Current Affair of January 2022

National

1. On 1 January, 2022, a special committee has submitted report to the Supreme Court on reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). In a report, the panel has suggested to implement the recommendations only from the next admission cycle and not from the ongoing session.

2. Recently, a man was thrashed by the villagers at Besrazara Bazaar Tand, Simdega in Jharkhand and later burnt alive in presence of police. The man was burnt alive for allegedly cutting trees illegally and selling them in market, which is considered as violation of 'Khuntkatti' law.

3. On 3 January, 2022, police apprehended an engineering student from Bengaluru to question in connection with its probe into two apps on which images of Muslim women were posted to "auction" them. The latest app came to light on 1 January, when targeted women approached police. Previous app was floated in July 2021.

4. The Energy Transition Advisory Committee was formed by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. It is headed by Tarun Kapoor, former Secretary of Petroleum Ministry. It will focus on increasing the share of clean energy sources such as hydrogen, biofuel, nuclear, geothermal, tidal in the energy mix of the country.

5. Monoceromyia flavoscutata is a new species recently discovered in India. Along with Monoceromyia flavoscutata, researchers also found Monoceromyia nigra. These newly discovered species were classified as a new type Syrphid flies.

6. Ministry of Civil Aviation released the draft "National Air Sports Policy (NASP)" on 3 January, 2022 for public feedback. The draft policy is available on Ministry’s website, for which suggestions can be sent by 31 January, 2022.

7. The Bombay High Court recently pronounced that whether to announce public holiday or not is government decision. And public holiday is not a fundamental right. The High Court pronounced that India has too many public holidays. It is important to reduce them.

8. On 4 January, 2022, deputy chief minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia handed over the first caste certificate based on Single mother. The certificate was issued to a child of a single mother, on the mother’s credentials. The mother was struggling to get an SC caste certificate for her child for last eight years.

9. The Delhi Teachers University Bill was passed by Delhi Assembly on 4 January, 2022. The bill seeks to set up a teacher's training university in Delhi. This university will offer a four-year integrated teacher education programme after Class 12.

10. The Election Commission of India recently announced the election dates of five states. They are Punjab, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Manipur and Uttarakhand. In Uttar Pradesh, the elections are to be held in seven phases. In Manipur, it is to be held in two phases. In Goa, Uttarakhand and Punjab, the assembly elections are to be held in single phase.

11. The Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory is to get a district–level Good Governance Index. The index is modelled on Good Governance Index 2021. The index will assess the governance in different districts of Jammu and Kashmir. It is to be calculated considering 58 indicators in ten different sectors.

12. The Plan Bee was launched by Northern Frontier Railway. It aims to keep the elephants away from the train tracks. The plan recently won Best Innovation Award from the Indian Railways. These devices create the buzzing sounds of swarming bees. Elephants get irritated to the buzzing sounds of bees. And try to stay away from the sound.

13. The Jammu and Kashmir administration gave its approval to declare more than a thousand kanals of land in Gulmarg and 354 kanals in Sonamarg areas as "strategic areas". This land will be utilised for "operational and training requirements" of the armed forces.

14. The Odisha Wildlife Organization recently conducted a bird census in the Chilika lake. The organization was joined by Chilika Development Authority and Bombay Natural History Society.

15. Karnataka Government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Singapore-based LNG Alliance Company to set up the State’s first LNG Terminal in Mangalore. The first LNG terminal will be set up in Karnataka, in collaboration with New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT).

16. Ganjam district of Odisha has declared itself a child marriage free district, first in the State. In last two years, 2020 & 2021, Ganjam district administration has been able to stop around 450 child marriages and video-record 48,383 marriages.

17. On 5 January, 2022, the Union government launched an action plan for introducing Cheetah in India. The 'Action Plan for Introduction of Cheetah in India' was released by environment ministry in the 19th meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority.

18. On 5 January, 2022, Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change shared the draft notification for regulations on "extended producer responsibility (EPR) for waste tyres". The regulation will be effective in the fiscal year 2022-23, if finalised.

19. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy recently announced that India has reached its non–fossil fuel target much ahead of 2030. At the COP21, India had pledged to install 40% of overall electric energy from non–renewable sources. India aimed to achieve this target by 2030. But it has now achieved this well ahead in November 2021.

20. On 6 January, 2022, The Union Cabinet gave nod to several proposals including Phase 2 of Green Energy Corridor and MoU with Nepal for constructing bridge over Mahakali River. Government approved phase 2 of the green energy corridor under the "intra-state transmission system" for facilitating grid integration and power evacuation of around 20 gigawatts of renewable energy projects across 7 states.

21. The Special Protection Group was created in 1985. The SPG protects Prime Minister and his immediate family members. It also protects the former prime ministers. The act defines "Proximate Security" as providing protection in close distance when the PM travels by rail, road, watercraft, aircraft or on foot.

22. On 6 January, 2022, the Punjab Government created a high level team to investigate the security breach of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On January 5, 2022, Prime Minister landed at Bathinda. He was to visit National Martyrs Memorial in Hussainwala. On his way, his convoy was blocked by protestors and he was stuck for 15 to 20 minutes in a fly over.

23. As per new study on Children Asthma, traffic-related air pollutants accounts for around 2 million new cases of paediatric asthma, from Mumbai to Los Angeles. Asthma is a chronic illness, causing inflammation of the lung’s airways.

24. On 6 January, 2022, the Union Minister of State for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Jitendra Singh, inaugurated first "Open Rock Museum" in Hyderabad. The museum displays about 35 different varieties of rocks from different parts of India.

25. The Jammu & Kashmir police force is going to become the first police force in India, to possess modern American weaponry. Government has decided to equip the police force in Jammu & Kashmir with Sig Sauer MPX 9mm American pistols and American Sig Sauer rifles, in order to modernise it.

26. On 7 January, 2022, the Supreme Court of India allowed the commencement of counselling process for NEET-PG and NEET-UG for academic year 2021-22 admissions, based on the existing quota system. Court has upheld the constitutionality of 27% OBC reservation.

27. Election Commission of India (ECI) has enhanced election expenditure ceiling for candidates in assembly constituencies, ahead of assembly elections across five states. ECI enhanced election expenditure from the existing Rs. 20 lakh to Rs. 28 lakh and from Rs. 28 lakh to Rs. 40 lakh, in respective states and Union territories.

28. On 9 January, 2022, Uttar Pradesh government declared four villages across the Nepal border in the Bahraich district as revenue villages. The four villages are Bhavanipur, Tedhia, Dhakia and Bichhia. They are located in Mihinpurwa tehsil of the Bahraich district.

29. The Competition Commission of India recently ordered an investigation against Google for its dominance in news. Most of the online traffic of news websites come from Google. The Section 4 of Competition Act, 2002, deals with abuse of dominant position. That is no individual business man or entity should misuse its domination in the field. Google is using its dominance in the news genre to intervene advertising plans of the news channels.

30. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked to further extend the deadline of framing the rules of "Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019". MHA sought extension from parliamentary committees in the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. Third and the latest extension expired on 9 January, but MHA failed to notify the rules.

31. Information & Broadcasting Ministry asked the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC India) to resume "news channel ratings" with immediate effect. Ministry has asked to release of viewership data of news channels as well as to release the last three months data of news channels in monthly format.

32. The Gangasagar Mela started on 10 January, 2022 in the which occurs at West Bengal’s Gangasagar Island. It will continue till 16 January, 2022. The Gangasagar Mela is organised during Makar Sankranti every year. The mela is being organised after Calcutta high court gave a go-ahead to the government, to conduct the event by taking necessary covid-19 measures.

33. On 10 January, 2022, Ministry of home affairs (MHA) has released advisory on transgender persons in prisons. Ministry has asked prison authorities to make arrangements inside the jails in order to recognise the identity of transgender inmates and their rights are not discriminated.

34. The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) recently categorised the Red Sanders (or Red Sandalwood) again into the 'endangered' category in its Red List. The species, called Red Sanders, is scientifically called as Pterocarpus santalinus.

