and
RaniKiVav, Patan .
79. Om Birla inaugurates 7th Conference of
CPA India Region in Lucknow
Theme: 'ROLE OF LEGISLATORS'
Conference of CPA:Three day conference
would discuss the reforms in legislative
businesses of the assemblies. Such conference
of CPA will held once in 2 years and 6th
conference was held in Patna
LokSabha Speaker: OmBirla
Governor of Madhya Pradesh:LaljiTondon.
Deputy Chairperson of RajyaSabha:
Harivansh
80. IIM-K hosted conclave on „Globalizing
Indian Thought‟
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About: The Indian Institute of Management
Kozhikode (IIM-K) will host an international
conclave on Globalising Indian Thought (GIT)
from January 16 to 18.
Inaugurated by:Prime Minister
NarendraModi
GIT: conclave is platform for the
congregation of academics discussing India‘s
contribution to the world and how India as a
country can re-imagine itself and re-shape
worldviews in the current context
81. Russia to deliver S-400 air defence systems
About: Russia has started production of S-400
long-range surface-to-air missile systems for
India, and all five units will be delivered by
2025.
S-400: long-range surface-to-air missile
systems for India. These missiles allow it to hit
aerial targets at ranges up to 250 km and are
capable of intercepting ballistic missiles across
a 60 km radius, using in both cases a 143 kg
high explosive fragmentation warhead.
82. DV Sadananda Gowda launches APNA
UREA – Sona Ugle” brand of HURL
Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister: D.V.
Sadananda Gowda
Hindustan Urvarak & Rasayan Limited
(HURL) was incorporated on 15th June, 2016
as a joint venture company by Coal India
Limited (CIL), NTPC Limited (NTPC) and
Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) as the
lead promoters with Fertilizer Corporation of
India Limited (FCIL) and Hindustan Fertilizer
Corporation Limited (HFCL) as other two
partners.
83. Ravi Shankar Prasad to inaugurate „Centre
of Excellence in Block chain Technology‟ in
Bengaluru
Union Minister for Law & Justice,
Communications and Electronics &
Information Technology: Ravi Shankar
Prasad
Set up by: National Informatics Centre (NIC)
Aim: To provide Block chain as a service and
allowing all stakeholders to benefit from
shared learning, experiences and resources
84. Army conducts biggest airborne exercise of
Special Forces
About: The Indian Army recently carried out
its biggest Airborne Exercise in the North
Eastern Theatre which involved large number
of the Special Force's troops and all kind of air
transport platforms of the Air Force.
Exercise code-name: Winged Raider
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85. Bru-Reang Refugee agreement signed
About: Union Home Minister Amit Shah
presided over the signing of a quadripartite
pact of MHA with the State governments of
Tripura, Mizoram and leaders of Bru
community to permanently settle around
34,000 internally displaced people in Tripura
Reangs or Brus:They are the second largest
ethnic group in Mizoram. Their exodus in
1997 was spurred by violent clashes in Mamith
subdivision, a Reang-dominated area, when
they demanded creation of an autonomous
council that was vehemently opposed by Mizo
groups.
Mizoram Bru Displaced People's Coordination
Committee (MBDPCC) and Mizoram Bru
Indigenous Democratic Movement (MBIDM)
have signed the agreement.
86. World Bank and Government of India Sign
$88 million loan agreement
The Government of India, the Government of
Assam and the World Bank signed a loan
agreement of $88 million for the
implementation of Assam Inland Water
Transport Project
About: A majority of Assam‘s more than 361
ferry routes cross the Brahmaputra or serve its
islands, providing a crucial means of transport
to thousands of commuters in both the urban
and rural areas of the Brahmaputra Valley.
The Assam Inland Water Transport Project
(AIWTP) will help Assam improve the
passenger ferry infrastructure and its services
and strengthen the capacity of the institutions
running the inland water transport.
87. India successfully test-fires K-4 ballistic
missile
About: India has successfully test-fired a
3,500 kilometer range nuclear capable missile
that can be launched from a submarine. The
test of the K-4 ballistic missile was conducted
off the Vizag coast in Andhra Pradesh.
Highlight: With this test, India has moved one
more step towards the induction of this
ballistic missile on the INS Arihant class of
nuclear submarines.
K-4 ballistic missile: The three-meter-tall
missile carries a nuclear warhead of over one
tonne with a circular error probability far
lower than that of Chinese ballistic missiles.
Only the US, Russia and China have
submarine-launched ballistic missiles of 3,500-
kilometre range.
Developed by: Defense Research and
Development Organization (DRDO).
88. 9th International Children's Film Festival
begins in Kolkata
The 9th International Children's Film Festival
begins in Kolkata with the screening of Aizaz
Khan directed Hamid.
The National Award winner Children actor,
TalhaArsad Rishi will inaugurate the festival.
89. Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises
Minister Inaugurates ELECRAMA 2020
Union Minister of Heavy Industries
&Public Enterprises:PrakashJavadekar
Location: Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Minister of Power and New and Renewable
Energy (Independent Charge): R K Singh
ELECRAMA: is the flagship showcase of the
Indian electrical industry and a platform to
connect the world with Indian industry in
respect of technology, new trends and
innovation for future energy transition.
90. Manglauru is safest city of India
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About: Manglauru has been listed as 43rd in
the list of 100 safest cities in the world.
Report by: CEO World magazine, New York
Other Indian cities: Vadodara in Gujarat,
Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala,
Ahmedabad in Gujarat and Navi Mumbai in
Maharashtra have found a place in the 100
safest cities.
World safest city: Abu Dhabi in UAE
Most dangerous city: Caracas in Venezuela
91. Andhra Pradesh Assembly passes bill to
establish three capitals
About: The Andhra Pradesh assembly passed
the Capital Region Development Authority
Repeal Bill 2020 and the AP Decentralization
and Inclusive Development of all Regions Bill
2020
Executive capital: Visakhapatnam
Legislative capital: Amravati
Judicial capital: Kurnool
Chief Minister: Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy
92. Ravi Shankar Prasad to inaugurate second
edition of NIC Tech Conclave-2020
Union Minister for Electronics and
Information Technology: Ravi Shankar
Prasad
Location: New Delhi
Organized by: National Informatics Centre
Theme: Technologies for Next-Gen
Governance
NIC Tech Conclave: This Conclave will
contribute immensely to the capacity building
of Government officers across the country and
help in delivering high-quality citizen-centric
services.
93. 12th National Tribal Youth Exchange
Programme inaugurated in Puducherry
Puducherry Lieutenant
Governor:DrKiranBedi
Organized by: Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan
(NYKS) and Puducherry Government
Aim: view to ensure development and
empowerment of the tribal youths.
94. Delhi government released guarantee card
scheme
Delhi chief minister: Arvind Kejriwal
Guarantee Card: The card includes 10
guarantees for Delhi residents including 24x7
drinking water supply and power supply,
affordable homes for the poor, free public bus
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travel for students and appointment of Mohalla
marshals to ensure safety of women.
95. UP Govt launches Mukhya mantra Krishak
Durghatna KalyanYojana
Mukhyamantri Krishak Durghatna Kalyan
Yojana: It will provide financial assistance of
five lakh rupees to family of farmers who die
or become handicapped while working in
fields. The scheme will cover farmers and their
family members in the age group of 18-70
years.
UP CM: Yogi Adityanath
96. Indian Navy Signs MoU with Geological
Survey of India
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU):
Between Indian Navy and Geological Survey
of India
Reason: Sharing of seabed sediments data,
products and expertise for Naval Application
in Meteorology and Oceanography
GSI‘s state-of-the-art oceanic research vessels
SamudraManthan, SamudraKaustubh,
Samudra Shaudhikama and Samudra Ratnakar,
will now be used by Indian Navy‘s rapidly
growing blue water fleet for reliable and
accurate oceanographic modeling to support
their expansive maritime operations in the
Indian Ocean region
97. Dr.Jitendra Singh inaugurates India‟s first
global Mega Science Exhibition “Vigyan
Samagam”
About: The Union Minister of State (I/C)
Ministry of Development of North Eastern
Region, MoS PMO, Personnel, Public
Grievances and Pensions, Atomic Energy and
Space, DrJitendra Singh inaugurated India‘s
first global Mega Science Exhibition ―Vigyan
Samagam‖ at National Science Centre, Delhi.
Organized by: Department of Atomic Energy
(DAE), Department of Science and
Technology (DST) and the National Council
of Science Museums (NCSM)
During the exhibition, Science & Technology
enthusiasts will witness the world-renowned
Mega Science projects and listen to eminent
scientists at the National Science Centre Delhi.