35. The Odisha Government recently increased the upper age limit of candidates to enter into State Civil services exams. The age was increased from 32 years to 38 years. This was done by amending the State Civil Services Rules, 1989. The increase in age limit has been made for 2021, 2022 and 2023 exams only.

36. On 10 January, 2022, India’s oldest sloth bear, named Gulabo, died at the Van Vihar National Park and Zoo in Bhopal. The bear was aged 40. The female sloth bear was one of the star attractions of this park.

37. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) projected that; western disturbance is likely to hit the eastern states from 11 January, 2022. Making these predictions, IMD issued yellow and orange alerts for the states of Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar, for 11 January to 13 January.

38. The Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) has created a committee to look into the concerns raised by students. The RRB released an employment notification for the Non – Technical category in 2019. The exam got postponed because of COVID. The candidates are not satisfied with the results and are raising concerns.

39. The Administration of Jammu and Kashmir recently notified Jammu and Kashmir Agricultural Land (Conversion for Non-Agricultural Purposes) Regulations 2022. The rules were notified under the Jammu and Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat 1996.

40. On 15 January, 2022, world’s largest national flag, made of Khadi fabric will be put to display, to celebrate the "Army Day". It will be displayed at Longewala, along the India – Pakistan Border in Jaisalmer. Longewala was the centre stage of historic battle of 1971 between India and Pakistan.

41. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare recently released commemorative postal stamp on COVID-19 vaccine. The stamp was launched to mark the first anniversary of the National COVID Vaccination Programme or the COVID vaccination drive.

42. The scientists of CRS have created a climate hazards and vulnerability atlas of India. CRS is Climate Research and Services and it operates under India Meteorological Department (IMD). The scientists created the map based on 14 extreme weather events.

43. The Andhra Pradesh State Government recently notified rules for the Mahila Police Wing. Also, it has created a separate women police cadre. The uniform of the new women police is Khaki colour. The wing comprises of inspectors, sub inspectors, senior mahila police, assistant sub inspectors, mahila police personnel.

44. A living root bridge is suspension bridge across small streams. They are built using living plant roots. These root bridges are common in Meghalaya. They are hand made. They are built using rubber of fig trees. They are built by the local Jaintia and Khasi people. Recently, the India has sought UNESCO World Heritage Tag for these bridges.

45. The campaign was launched in Kollam district of Kerala. The campaign is first of its kind. The campaign will educate the residents of the district about the basics of constitution. The campaign aims to make Kollam district a constitutionally literate district.

46. The Assam Government has recently decided to increase the size of Orang National Park. The park is to be expanded thrice. The State is to add 200.32 square kilometre to the Orang National Park. The area to be added consists of Brahmaputra river. It also includes sandbars and islands of the river.

47. The Kaziranga National Park is a Tiger Reserve and a World Heritage site. The park recently conducted its water fowl census. The census is conducted in the 52 wetlands in the parks. In 2021, the bird count increased to 93,491. It was 34,284 in 2020. The bird count has increased by 175% in one year.

48. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change recently released the State of Forest Report 2021. It is called the ISFR, 2021. The report says that there has been a continuous growth of forest cover in India. The current forest cover of India is 7,13,789 square kilometres.

49. The Department of Telecom, DoT has recently amended the telecom licenses. Through these amendments, the service providers will now roll out machine-to-machine communication. This communication is the major part of 5G technology.

50. The Government of India recently proposed to change the rules of appointing IAS officers. The changes were proposed by the Ministry of Personnel and Training on behalf of the Government of India. The ministry has stated that the states are not providing enough number of officers to be appointed centrally. It is mandatory for the states to contribute to the central deputation reserve. Because of this reason, there is shortage of officers at the centre.

51. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change recently launched "Star Rating System". The system provides environmental clearance in short duration. The ministry will find out states that provide environmental clearances efficiently in short duration of time.

52. Oxfam has recently released its report on "Pandemic Billionaires". As per report, covid has not only took livelihood for millions but it has also created new billionaires. As per report, people in Asia witnessed their wealth zoom during the covid-19 pandemic. These people were mostly associated with pharmaceuticals sector.

53. The Collarwali tigress in Pench Tiger Reserve of India recently died. It died because of age. The last rites were conducted by the Forest Department of the state of Madhya Pradesh. The tigress died at the age of 16. The Collarwali tigress was born in 2005. She gave birth to 29 cubs in her life time. It is a world record.

54. On 20 January, 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that, reservation should not be seen as being at odds with merit. Supreme Court ruled in favour of reservation for other backward classes (OBCs) in all India quota of (AIQ) NEET-PG seats. Reservation for OBCs was introduced by the Central government on 29 July, 2021.

55. The Transparency International recently released the Corruption Perception Index. According to the index, India ranked 85 among the world countries. The report said that the score of corruption has been stagnant for India over a decade. Also, the report said, the fundamental freedoms in the country are decaying and concerns over democratic status are increasing.

56. The Arunachal Pradesh Government is to establish Arunachal Pradesh Infrastructure Financing Authority. The decision was taken by the cabinet during the golden Jubilee celebrations.

57. On 21 January, 2022, governments of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh signed an agreement to build a dam at Adi Badri in Yamunanagar district. The dam will have the capacity of 224.58-hectare metres of water every year. Out of it, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana will get 61.88-hectare metres of water while remaining will flow into the Saraswati River.

58. The fragmented and patchy forests in south Bengal have become one of the hotspots of human-elephant conflict in India. It has resulted in loss of lives of humans as well as pachyderms. Conflict often led to law-and-order problems.

59. Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) published its "Climate of India during 2021" report on 21 January, 2022. As per report, year 2021 was the fifth warmest year in India since country-wide records started in India in 1901. India reported a loss of 1,750 lives because of extreme weather events in 2021.

60. Report on "Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) Chhattisgarh (Rural) 2021" was released recently. The report highlights the learning crisis created by covid-19 pandemic induced lockdowns, since March 2020. Report highlights that, proportion of primary school children who cannot recognize letters of the alphabet have increased double fold since 2018.

61. The Jagan Mohan Reddy Government of Andhra Pradesh recently created 13 new districts. The districts were created based on Parliamentary constituencies. With this the total number of districts in Andhra Pradesh has increased to 26.

62. In a significant verdict Supreme Court recently declared that; daughters will be entitled to inherit the properties of the father. The apex court pronounced that, daughters of a male Hindu, dying intestate, will be entitled to inherit the self-acquired and other properties obtained in partition by the father.

63. Recently, Central government rejected the contention that Amar Jawan Jyoti has been extinguished. Government further asserted that Amar Jawan Jyoti has been merged with the flame at "National War Memorial" in the vicinity.

64. Kumbalangi village in Cochin is all set to become India’s first sanitary-napkin-free panchayat. The village has previously won acclaim as India’s first model tourism village. This move is a part of 'Avalkayi' initiative, which is being implemented in the Ernakulam parliamentary constituency, in association with "Thingal Scheme" of HLL Management Academy’s and Indian Oil Corporation.

65. Najafgarh Jheel is a transboundary wetland. It is located along the borders of Delhi and Haryana. The Najafgarh lake is under the control of Delhi. The National Green Tribunal recently directed the Haryana and Delhi governments to implement the environment management plans prepared by them. The plan aims to rejuvenate Najafgarh Jheel.

66. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences, AIIMS recently conducted a study on children suffering from COVID-19. According to the study, adolescents suffered from lower mortality and lesser symptoms as compared to the adults.

67. NASSCOM is National Association of Software and Service Companies. It is a non – governmental organization and it works to expand IT sector of India. According to a recent study of NASSCOM, the startup ecosystem in India has increased twice. Between 2020 and 2021, the startup industry of the country has grown to 330 billion USD.

68. The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy recently launched the AP Seva Portal 2.0. The portal will offer better services to the citizens. The portal is also called Citizen Service portal. The portal will offer digital services to citizens in a transparent manner. The updates of the applications are provided through SMS as well.