Projects are being showcased by CERN,
FAIR, INO, ITER, LIGO, MACE, SKA and
TMT.
98. IAF deploys Su-30 squadron equipped with
BrahMos missile in Tamil Nadu
About: The Indian Air Force Monday
commissioned the 222 ‗Tiger Sharks‘
squadron of Sukhoi Su-30 MKI fighter jets in
Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, equipped with the
supersonic BrahMos cruise missiles that have
a range of over 300 km.
Chief of Defence Staff: Gen. Bipin Rawat
Air Chief Marshal: Rakesh Bhadauria.
Highlight: This is the first time the Fourth
Generation air dominance fighters have been
based out of the Southern Air Command.
Given the Su-30s‘ maritime strike capability,
the IAF has made this move with an eye on the
increasing Chinese presence in the Indian
Ocean Region (IOR).
Su-30s: The Su-30s have a range of about
1,500 km without mid-air refuelling capacity,
and now come equipped with the 2.5-tonne
air-launched BrahMos.
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99. India opens its first Mahatma Gandhi
convention center in Niger
External Affairs Minister: S. Jaishankar
President of Niger:MahamadouIssoufou
Highlight: It is the first center to be
established in Africa by India to honor the
memory of Mahatma Gandhi whose 150th
Birth Anniversary was observed last year.
Mr. Jaishankar, the first Indian Foreign
Minister to visit the West African country,
arrived in Niamey three-day two-nation trip to
Niger and Tunisia.
100. PM chairs the 32nd PRAGATI interaction
About: Prime Minister NarendraModi chaired
the first PRAGATI meeting of the year 2020.
It marked Prime Minister‘s thirty-second
interaction through PRAGATI .
PRAGATI: the ICT based multi-modal
platform for Pro-Active Governance and
Timely Implementation, involving Central and
State governments.
101. Cabinet approves MoUs among India,
Tunisia and Papua New Guinea
Electoral Commission for elections for
cooperation in the field of electoral
management and administration
About: The Union Cabinet, chaired by the
Prime Minister NarendraModi, has given its
approval for the proposal of the Legislative
Department
MoU: Between Election Commission and
Independent High Authority for Elections of
Tunisia (ISIE) and the Papua New Guinea
Electoral Commission(PNGEC) for elections
for cooperation in the field of electoral
management and administration.
102. Cabinet approves agreement between
India and Brazil
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, has given its
approval for the Agreement between the
Republic of India and the Federative Republic
of Brazil:
Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters: The Agreement aims to enhance
effectiveness of both the countries in
investigation and prosecution of crime through
cooperation and Mutual Legal Assistance in
Criminal Matters.
Cooperation in the oil and natural gas
sector: Under the MoU, both sides will work
towards establishing cooperation in the E&P
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initiatives in Brazil and India, research &
development in this sector, explore
collaboration in Liquefied Natural Gas projects
in Brazil, India and third countries.
Cooperation in field of Geology and
Mineral Resources: The MoU will provide an
institutional mechanism between Geological
Survey of India, Ministry of Mines of the
Republic of India and Geological Survey of
Brazil – CPRM, Ministry of Mines and Energy
of the Federative Republic of Brazil for
cooperation in field of Geology and Mineral
Resources.
Bilateral cooperation in the field of early
childhood: It will strengthen the bonds of
friendship between the two countries and
increase bilateral cooperation on the issues of
early childhood care. Both countries will
benefit from exchange of best practices of the
respective countries in the field of early
childhood.
103. Ministry of Rural Development signs MoU
with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
About: The Ministry of Rural Development
(MoRD) today signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with Bill and Melinda
Gates Foundation (BMGF) under the
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural
Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), for
furthering their mutual objectives of
strengthening grassroots institutions of the
rural poor.
Focus: on improving the lives of India‘s poor
and the marginalized with the aim of reducing
poverty through institutions of marginalized
rural women for promotion of diversified and
gainful self-employment while creating skilled
wage employment opportunities.
104. Dharmendra Pradhan launches SAIL
SERVICE scheme
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas &
Steel: Dharmendra Pradhan
SERVICE (SAIL Employee Rendering
Voluntarism and Initiatives for Community
Engagement): To promote and facilitate
philanthropist activities by the employees in a
structured manner.
105. Vyommitra human robot, developed by
ISRO
Vyommitra: a spacefaring human robot
developed by the Indian Space Research
Organisation. Vyommitra is a 'half-humanoid'
that Isro plans to send to space as part of test
flights that will be undertaken ahead of the
ambitious launch of India's maiden human
spaceflight mission.
Highlight: Vyommitra can "mimic" the
activity of a crew of astronauts and even
"recognize them and respond to their queries.
106. Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda
Prabandhan Puraskar 2020 announced
About: In order to recognize the excellent
work done by individuals and institutions in
India in the field of disaster management, the
award is announced every year by Home
ministry India on 23rd January, the birth
anniversary of NetajiSubhash Chandra Bose.
Award in institution category: Disaster
Mitigation & Management Centre,
Uttarakhand (cash prize of Rs. 51 lakhs)
Award in Individual category: Kumar
Munnan Singh (cash prize of Rs. 5 lakhs)
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107. Subhas Chandra Bose 123rd birth
anniversary
On 23rd
Jan 1897, Netaji was born in Cuttack,
Odisha, known by the slogan "Give me your
blood, and I shall give you freedom.
He was the great freedom fighter who served
India as a valiant warrior and raised the first
Indian National Army (INA), Azad Hind Fauj
in 1943
In the year 1920, he passed the ICS
examination, but on hearing about the
Jallianwalla Bagh massacre he quit his high-
paying ICS job and came back to India from
England in 1921 to join India's struggle for
independence.
Bose act of hoisting the Tricolour for the first
time in Port Blair in 1943 and declaration of
Andaman and Nicobar Islands as first Indian
Territory to be freed from British rule
continues to inspire every Indian.
Subhash Chandra Bose also addresses
Mahatama Gandhi as the "Father of the
Nation".
108. India to help energy rich Ghana expand
clean fuel network
A memorandum of understanding (MoU):
Signed between Indian Oil has and National
Petroleum Authority (NPA) of Ghana
Reason: State run Indian Oil Corporation Ltd
(IOCL) will provide its assistance and
technical expertise in the implementation of
Ghana‘s National LPG Promotion Policy
Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana: was
launched by Prime Minister NarendraModi on
May 1st, 2016 in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh. Under
this scheme, 5 Cr LPG connections will be
provided to BPL families with a support of
Rs.1600 per connection in the next 3 years.
It aims to safeguard the health of women &
children by providing them with a clean
cooking fuel – LPG, so that they don‘t have to
compromise their health in smoky kitchens or
wander in unsafe areas collecting firewood.
Indian projects in Africa: Projects completed
by India recently in Africa include the
construction of the presidential office in
Ghana, the National Assembly building in
Gambia, and the Kosti power plant in Sudan.
Africa is a key development partner of India,
garnering a sizeable portion of India‘s lines of
credit assistance.
109. Challa Sreenivasulu Setty appointed
managing director of SBI
ChallaSreenivasuluSettycurrently serving as
the deputy managing director of the SBI, Setty
has been appointed as the MD of the SBI for a
period of three years with effect from the date
of his taking over the charge of the post.
110. India achieves complete phase out of one
the most potent ozone depleting chemical
About: India has successfully achieved the
complete phase out of Hydro
chlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-141 b, and one of
the most potent ozone depleting chemical after
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation
and Control) Amendment Rules,2019:the
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change (MoEFCC) brought out a notification
in the Gazette of India through which the
issuance of import license for HCFC-141b is
prohibited from 1st January, 2020 under
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Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and
Control) Amendment Rules, 2019 issued under
the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
Complete phase out of HCFC 141 b from the
country in foam sector is among the first at this
scale in Article 5 parties (developing
countries) under the Montreal Protocol.
The Montreal Protocol: on Substances that
Deplete the Ozone Layer (a protocol to the
Vienna Convention for the Protection of the
Ozone Layer) is an international treaty
designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing
out the production of numerous substances that
are responsible for ozone depletion. It was
agreed on 16 September 1987, and entered into
force on 26 August 1989.
111. International Summit on Women in STEM
Organized by: The Department of
Biotechnology in India Habitat Centre, New
Delhi
Theme: ―Visualizing the Future: New
Skylines‖
Aim: To boost the participation of women in
STEM (science, technology, engineering and
mathematics) field for development of
scientific career.