69. Andhra Pradesh State Forest Department has approached experts from Wildlife Institute of India (WII-Deharadun), Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Zoological Survey of India (ZSI-Kolkata), for preventing mass mortality of spot-billed pelicans in Naupada swamp at Telineelapuram, Srikakulam district.

70. According to northwest district Delhi Police, number of police control room calls have decreased by 24 percent, after the launch of 'Operation Sajag'. As per police, since the launch of operation, 8006 criminals and anti-social elements, including robbers and snatchers have been arrested.

71. The District Good Governance Index was released by the Home Minister Amit Shah. The index was released for the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The index was prepared by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances.

72. Union government has changed spending norms for Contingency Fund of India. It has allowed 40 per cent of total corpus to be placed at disposal of expenditure secretary. Budget 2021-22 had proposed to enhance the Contingency Fund of India to Rs. 30,000 crore from Rs. 500 crore, through Finance Bill.

73. The Lok Sabha secretariat launched a new app titled "Digital Sansad" on 27 January, 2022. The digital sandad app was launched to make it easier for people to follow proceedings in Parliament and their lawmakers. The app is available in both android and IOS platform.

74. The Supreme Court of India recently issued a notice to the union government, a few state governments and also to the Election Commission of India. The ECI has stated lack of power as the reason in response. The SC has directed the ECI to frame guidelines to stop the political parties from distributing "irrational freebies from public fund".

75. As per G20 People’s Climate Vote 2021 Report, around 67% of the youth in India consider climate crisis as a global emergency. They are also vocal regarding the pressing need for urgent policy change or creation. Report notes that, youth are 'walking the talk' by going with climate conscious choices in their lifestyles.

International

1. Following mass protests in the capital city Khartoum, Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok announced his resignation on 2 January, 2022. Protests are being held against a recent deal that Prime Minister had done to share power with the army.

2. Natural gas shortage in Pakistan is impacting its most important export industry and is putting more stress on its economy, which is already struggling with weak currency and high inflation. Shortfall in supply is due to the inability of energy ministry to arrange supply.

3. On 2 January, 2022 India donated 5,00,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Afghanistan and will further send another 5,00,000 doses in coming days as a part of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. Doses were donated to the Indira Gandhi children’s hospital in Kabul.

4. According to World Bank’s Sri Lanka Development Update (SLDU), Sri Lanka is facing an acute economic crisis because of job & earning losses, and high food inflation. Inflation has been increased due to printing of money by government to pay off foreign bons and domestic loans.

5. In the last two months, it has been observed that China is constructing a bridge connecting the north and south banks of the Pangong Lake. Construction of the bridge is taking place on the Chinese side. However, it is 25-30 km away from India’s claim of Line of Actual Control (LAC).

6. UNSC statement on Nuclear War was published by Kremlin on 3 January, 2022. Five nuclear powers, namely Russia, China, Britain, the United States and France, stated in a joint statement that further spread of nuclear arms and a nuclear war should be avoided.

7. The Bucharest Nine Group comprises of Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Estonia. The organisation was formed in 2015. It was formed under the initiative of Romania and Poland. It is also called Bucharest Format or B9. The group was formed at the Romania capital Rome and hence the name.

8. North Korea recently tested submarine launched ballistic missile. North Korea has yet again violated UN resolution with the test. The United Nations had passed resolution banning North Korea from testing nuclear devices and ballistic missiles.

9. On 4 January, 2022, a European Union ban on tattoo ink and permanent make-up went into effect. European Union has banned tattoo ink and permanent make-up comprising of chemicals which could cause cancers or other health risks. The ban covers hazardous substances like certain azo dyes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), carcinogenic aromatic amines, metals and methanol.

10. Sri Lankan Cabinet has given its approval to a new deal with India, announced by the energy minister, for jointly developing the Trincomalee oil tank farm. This deal is historic, because it is a 35-year-old agreement. The agreement made during the exchange of letters between then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J R Jayewarndene. The agreement was part of annexure to India-Sri Lanka Accord of July 29, 1987. Under the agreement, Indian and Sri Lankan company had to develop the tank farm jointly.