112. India's first e-waste clinic opens in Bhopal
About: India‘s first e-waste clinic is being
opened in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
Benefit: It would enable segregation,
processing and disposal of waste from both
household and commercial units.
Setup by: Central Pollution Control Board-
CPCB and Bhopal Municipal Corporation-
BMC.
CPCB: of India is a statutory organization
under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change. It was established in 1974
under the Water (Prevention and Control of
pollution) Act, 1974. The CPCB is also
entrusted with the powers and functions under
the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution)
Act, 1981.
Chairman of CPCB: S. P. Singh Parihar
113. Nation celebrates 71st Republic Day
Nation celebrated the 71st Republic Day with
a grand military parade and exhibition of its
history, cultural diversity and strategic
weaponry at the Rajpath in the National
Capital.
Chief Guest:President of Brazil
Jair Messias Bolsonaro was the Chief Guest at
the Parade this year.
Republic Day: The Constitution of India,
which was adopted by the Constituent
Assembly on November 26, 1949, came into
effect on January 26, 1950. January 26 was
also chosen as the day to mark Republic Day
because it had been on this day that the Indian
National Congress (INC) proclaimed the
Declaration of Indian Independence in 1929.
This was contrary to the 'dominion' status
offered by the British.
Tableau of Anubhava Mantapa:In the 71st
Republic Day Parade, Karnataka state's tableau
depicted the philosophy of Basaveshwara and
the concept of AnubhavaMantapa (Experience
Centre). The AnubhavaMantapa was the socio-
religious centre that existed in the present-day
BasavaKalyana of Bidar district in Karnataka.
It is regarded as the first religious parliament
in the history of mankind. Basaveshwara was
the saint that professed this philosophy. The
front part of the tableau has the replica of
Basaveshwara preaching his most cherished
value - "Work is Worship".
114. 'Shiv Bhojan' scheme
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About: The Shiv Sena-led Maharashtra
government launched 'Shiv Bhojan' scheme,
Aim: At providing a meal to the poor for just Rs
10, on the occasion of the 71st Republic Day. The
scheme, which was launched on a pilot basis,
thalis or lunch plates would be available to people
at designated centers/ canteens during a stipulated
time in all the districts.
Maharashtra CM: Uddhav Thackeray
115. India's first Super Fab Lab inaugurated
by Kerala CM
Chief Minister:PinarayiVijayan
About: The country's first Super Fab Lab was
launched at the Integrated Startup Complex of
the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM).
Collaboration:The Super Fab Lab will
function in collaboration with the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Highlight: The Fab Labs concept, the only one
outside the U.S., is the brainchild of Dr Neil
Gershenfeld, presently the Director of MIT
Centre for Bits and Atoms, DrGershenfeld was
in the city for nearly a week to personally
supervise setting up of the Super Fab Lab.
Fab Labs: are fabrication laboratories offering
digital fabrication and computation.The state-
of-art facility enables the state to produce
machines locally, for access throughout
Kerala. It can be for business, education and
almost anything.
116. Padma awards 2020
Padma Awards - one of the highest civilian
Awards of the country, are conferred in three
categories, namely, Padma Vibhushan, Padma
Bhushan and Padma Shri. The Awards are
given in various disciplines/ fields of activities,
viz.- art, social work, public affairs, science
and engineering, trade and industry, medicine,
literature and education, sports, civil service,
etc.
This year the President has approved
conferment of 141 Padma Awards including 4
duo cases (in a duo case, the Award is counted
as one). The list comprises of 7 Padma
Vibhushan, 16 Padma Bhushan and 118
Padma Shri Awards. 33 of the awardees are
women and the list also includes 18 persons
from the category of Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI
and 12 posthumous awardees.
Padma Vibhushan
Name Field State/Country
1. George Fernandes
(Posthumous)
Public
Affairs Bihar
2. ArunJaitley
(Posthumous)
Public
Affairs Delhi
3. Sir AneroodJugnauth Public
Affairs Mauritius
4. M. C. Mary Kom Sports Manipur
5. Chhannulal Mishra Art Uttar Pradesh
6. SushmaSwaraj
(Posthumous)
Public
Affairs Delhi
7.
Sri
VishveshateerthaSwamiji
Sri
PejavaraAdhokhajaMatha
Udupi (Posthumous)
Others-
Spiritualism Karnataka
Padma bhushan
SN Name Field State/Country
8. M. Mumtaz Ali (Sri
M)
Others-
Spiritualism Kerala
9. Syed Muazzem Ali
(Posthumous) Public Affairs Bangladesh
10. MuzaffarHussainBaig Public Affairs Jammu and
Kashmir
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11. AjoyChakravorty Art West
Bengal
12. Manoj Das Literature and
Education Puducherry
13. BalkrishnaDoshi Others-
Architecture Gujarat
14. KrishnammalJagannathan Social Work Tamil Nadu
15. S. C. Jamir Public Affairs Nagaland
16. Anil Prakash Joshi Social Work Uttarakhand
17. Dr. TseringLandol Medicine Ladakh
18. Anand Mahindra Trade and
Industry Maharashtra
19.
Neelakanta Ramakrishna
MadhavaMenon
(Posthumous)
Public Affairs Kerala
20. ManoharGopalkrishna
PrabhuParrikar (Posthumous) Public Affairs Goa
21. Prof. JagdishSheth Literature and
Education USA
22. P. V. Sindhu Sports Telangana
23. VenuSrinivasan Trade and
Industry Tamil Nadu
Padma Shri awardees from Karnataka:
M. P. Ganesh Sports
Dr. Bangalore Gangadhar Medicine
Bharat Goenka Trade and Industry
TulasiGowda Social Work
HarekalaHajabba Social Work
K. V. Sampath Kumar &
Ms. VidushiJayalakshmi
K.S.
Literature and
Education-Journalism
Vijay Sankeshwar Trade and Industry
117. 3rd Global Potato Conclave, Gandhinagar,
Gujarat
About: Prime Minister NarendraModi shall be
addressing the 3rd Global Potato Conclave at
Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
Organized by:Indian Potato Association (IPA) in
collaboration with Indian Council of Agricultural
Research, New Delhi, and ICAR-Central Potato
Research Institute, Shimla and International Potato
Center (CIP), Lima, Peru
The present conclave is the third in the series,
during last two decades two Global Potato
Conferences were organized during 1999, and
2008.
Highlight: The Conclave will provide an
opportunity to bring all stakeholders at one
common platform so that all the issues are
discussed and future plans are made involving
everyone related to the potato sector.
118. Andhra Pradesh assembly passes
resolution to abolish State Legislative
Council
The Andhra Pradesh Assembly has passed a
resolution to abolish the State Legislative Council.
Chief Minister:Jagan Mohan Reddy
Other States with legislative council are: Bihar
Karnataka
Maharashtra
Telangana
Uttar Pradesh
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119. Bodo Accord signed
In the presence of Union Home Minister Amit
Shah, the tripartite agreement was signed by
Assam Chief Minister SarbanandaSonowal,
the top leadership of the four factions of the
NDFB, ABSU (The All Bodo Students'
Union)
ACCORD:
As per the accord, 1,550 militants belonging
to the NDFB lay down their arms on January
30, an economic programme of Rs 1,500 crore
will be implemented in the next three years
with equal contribution of Rs 750 crore each
from the central and state governments.
The existing structure of the Bodoland
Territorial Council (BTC) will be strengthened
with more powers and its seats will be
expanded from 40 to 60.
The name of the BTC will be changed to
Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).
The BTC currently has control over 30
subjects like education, forests, horticulture
but no jurisdiction over the police, revenue
and general administration departments, which
are controlled by the Assam government.
The BTC was formed under the 6th Schedule
of the Constitution.
Previous Bodo accords: This was the third Bodo accord to be signed in
the last 27 years when the violent movement
for a separate Bodoland state claimed hundreds
of lives, destruction of public and private
properties.
The first Bodo accord was signed with the All
Bodo Students Union in 1993, leading to the
creation of a Bodoland Autonomous Council
with limited political powers.
In 2003, the second Bodo accord was signed
with the militant group Bodo Liberation
Tigers, leading to the formation of a Bodoland
Territorial Council (BTC) with four districts of
Assam -- Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baska and
Udalguri -- called Bodoland Territorial Area
District (BTAD).
The demand for a separate state for the Bodos
has been going on in Assam for about five
decades and several Bodooverground and
militant groups raising it leading to agitations,
protests, violence and many deaths.