11. The Chile’s constitutional assembly, that has been tasked to draft a new constitution, elected a new president on 5 January, 2022. After nine rounds of voting, members of the constitutional assembly elected epidemiologist Maria Elisa Quinteros as President.

12. The citizens of Kazakhstan are protesting against the sudden fuel price hike. The ruling government resigned due to the rising tensions. Emergency has been declared in the Central Asian country. The protests began when the ruling government of Kazakhstan lifted the price controls of Liquified Petroleum Gas.

13. North Korea fired a "hypersonic missile" on 5 January, 2022, that successfully hit a target. It was North Korea’s second such test, as the country pursues new military capabilities because of stalled denuclearisation talks. It was detected by several militaries in the region.

14. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz held talks and agreed to diversify bilateral cooperation on 5 January, 2022. Both sides also agreed to focus on collaborations in the field of green energy and climate action.

15. On 6 January, 2022, Japan and Australia will sign a defence agreement to boost security and defence cooperation. The signing of the agreement is considered "historic". This is to anger China. The agreement is to expand Quad agenda. The agreement will reduce Chinese influence in ASEAN. It will aid in achieving free and open Indo – Pacific.

16. On 6 January, 2022, the Sri Lankan Government signed an agreement with the Lanka Indian Oil Corporation (LIOC). According to the agreement, Sri Lanka will lease oil tanks to IOC. Sri Lanka has leased 14 tanks to LIOC for fifty years. Another 24 tanks have been leased to CPC. CPC is Ceylon Petroleum Corporation.

17. Digital Yuan is the digital currency of China. It was first launched in 2014 and has been working (test working) since then. The Digital Yuan is not a crypto currency. It is controlled by the Central Bank of China. The Government of China has plans to launch the currency internationally at Winter Olympics 2022. It is equal in value to fiat currency (Paper currency).

18. The Sea Dragon 22 exercise is a multinational exercise. The countries that are participating in the exercise are India, Australia, Canada, US, South Korea and Japan. It is held at Andersen Air Force base, Guam. It is a US air force base. It is a US – led exercise. It will focus on anti – submarine warfare training.

19. The French Government recently approved a bill on Health Pass. The pass is a stricter COVID-19 vaccine pass. Under the bill, people more than 12 years of age should prove that they have been vaccinated to enter cultural venues, restaurants, bars or other public transport.

20. China recently took an experiment on 'Artificial Sun' at the Hefei Institute of Physical Science China’s eastern province of Anhui. The experiment lays a solid scientific and experimental foundation for running of a fusion reactor. More than 10,000 Chinese and foreign scientific researchers took part in this $948-million project called Experiential Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST).

21. United Kingdom has reported the first human case of Avian flu. A 79-year-old man named Alan Gosling is the first UK resident to catch the H5N1 strain of bird flu. He kept pet ducks at his home in England. Avian influenza is also known as avian flu or bird flu. It is a type of influenza caused by viruses adapted to birds.

22. External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S. Jaishankar and Indonesia’s foreign minister Retno Marsudi discussed issues including the Aceh and Andaman Nicobar Island connectivity recently. Both the countries had decided to cooperate in connectivity between Andaman & Nicobar Island and Aceh Province of Indonesia, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Indonesia in 2018. During 2018 visit, both sides also decided to set up a joint task force for undertaking projects for port-related infrastructure around the Sabang.

23. Devas is a multi-media company. It offers satellite-based services. Antrix is an Indian Government owned company. It is the commercial arm of ISRO. That is, ISRO launches satellites and provides technological assistance for private firms through Antrix. It is operated by Department of Space.

24. On 6 January, 2022, Russian paratroopers and Belarusian special forces boarded planes for Almaty, which is one of the largest metropolises of Kazakhstan. The country has witnessed mass unrest in recent days, over government’s decision to do away with subsidies on liquefied petroleum gas.