120. West Bengal becomes 4th state to pass
anti-CAA resolution
About: West Bengal on became the fourth
opposition-ruled state to pass a resolution against
the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in its
assembly, after Kerala, Punjab and Rajasthan.
Reason: Opponents of the CAA feel it deliberately
excludes Muslims while offering fast-track
citizenship for Pakistani, Afghan and Bangladeshi
illegal immigrants from six minority religious
groups, including Hindus -- provided they entered
India on or before December 31, 2014.
Chief Minister:Mamata Banerjee's All India
Trinamool Party (TMC)
121. India‟s first underwater metro in Kolkata About: Kolkata Metro Rail Corp. expects to
complete its East-West project, which runs partly
under the city‘s Hooghly River, by March 2022
Kolkata Metro: India‘s oldest metro, which
started in 1984 with a North-South service.
122. Dr.Jitendra Singh launches Bhuvan
Panchayat V 3.0 Web portal
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The Union Minister of State (I/C) Ministry
of Development of North Eastern Region:
Dr.Jitendra Singh
Developed by: ISRO
About: ISRO will collaborate with the gram
panchayat members and stakeholders to
understand their data requirements
Portal: The third version of the portal will
provide database visualisation and services for
the benefit of panchayat members, among
others. The project is meant to provide geo-
spatial services to aid gram panchayat
development planning process of the Ministry
of Panchayati Raj.
ISRO chairman: K Sivan
123. Rajnath Singh gives away awards related
to Republic Day 2020
Defence minister : Rajnath Singh
Best tableaus (participated in the Republic
Day Parade)
Assam (theme: 'Land of Unique Craftsmanship
and Culture')
Odisha (RukunaRathaYatra of Lord Lingaraja)
and Uttar Pradesh (theme: 'Sarva Dharma
SamaBhav')
Among the six tableaux from different
ministries/departments, Ministry of Jal
Shakti and National Disaster Response
Force (NDRF) won the joint best Tableaux
award.
The tableau of Central Public Works
Department (CPWD), with the theme
'Kashmir se Kanyakumari', bagged the special
prize for showcasing different parts of the
country decorated with colourful and fragrant
flowers.
124. Lt Gen Satinder Kumar Saini Assumes
Appointment of VCOAS
Before assuming the appointment of Vice
Chief of the Army Staff, the General Officer
was heading the Southern Command of the
Indian Army.
Lt Gen Satinder Kumar Saini is anstudent of
the National Defence Academy and the Indian
Military Academy.
125. 10 more wetlands from India get the
Ramsar site tag
The Ramsar Convention: signed on February
2, 1971, is one of the oldest inter-
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governmental accord signed by members
countries to preserve the ecological character
of their wetlands of international importance.
Aim of the Ramsarlist: To develop and
maintain an international network of wetlands
which are important for the conservation of
global biological diversity and for sustaining
human life through the maintenance of their
ecosystem components, processes and
benefits. Wetlands declared as Ramsar sites
are protected under strict guidelines of the
convention.
Union Environment
Minister:PrakashJavadekar
Ramsarsites in India: With this, the numbers
of Ramsar sites in India are now 37 and the
surface area covered by these sites is now
1,067,939 hectares. Maharashtra gets its first
Ramsar site (NandurMadhameshwar) , Punjab
which already had 3 Ramsar sites adds 3 more
(Keshopur-Miani, Beas Conservation Reserve,
Nangal) and UP with 1 Ramsar site has added
6 more (Nawabganj, Parvati Agra, Saman,
Samaspur, Sandi and SarsaiNawar).
126. Indian Railways commissions first Waste
to Energy Plant in Bhubaneswar
About: Indian Railways has commissioned
country‘s first governmental Waste to Energy
Plant, having capacity of 500 Kg waste per
day, in Mancheswar Carriage Repair
Workshop at Bhubaneswar in East Coast
Railway.
Highlight: This Waste to Energy Plant, a
patented technology called POLYCRACK, is
first-of-its-kind in Indian Railways and fourth
in India. It is world‘s first patented
heterogeneous catalytic process which
converts multiple feed stocks into hydrocarbon
liquid fuels, gas, carbon and water.
Polycrack: This Plant can be fed with all
types of Plastic, Petroleum sludge, Un-
segregated MSW (Municipal Solid Waste)
with moisture up to 50%, E–Waste,
Automobile fluff, Organic waste including
bamboo, garden waste etc., and Jatropha fruit
and palm bunch.
127. Indian Navy Launches 'Operation Vanilla'
Operation Vanilla:The Indian Navy Ship
Airavatwill undertake Humanitarian
Assistance and Disaster Relief mission as part
of 'Operation Vanilla' which has been launched
to provide assistance to the affected population
of Madagascar post devastation caused by
Cyclone Diane.
128. Cabinet approves The Medical
Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment)
Bill
About: The Union Cabinet, chaired by the
Prime Minister ShriNarendraModi, has
approved the Medical Termination of
Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020 to amend
the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act,
1971.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy
Amendment Bill will raise upper limit for
termination of pregnancy from 20 weeks to 24
weeks
129. Cabinet approves official amendments in
the National Commission for Homoeopathy
Bill
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime
Minister NarendraModi, has given its approval
to the official amendments in the National
Commission for Homoeopathy Bill, 2019 for
amending the Homoeopathy Central Council
(HCC) Act, 1973.
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The amendments will: Ensure necessary regulatory reforms in the
field of Homoeopathy education.
Enable transparency and accountability for
protecting the interest of the general public.
The Commission will promote availability of
affordable healthcare services in all parts of
the country.
Background:
The Homoeopathy Central Council (HCC)
Act, 1973 was enacted for constitution of a
Central Council of Homoeopathy for
regulation of education and practice of
Homoeopathy, for maintenance of Central
Register of Homoeopathy and for matters
connected therewith.
130. Harsh VardhanShringla takes charge as
new Foreign Secretary
Harsh VardhanShringla today took charge as
new foreign secretary succeeding Vijay
Gokhale. MrShringla is a 1984-batch officer of
the Indian Foreign Service.
131. NitiAayog aspirational districts
Aspirational districts programme launched in
January 2018.
Top ranks: Chandauli district in Uttar Pradesh has topped
the list of aspirational districts ranked by the
government think tank NitiAayog in
December.
Belangir (Odisha) and YSR (Andhra Pradesh)
have been placed at the second and third
positions, respectively.
Sahibganj (Jharkhand) has been ranked at the
fourth spot and Hailakandi(Assam) at the fifth
place.
Parameters: Health and nutrition, education,
agriculture and water resources, financial
inclusion, skill development and basic
infrastructure
Aim: To transform districts that has shown
relatively lesser progress in key social areas
and has emerged as pockets of under-
development.
132. Taranjit Singh Sandhu appointed India‟s
Ambassador to US
Senior diplomat Taranjit Singh Sandhu will be
the next Indian Ambassador to the United
States. Mr. Sandhu, a 1988 batch officer of the
Indian Foreign Service, is the current Indian
envoy to Sri Lanka and will succeed Harsh
VardhanShringla, who will take charge as the
Foreign Secretary on Wednesday.
External Affairs Minister: Dr. S. Jaishankar
133. India-Bangladesh JT Exercise
SAMPRITI-IX
About: As part of the ongoing Indo-
Bangladesh defense cooperation, a joint
military training exercise SAMPRITI-IX is
being conducted at UMROI, Meghalaya, India
from 03 Feb to 16 Feb 2020.
Exercise SAMPRITI is an important bilateral
defense cooperation endeavour between India
and Bangladesh and will be the ninth edition
of the exercise which is hosted alternately by
both countries.
134. Assam tops in budgetary practices
About: Assam has emerged as the top state in
terms of best practices followed in budget
formulation, followed by Odisha and Andhra
Pradesh.
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Survey by: Transparency International
Parameters: public disclosure, budgetary
process, post budget fiscal management and
efforts to make budget more transparent and
citizen friendly.
Lower ranking: Goa, Maharashtra and
Punjab.
135. 34th SurajkundMela 2020
About: The Surajkund Mela is The World‘s
Largest International Crafts Fair, organized by
the SurajkundMela Authority & Haryana
Tourism in collaboration with Union
Ministries of Tourism, Textiles, Culture and
External Affairs.
Theme State:Himachal Pradesh
SurajkundMela: is a platform for artists
across the globe to showcase their culture and
talent. Hosted annually by the Haryana
Tourism Department
Haryana CM: ManoharLalKhattar
International 1. Guinea-Bissau opposition leader wins
presidential election
In the West African state of Guinea-Bissau,
UmaroSissocoEmbalo has won presidential
elections, picking up 53.55 per cent of votes.
His rival DomingosSimoes Pereira, head of the
country's ruling party PAIGC, bagged 46.45
percent votes.
Reason: To protect its vulnerable coral reefs.
The government has signed a law that restricts
the sale and use of sunscreen and skincare
products that contain a list of ten different
chemicals.
Sunscreen products harm corals: Two
ingredients called oxybenzone and octinoxate.
These are used as sun protection factors as
they absorb ultraviolet light.
Research published in 2015 showed that the
oxybenzone could stunt the growth of baby
corals and was toxic to several different coral
species in laboratory tests.
Palau's President: Tommy Remengesau
2. 2020: Year of the Nurse and the Midwife
About: World Health Organization (WHO)
designated the year 2020 as the ‗Year of the
Nurse and the Midwife‘ in honor of the 200th
birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale.
WHO will also launch of the first-ever State of
the World‘s Nursing report, which will be
launched in 2020. This report will describe the
nursing workforce in WHO Member States
providing an assessment of ‗fitness for
purpose.‘
Florence Nightingale: byname Lady with the
Lamp, (born May 12, 1820, Florence [Italy),
British nurse, statistician, and social reformer
who was the foundational philosopher of
modern nursing.
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Nightingale was put in charge of nursing
British and allied soldiers in Turkey during the
Crimean War. She spent many hours in the
wards, and her night rounds giving personal
care to the wounded established her image as
the ―Lady with the Lamp.‖
3. US kill top Iranian general in Baghdad air
strike
About: The QasemSoleimani, 62-year-old
spearheaded Iranian military operations in the
Middle East as head of Iran's elite Quds Force
was killed at Baghdad airport, along with other
Iran-backed militia figures in a strike ordered
by US President Donald Trump.
Reason: US have called the commander and
the Quds Force terrorists and holds them
responsible for the deaths of hundreds of US
personnel.
Qasem Soleimani: was an Iranian major
general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps (IRGC) and, from 1998, commander of
its Quds Force, a division primarily
responsible for extraterritorial military and
clandestine operations.
4. Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index
India‟s rank: 34th
(40th rank in 2017)
Index by: World Economic Forum (WEF)
Top position:Spain
Parameters: The Travel and Tourism
Competitiveness Index (TTCI) analyzed 139
countries and scored each according to three
sub-indices: Regulatory Framework; Business
Environment and Infrastructure; and Human,
Cultural and Natural Resources.
5. Army to sign MoU for AK-203 assault rifles
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU):
Between India and Russia
Reason: For the procurement of over 7.5 lakh
AK-203 assault rifles, which are to be
manufactured locally by an India-Russia joint
venture (JV).
Defense Minister:Rajnath Singh
Other small arms: In addition to the AK-203,
the Army recently began inducting the first
batch of 10,000 SIG-716 assault rifles. Troops
engaged in counter insurgency operations in
the Army‘s Northern Command have started
receiving these rifles.
Replacing INSAS: The Army has been
looking to replace the indigenous INSAS
(Indian National Small Arms System) rifles in
use with a modern rifle.
6. 12th edition 'Naseem-Al-Bahr' Naval
exercise
Between: India and Oman
Two ships of the Royal Navy of Oman (RNO)
RNOV Al Rasikh and RNOV Khassab arrived at
Mormugao Port in Goa.
Indian ships: Beas and Subhadra are
participating.
'Naseem-Al-Bahr' (or sea breeze): is a naval
exercise between the Indian Navy and the RNO,
being conducted since 1993.
7. Croatia elects ZoranMilanovic as president
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Party: Social democratic party
Currency: Croatian kuna
Capital: Zagreb
8. Indian-born author wins UK children's
book award
About: India-born author JasbinderBilan has
bagged a coveted UK children's book award.
Novel: 'Asha and the Spirit Bird'(childhood of
author in Himalayan territories)
Bilan will receive 5,000 pounds as the winner of
the award, open to authors resident in the UK and
Ireland and presented annually across five
categories of First Novel, Novel, Biography,
Poetry and Children's Book.
9. Geo-political risk of 2020
Report by: the Eurasia Group
Highlights: India under Prime Minister
NarendraModi has been listed as the fifth
biggest geo-political risk of 2020.
Listis topped by elections in the US and
followed by events and developments like the
US-China technology tug of war on 5G as well
as the trade war between Beijing and
Washington.
10. Israel Reveals Breakthrough in Laser-
Based Aerial Defense System
Uses: the technological development will
enable the long-range targeting and
stabilization of laser beams, allowing them to
intercept targets at great distances.
Effective laser weapons system that can cut
through the iron of rockets and missiles from
kilometers away.‖
Developed by: Defense Ministry in
collaboration with Israeli companies Rafael
Advanced Defense Systems and Elbit Systems.
Defense Minister:Naftali Bennett
11. World's most powerful passports ranking
2020
Report by: Henley & Partners
About: Indian passport has been ranked 84th
(dropped by 2 positions) in the list of world's most
powerful passports in a recent report released by
Henley & Partners.
Indian passport got a score of 58, which means
Indian passport holders can visit 58 countries
without prior visa. India shared the rank with
Mauritania and Tajikistan.
World's 10 most powerful passports:
Japan: 191 countries
Singapore: 190 countries
Germany and South Korea: 189 countries
Finland and Italy: 188 countries
Denmark, Luxembourg and Spain: 187
countries
France and Sweden: 186 countries
Austria, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal and
Switzerland: 185 countries
Belgium, Greece, Norway, UK and USA:
184 countries
Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, Malta
and New Zealand: 183
Hungary, Lithuania and Slovakia: 181
12. Haitham bin Tariq al-Said takes over as
Sultan of Oman
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About: Haitham bin Tariq al-Said took over as
Sultan of the Oman after the death of long-time
ruler Qaboos. The new ruler is the cousin of late
Sultan Qaboos. Sultan Qaboos died last evening at
the age of 79 following a prolonged illness.
Qaboos had ruled Oman since 1970 and was the
eighth sultan of the House of Al Said. He was the
longest-serving monarch among the recent Arab
rulers.
13. Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen secures
second term
Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen secured a
victory in presidential elections with voters
resoundingly handing its first female leader a
second term. Her main rival, Han Kuo-yu of
the China-friendly Kuomintang (KMT) party,
has conceded defeat.
14. Statue of Unity finds place in '8 Wonders of
SCO' External Affairs Minister: S Jaishankar
About: The 182-meter tall Statue of Unity in
Gujarat has been included in the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization‘s '8 Wonders of SCO'
list
Eight wonders are: 1. Statue of Unity in India,
2. Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly in
Kazakhstan,
3. Daming Palace in China,
4. Lake Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan,
5. Heritage of the Mughal Dynasty in
Pakistan,
6. Golden Ring of Russia,
7. Navruz Palace in Tajikistan
8. Historic Centre of Bukhara in Uzbekistan
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization
(SCO): is a Eurasian political, economic, and
security alliance, the creation of which was
announced on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China
by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan,
the organization has expanded its membership
to eight countries when India and Pakistan
joined SCO as full members on 9 June 2017 at
a summit in Astana.
The Statue of Unity: is a colossal statue of
SardarVallabhbhai Patel (1875–1950), who was
the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home
minister of independent India. It is located in
the state of Gujarat, India. It is the world's
tallest statue with a height of (597 ft) 182
meters. It is located on a river facing the
SardarSarovar Dam on river Narmada.
The project was first announced in 2010;it was
designed by Indian sculptor Ram V. Sutar, and
was inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister
NarendraModi on 31 October 2018, the 143rd
birth anniversary of Patel.
15. ISRO to launch GSAT-30
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About: The Indian space agency ISRO is
collaborating with the European aerospace
company Arianespace to launch its next
telecommunication satellite mission, GSAT-30.
The satellite is due for launch into orbit on Friday,
17 January 2020.
Launch station: Guiana Space Center in Kourou,
French Guiana.
Rocket: the Ariane 5 will be carrying a second
telecommunication satellite for European space
company EutelsatKonnect. The rocket will first
place the GSAT-30 in orbit, followed by the
release of Eutelsat'sKonnect.
GSAT-30: The GSAT-30 was designed and
manufactured by the Indian Space Research
Organization. It will be placed at a longitude of
83° east and will provide high-quality television,
telecommunications and broadcasting services to
the mainland and India's islands.
GSAT-30 has a mission life of 15 years, and will
be replacing the Insat 4A satellite currently in
orbit.
KONNECT: a satellite owned by Eutelsat
communications and manufactured by Thales
Alenia Space, is a new-generation high-throughput
telecom satellite that can deliver services across
Europe and Africa. Weighing around 3,620 kg, It
will provide internet access to both companies and
individuals at speeds of up to 100 Mbps, as per
Eutelsat's website.
16. World Future Energy Summit to begin in
Abu Dhabi
Theme: "Rethinking Global Consumption,
Production, and Investment."
Highlight: World Future Energy Summit is
the Middle East‘s largest future energy and
sustainability event. The 2020 edition includes
exhibition and forum programmes across five
main pillars: energy, solar, water, waste and
smart cities, hosting an unrivalled gathering of
top-level government and business leaders.
The event will showcase 42 of the world‘s
most disruptive innovations, selected from
1,402 global submissions from 128 countries,
related to the future of energy, food,
agriculture and sustainability in space.
17. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
submits resignation
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has
resigned. Medvedev submitted his resignation
to President Vladimir Putin.
18. Robert Abela wins election to be prime
minister of Malta
Robert Abela won the Labour Party leadership
contest with 57.9% of the vote.
19. Harish Salve appointed Queen's Counsel for
courts of England & Wales
About: The title of Queen's Counsel is usually
awarded to lawyers possessing demonstrated
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skill and expertise in the conduct of advocacy.
The appointment is done by the Queen, on the
advice of the Lord Chancellor. He is advised
by an independent Selection Panel which
makes recommendations.
Harish Salve:Advocate Salve served as a
Solicitor General for India until 2002. He is
known for representing India before the
International Court of Justice in the
KulbhushanJadhav extradition case.
20. 50th World Economic Forum to begin in
Switzerland
About: Union Minister for Commerce and
Industry PiyushGoyal to lead Indian
delegation50th World Economic Forum. 53
heads of state or government from 117
countries are participating in the event.
Theme: 'Stakeholders for a Cohesive and
Sustainable World'
Highlight: Among other highlights of the
forum is Indian actress DeepikaPadukone, who
will be given a WEF crystal award for her
work on mental health while the US rapper
William Adams will be talking about ending
gun violence.
21. China reports SARS-like virus spreads
across country
China reported a mysterious SARS-like virus
has spread across the country, including to
Beijing. A third person was confirmed to have
died and nearly 140 cases were announced.
The new coronavirus strain has caused alarm
because of its connection to Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome, which killed nearly
650 people across mainland China and Hong
Kong in 2002-2003.
22. India to setup maritime research
coordination center in Sri Lanka
India's National Security Advisor: Ajit
Doval
Sri Lanka President:GotabayaRajapaksa
India National Security Advisor and Sri Lanka
President discussed setting up a maritime
research coordination center; two countries
also discussed closer military and coastguard
cooperation.
23. RBI ranked sixth among central banks in
buying gold abroad
Report by: World Gold Council (WGC)
About: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
bought 7.5 tonnes of gold last October,
buttressing its foreign exchange reserves to
$450 billion. The RBI holds 625.2 tonnes of
gold, forming 6.6 per cent of its forex reserves
RBI became the sixth largest buyer when it
purchased 25.2 tonnes in first 10 months of
2019 to hedge government‘s sovereign gold
bond issue.
Other rankings: The central banks of China,
Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Poland bought
more than India in 2019.
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24. Truenat MTB, TB diagnostic test developed
in India
About: World Health Organization (WHO)
had mentioned that the India-made Truenat
MTB, a molecular diagnostic test for
pulmonary and extrapulmonary TB and
rifampicin-resistant TB, has high accuracy.
Truenat MTB has ―high diagnostic accuracy as
initial test to diagnose TB and to sequentially
detect rifampicin resistance. It will be used as
an initial test thus replacing sputum smear
microscopy.
Developed by: Truenat is developed by the
Goa-based Molbio Diagnostics. The company
was provided with technical assistance and
resources by the Foundation for Innovative
New Diagnostics (FIND) to help
commercialiseTruenat.
Highlight:
While sputum microscopy has only about 50%
sensitivity, Truenat has been found to have
higher sensitivity and specificity.
While Xpert needs reliable electricity supply
and air-conditioning, Truenat is battery
operated and portable, hence, it can be used in
remote places.
The main cost advantage while using Truenat
will be in the manner the tests are carried out.
Only when samples test positive will the test
for rifampicin resistance be carried out in the
case of Truenat. This is unlike Xpert where
both TB diagnosis and rifampicin resistance
test are done in one go.
25. PM Modi, Nepali PM to inaugurate ICP
Biratnagar
About: The Prime Minister,
ShriNarendraModi, will jointly inaugurate the
second Integrated Check Post (ICP) at
Jogbani-Biratnagar with Prime Minister of
Nepal, Shri K.P. Oli.
The second Integrated Check Post at Jogbani-
Biratnag is built with Indian assistance to
facilitate trade and people‘s movement across
India-Nepal border.
ICP Biratnagar: has been built on 260 acres
of land at a cost of around 140 crore rupees. It
has the facilities for immigration clearance of
foreign passengers, export and import cargo
handling.
Jobgani (Bihar)-Biratnagar: international
trade point is one of the important trade points
between the two countries. Biratnagar is also
the third-largest Revenue Collecting Customs
Office of Nepal.
Boundary sharing:India and Nepal share over
1,850 kilometers- long border
26. Hyderabad, Bengaluru top two among most
dynamic cities in the world
Report by: US-based Jones Lang Lasalle
(JLL)
About: Out of 130 other cities in the world
Hyderabad emerge as the world's most
dynamic city, Bengaluru ranks second place,
Chennai is at fifth and Delhi is at sixth place.
Highlight: Out of 130 dynamic cities in the
world, 7 Indian cities listed in top 20.
27. India ranks 76th on WEF‟s social mobility
index
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About: India ranked 76th among 82 countries
on the social mobility index of the World
Economic Forum (WEF) on account of its
poor performance in improving the quality of
and access to education and health.
The Nordic countries: Denmark, Norway,
Sweden, Finland, Iceland—occupied the top
five positions.
Parameters: health, education, technology,
work, and social protection and inclusive
institutions.
28. India slips 10 places to 51 positionin
Democracy Index
Report by: The Economist Intelligence Unit
About: India slipped 10 places to 51st position
(overall score 6.90) in the 2019 Democracy
Index's global ranking;the primary cause of the
democratic regression was an erosion of civil
liberties in the country.
India's overall score fell from 7.23 in 2018 to
6.90 in the Index that provides a snapshot of
the current state of democracy worldwide for
165 independent states and two territories.
Parameters: electoral process and pluralism;
the functioning of government; political
participation; political culture; and civil
liberties.
Category: Based on their total score, the
countries are classified as one of four types of
regime: "full democracy" (scores greater than
8); flawed democracy (India) - scores greater
than 6 and less than or equal to 8; hybrid
regime - scores greater than 4 and less than or
equal to 6; authoritarian regime - scores less
than or equal to 4".
Top ranks: Topped by Norway, followed by
Iceland and Sweden. Other countries in the top
10 include New Zealand at the fourth place,
Finland (5th), Ireland (6th), Denmark (7th),
Canada (8th), Australia (9th) and Switzerland
(10th).
29. ECI to Host 10th Annual Meeting of the
Forum of the Election Management Bodies
of South Asia
About: The Election Commission of India is
going to host the 10th annual meeting of the
Forum of the Election Management Bodies of
South Asia (FEMBoSA) at New Delhi & an
International Conference on ‗Strengthening
Institutional Capacity‘
Theme: ‗Strengthening Institutional Capacity‘
FEMBoSA: was established at the 3rd
Conference of Heads of Election Management
Bodies (EMBs) of SAARC Countries held at
New Delhi from April 30 to May 2, 2012. The
annual FEMBoSA meeting is held by rotation
among the members. The last (9th) annual
meeting of FEMBoSA was held in Dhaka
Objectives: To promote contact among the
EMBs of the SAARC countries; share
experiences with a view to learning from each
other and cooperate with one another in
enhancing the capabilities of the EMBs
towards conducting free and fair elections.
30. India climbs eight ranks to 72 in Global
Talent Competitive Index
Report by: INSEAD in partnership with The
Adecco Group and Google.
About: India climbed eight positions in a year
to reach rank 72 (rank 80 in 2019) in the
Global Talent Competitive Index (GTCI)
2020.
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Top ranks: Switzerland, USA and Singapore
took the top-three positions in GTCI 2020.
Parameters: enable, attract, grow, retain,
vocational skills and global knowledge skills.
31. India slips two places on global corruption
perception index
Report by: Transparency International
About: India‘s ranking in the Corruption
Perceptions Index (CPI-2019) has slipped from
78 to 80 compared to the previous year
The top ranked countries: are New Zealand
and Denmark, with scores of 87 each, followed
by Finland (86), Singapore (85), Sweden (85)
and Switzerland (85).
Low ranked countries: The countries ranked
at the bottom of the list are Somalia, South
Sudan and Syria with scores of 9, 12 and 13.
32. India ranks 76th on WEF‟s social mobility
index
About: India ranked 76th among 82 countries
on the social mobility index of the World
Economic Forum (WEF) on account of its
poor performance in improving the quality of
and access to education and health.
The Nordic countries: Denmark, Norway,
Sweden, Finland, Iceland—occupied the top
five positions.
Parameters: health, education, technology,
work, and social protection and inclusive
institutions
33. Slovenian Prime Minister MarjanSarec
resigns
Slovenian Prime Minister MarjanSarec
(Slovenia's youngest-ever Prime Minister)
announced for step down and called for fresh
elections, following weeks of rising tensions
within his minority five-party coalition
government.
President:BorutPahor
34. Qatar names Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin
Abdelaziz Al Thani new PM
Qatar appointed a new Prime Minister
replacing Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin
Khalifa Al Thani.
2. French honor for theatre artiste
SanjanaKapoor
About: Theatre person SanjanaKapoor will
receive the prestigious French honour of
‗Chevalier danslOrdre des Arts et des Lettres
(Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) for her
outstanding contribution to the field of theatre.
35. Indian environmental economist
PavanSukhdev wins 2020 Tyler Prize
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About: Renowned Indian environmental
economist and UN Environment Programme
(UNEP) Goodwill Ambassador PavanSukhdev
has won the 2020 Tyler Prize, regarded as the
"Nobel Prize for the Environment" for his
groundbreaking "green economy" work.
Sukhdev, 59, who will receive the award
alongside conservation biologist Gretchen
Daily, They will each receive a gold medallion
and share a USD 200,000 cash prize, it was
announced on Monday.
Tyler Prize:for Environmental Achievement
is one of the oldest international environmental
awards, recognizing individuals who have
contributed in an outstanding manner to the
scientific knowledge and public leadership to
preserve and enhance the global environment,
the Tyler Prize is administered by the
University of Southern California.
36. Bengaluru has the worst traffic in the world
Report by: TomTom(the Netherlands-based
global provider of navigation, traffic and map
products)
About: Bengaluru is the world's most traffic
congested city. India‘s startup hub beat 415
other cities across 57 countries to earn the title
in 2019.Manila in the Philippines came a close
second.
Other Indian cities:Mumbai, Pune and New
Delhi featured in top 10, taking fourth, fifth
and eighth places respectively.
37. India's Gita Sabharwal Appointed UN
Resident Coordinator in Thailand
About: The UN has appointed India's Gita
Sabharwal, who has over two decades of
experience in peace building and social policy,
as the Resident Coordinator in Thailand.
UN Resident Coordinator: Itis the highest-
ranking representative of the UN development
system at the country level. Resident
Coordinators lead UN Country Teams and
coordinate the world body's support to
countries in implementing the 2030 Agenda.
Resident Coordinators are the designated
representatives of the UN Secretary-General
and report to the UN chief.
United Nations Secretary-General: Antonio
Guterres
38. Arvind Krishna elected IBM CEO
About: Indian-origin technology executive
Arvind Krishna has been elected Chief
Executive Officer of American IT giant IBM,
succeeding Virginia Rometty.
Krishna is currently IBM Senior Vice
President for Cloud and Cognitive Software
and will succeed Virginia Rometty
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Indian-origin CEO‟s: of multinational
companies are Microsoft CEO SatyaNadella,
Google and Alphabet CEO SundarPichai,
MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga, PepsiCo‘s
former CEO Indra Nooyi and Adobe CEO
Shantanu Narayen.
Sports 1. Manav Thakkar becomes world no.1 in
International Table Tennis Federation
rankings
About: Young Indian paddler ManavThakkar
became world no.1 in the latest International
Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings in
the Under-21 men's singles category. With
this, Thakkar became the fourth Indian to
achieve the feat after Harmeet Desai, G
Sathiyan and SoumyajitGhosh.
2. IrfanPathan announces retirement from all
forms of Cricket
Indian all-rounder IrfanPathan last played for
India in October 2012. He played 29 Tests,
120 ODIs and 24 T20Is. He was part of the
victorious Indian team at the 2007 World
Twenty20 and was the man-of-the-match in
the final against Pakistan.
3. P.Magesh Chandran lifts 95th Hastings
International Chess title
India‘s P. MageshChandran remained
unbeaten in nine rounds to win the title in the
95th edition of the prestigious Hastings
International Chess Congress in Hastings,
England.
The 36-year old Grand Master (GM) with a
FIDE rating of 2479, remained unbeaten and
finished in clear first place with 7.5 points in
the final round against compatriot G.A. Stany.
4. JaspritBumrah to receive Polly Umrigar
Award
About: The BCCI announced that India's pace
spearhead JaspritBumrah will receive the
prestigious Polly Umrigar Award for his super
performance in international cricket in the 2018-19
season.
PoonamYadav: has claimed the top prize in
women's section and will be awarded the best
international cricketer. The award will be another
feather in the leg-spinner's cap who recently
received the Arjuna Award.
Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award:
KrishnamachariSrikkanth
BCCI Lifetime Achievement Award for
women: Anjum Chopra
5. Momota wins Malaysia Masters crown KentoMomota, defeated former Badminton
world champion Viktor Axelsen to win the
season-opening Malaysia Masters at Axiata
Arena.
Results Men's singles: KentoMomota (Jpn) bt Viktor
Axelsen (Den)
Doubles: Kim Gi Jung-Lee Yong Dae (Kor) bt
Li Jun Hui-Liu Yu Chen (Chn)
Women's singles: Chen Yu Fei (Chn) bt Tai
Tzu Ying (Tai)
Doubles: Li Wen Mei-Zheng Yu (Chn) bt Du
Yue-Li Yin Hui (Chn)
Mixed doubles: Zheng Si Wei-Huang YaQiong
(Chn) bt Wang Yi Lyu-Huang Dong Ping
6. Momota wins Malaysia Masters crown
KentoMomota, defeated former Badminton
world champion Viktor Axelsen to win the
season-opening Malaysia Masters at Axiata
Arena.
Results Men's singles: KentoMomota (Jpn) bt Viktor
Axelsen (Den)
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Doubles: Kim Gi Jung-Lee Yong Dae (Kor) bt
Li Jun Hui-Liu Yu Chen (Chn)
Women's singles: Chen Yu Fei (Chn) bt Tai
Tzu Ying (Tai)
Doubles: Li Wen Mei-Zheng Yu (Chn) bt Du
Yue-Li Yin Hui (Chn)
Mixed doubles: Zheng Si Wei-Huang
YaQiong (Chn) bt Wang Yi Lyu-Huang Dong
Ping
7. Annual ICC awards
The annual ICC awards were declared with
Ben Stokes winning the highest prize in the
form of Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for world
player of the year.
List of winners: Umpire of the year: Richard Illingworth
(England)
T20I Performance of the Year: Deepak
Chahar‘s 6/7 against Bangladesh
ICC Men‘s Emerging Cricketer:
MarnusLabuschagne (Australia)
Associate Cricketer of the Year: Kyle Coetzer
(Scotland)
Spirit of Cricket Award: ViratKohli (India)
ICC ODI Cricketer of the Year: Rohit Sharma
(India)
ICC Test Cricketer of the Year: Pat Cummins
(Australia)
ICC Men‘s Cricketer of the Year (Sir Garfield
Sobers Trophy): Ben Stokes (England)
ICC ODI Team of the Year 2019: Rohit
Sharma, Shai Hope, ViratKohli (c), Babar
Azam, Kane Williamson, Ben Stokes, Jos
Buttler (wk), Mitchell Starc, Trent Boult,
Mohammed Shami, KuldeepYadav
ICC Test Team of the Year 2019:
MayankAgarwal, Tom Latham,
MarnusLabuschagne, ViratKohli (c), Steve
Smith, Ben Stokes, BJ Watling (wk), Pat
Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Neil Wagner,
Nathan Lyon
8. Arjun Munda elected president of Archery
Association of India Minister of Tribal AffairsArjunMunda elected
as president of the suspended Archery
Association of India (AAI).
Elected members: President: Arjun Munda (Jharkhand)
Secretary General: Pramod Chandurkar
(Maharashtra)
Senior Vice-President: Capt Abhimanyu
Sindhu (Haryana)
Treasurer: Rajendar Singh Tomar
(Uttaranchal).
Special days 1. World Braille Day About: The world Braille Day is being celebrated
on Jan 4. The day is marked remembering the
birth anniversary of Louis Braille, French educator
and inventor of a system of reading and writing for
use by the blind or visually impaired. Louis Braille
was born on 4th January 1809 in the town of
Coupvray in northern France.
2. SavitribaiPhule‟s 189th birth anniversary
About: January 3 marks the birthday of the
‗mother of Indian feminism‘ SavitribaiPhule, who
is regarded as the first female teacher of India, a
social reformer, an educationist and a poetess.
Phule, along with her husband JyotiraoPhule,
dedicated her life to the cause of women‘s rights
and education.
She is considered to be an important figure in the
social reform movement, particularly in the state
of Maharashtra (Birthplace).
She opened the very first school for girls in India.
Later, they started 18 more such schools.
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3. 16th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas being
celebrated today
External Affairs Minister:Dr S Jaishankar
About: The day is celebrated every year on
9th
January to mark the contribution of overseas
Indian community in the development of India.
It also commemorates the return of Mahatma
Gandhi from South Africa to India on 9
January 1915.
Established in 2003 the celebratory event is
organized by the Ministry of External Affairs
every year on this day.
4. World Hindi Day being celebrated
January 10
this commemorated every year with
the objective to promote use of Hindi language
abroad. Special functions are being organized
to mark the occasion.
On this day in 2006 the First World Hindi
Conference was organized in Nagpur with the
aim to promote the language worldwide and
since then every year 10th January is being
observed as the World Hindi Day.
5. National Youth Day
About: On the birth anniversary of Swami
Vivekananda, January 12. India celebrates
National Youth Day across the country.
World's Parliament of Religions: Vivekananda
became popular in the western world after his
famous speech at the World's Parliament of
Religions held in Chicago in 1893.
Born as NarendranathDatta on January 12, 1863,
Vivekananda, who was the chief disciple of the
19th-century mystic Ramakrishna Paramhansa,
was the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the
Ramakrishna Mission at Belur in erstwhile
Bengal.
6. 72nd Army Day
Army day is celebrated on January 15 to
commemorate the day when General (late
Field Marshal) K M Carriappa took over the
command of Army from General Sir F R R
Bucher, the last British Commander-in-Chief
in 1949 and became the first Commander-in-
Chief of Indian Army post Independence.
7. 10th National Voters‟ Day to be celebrated
on 25th January 2020
About: The National Voters‘ Day (NVD) has
been celebrated on January 25 every year since
2011, to mark the Foundation day of Election
Commission of India, which was established
on 25th January 1950.
The main purpose of the NVD celebration is to
encourage, facilitate and maximize the
enrolment, especially for the new voters.
Theme: Electoral Literacy for Stronger
Democracy
Union Minister for Law and Justice: Ravi
Shankar Prasad
8. National Girl Child Day 2020
The National Girl Child Day is celebrated on
January 24, Started by the Ministry of Women
and Child Development and the Government
of India in 2008
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The purpose of the day is to spread awareness
among the people about the inequalities girls
face in India. It also aims towards promoting
awareness about the rights of the girl child and
to increase awareness on the importance of girl
education, and their health and nutrition.
Women and Child Development Minister:
Smriti Irani
9. Field Marshall Cariappa 121st birth
anniversary
Born on 29 January 1898, in Madikeri,
Kodagu,was the first Indian Commander-in-
Chief of the Indian Army. He led Indian forces
on the Western Front during the Indo-Pakistani
War of 1947. He was appointed Commander-
in-Chief of the Indian Army in 1949. He is one
of only two Indian Army officers to hold the
Five-star rank of Field Marshal; the other
being Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw.
10. LalaLajpatRai‟s 155th birth anniversary
LalaLajpatRai, popularly known as Punjab
Kesari, was one of the many key
revolutionaries who fought for India‘s freedom
from British rule.
Born in Punjab on January 28 1865,
LalaLajpatRai was a part of the famous ‗Lal-
Bal-Pal‘ trio. BalGangadharTilak and Bipin
Chandra Pal were the other members.
LalaLajpatRai, BalGangadharTilak and Bipin
Chandra Pal together started the Swadeshi
Movement during the Independence
movement to boycott British goods
LalaLajpatRai also played an instrumental role
in founding the Punjab National Bank (PNB)
in 1894.
A Hindu's Impression, AryaSamaj, Young
India, England‘s debt to India are some of the
books written by the freedom fighter.
In 1928, Rai led the non-violent march against
the Simon Commission, set up by the British
rulers. The slogan ―Simon, go back!‖ became
famous during the Independence movement
He had also helped establish the Dayanand
Anglo-Vedic school system, popularly known
as DAV schools. In present day, there are over
900 DAV schools and 75 colleges across the
country.
In 1921, Rai founded the Servants of the
People Society, which was a non-profit
welfare organization, in Lahore. The society
was shifted to Delhi after 1947.
11. World Leprosy Day
The world observes World Leprosy Day on
January 30, 2020.
Leprosy is a complex disease that is caused by
bacteria called Mycobacterium leprae. Also
called Hansen's disease
The day was initiated in 1954 by French
philanthropist and writer, Raoul Follereau.
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Obituary 1. NCP leader Devi Prasad Tripathi passes
away
Devi Prasad Tripathi, general secretary of the
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), widely
renowned for his erudition and oratory, Dr.
Tripathi, 70, was the party RajyaSabha
member from 2012 to 2016.
2. Sitarist Hameed Khan passes away
Hameed Khan, a noted sitar exponent and
descendant of renowned sitaristUstadRahimat
Khan, passed away in Dharwad. He was 69.
Hameed Khan taught sitar at Karnatak
University‘s College of Music and also at the
family run music school
‗BharateeyaSangeetaVidyalaya‘. He
established ‗KalakeriSangeetVidyalaya‘ at
Kalakeri village near Dharwad, which provides
music lessons to the deprived.
3. Former Karnataka Governor T N
Chaturvedi passes away
He was the 14th Governor of Karnataka. He
was appointed as Governor in 2002 by the
NDA government headed by AtalBihari
Vajpayee.
T N Chaturvedi also served as of Comptroller
and Auditor General of India from 1984 to
1989. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan
in 1991.
4. Kannada scholar Chidananda Murthy
passes away
About: Murthy was known for his work on
Kannada inscriptions. His work played a key role
in deciding the antiquity of the Kannada, which
helped get the language Classical Language status
from the Union government in 2008. He was also
a vocal Kannada activist, leading Kannada Shakti
Kendra in 1970s and 1980s.
He had also launched a campaign to save the
monuments of Hampi. Chief Minister B. S.
Yediyurappa renamed Hyderabad Karnataka — a
group of six districts formerly under the
administration of Nizam of Hyderabad — as
Kalyana Karnataka, as demanded by Murthy.
5. Sultan Qaboos Dies at 79
Internationally, as the longest-serving leader in
the Arab world Oman Sultan Qaboos bin
passes away.
6. Cricketer BapuNadkarni passes away
About: left-arm spinner BapuNadkarni, who
passed away at the age of 86 in Mumbai
Friday.
Rameshchandra Gangaram Nadkarni known
for his economy rate over 41 Test matches was
1.67. While he played in the 1950s and 1960s,
he finished with the fourth best economy rate
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for anyone in history who bowled more than
2,000 balls.
Nadkarnitook 88 Test wickets, 1,414 Test
runs, one Test century, 500 first-class wickets,
8,880 first-class runs and a first-class average
of 40.36.
7. Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna among 9
killed in helicopter crash in California
Kobe Bryant, one of the greatest basketball
players of all time and an internationally
recognizable NBA superstar, died in a
helicopter crash outside Los Angeles.
He played his entire 20-year career with the
Los Angeles Lakers. He retired in April 2016.
He was twice the NBA scoring champion and
a two-time Olympic champion.
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