25. According to Leonodios Kostrikis, a professor of biological sciences at University of Cyprus, a strain of Covid-19 combining delta and omicron was found in Cyprus. The discovery has been named "deltacron" because of identification of omicron-like genetic signatures within delta genomes.

26. As per World Bank’s Sri Lanka Development Update (SLDU), Sri Lanka is facing an acute economic crisis because of job & earning losses, high food inflation and dwindling finances in the country. Inflation has been increased, as government is printing money to pay off domestic loans and foreign bonds.

27. On 7 January, 2022, the Canadian government officially implemented a bill on 'ban of Conversion therapy' which was passed by the Canadian Parliament in December 2021. With the ban of conversion therapy, Canada joined a select list of countries that have discontinued the discredited treatment which claims to be able to change a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation.

28. Sri Lanka had created an inter-city railway service with the help of India. India provided diesel units to the project. Railway services were launched between Jaffna and Colombo. With this India wanted to send a strong message that it has a big role in improving infrastructure in the Indian Ocean Region.

29. Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov recently ordered officials to find a method of finally extinguishing the 'Gateway to Hell' in the country. Turkmenistan’s Gateway to Hell is the raging flames, burning for five decades in a large natural gas crater.

30. Chang’e 5 lunar lander of China has found first-ever on-site evidence of water on the surface of moon. Study was published in the peer-reviewed journal Science Advances on 8 January, 2022. It revealed that the lunar soil at the landing site comprises of less than 120 grams water per ton or 120 parts-per-million (ppm) water.

31. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) have appointed Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas as the new Chief Economist. He succeeds Gita Gopinath as its chief economist. Gourinchas is presently the director of Clausen Center for International Business & Policy, at the University of California.

32. On 9 January, 2022, death toll reached to 23 in Pakistan’s popular hill station of Murree, because of unprecedented snowfall and rush of tourists. A minor girl, suffering from severe cold & pneumonia, also died as she could not be rushed to the hospital in time.

33. On 10 January, 2022, the US and Russian officials met in Geneva. They are to discuss on several issues including the tensions around Ukraine. The US and other western countries are under the fear of Russian invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine is supported by US and other western countries. Ukraine was formed after the disintegration of Soviet Union.

34. On 11 January, 2022, India and Korea held a bilateral trade talk. The talks focused on non – tariff barriers, market access issues, trade deficit faced by the Indian exporters. The countries also discussed investment related issues. The India – Korea bilateral trade was 20 billion USD in 2018.

35. The James Webb telescope was launched by NASA on Christmas eve. The telescope can unfold only when it is in the orbit. The telescope succeeds Hubble telescope. It was jointly developed by NASA, Canadian Space Agency and European Space Agency. It was launched in Ariane rocket. The unfolding of the telescope is human controlled.

36. The World Trade Organization recently provided the "developing country" tag. This couldn’t be accepted by several countries. The organization has officially not created any definitions for "Developed" or "developing" countries. However, when a tag is provided other countries can challenge the offering.

37. India and South Korea have set to achieve bilateral trade target of 50 billion USD by 2030. The target was set during the summit held in 2018. Recently, the foreign ministers of the respective countries met to discuss on terms to achieve the target.

38. Maya Angelou becomes the first black woman to appear on US coin. The coin was rolled out by US Mint as a part of the American Women Quarters Programme. Maya was raped by her mother’s boyfriend at the age of seven. The latter was beaten to death by her uncles. Maya became silent after the tragedy. During her silence she started writing. She is known for her speaking voice and lyrical prose. She died at the age of 86 in 2014.

39. As a part of bilateral deal, India has agreed to allow import of pork and pork products from the US. The deal would also facilitate for exporting Indian mangoes and pomegranate to the US. This decision was taken months after government from both the countries renewed the India-US Trade Policy forum (TPF).

40. HS2 archaeologists recently uncovered a wealthy Roman trading settlement near a village in South Northamptonshire. The team of around 80 archaeologists from MOLA Headland Infrastructure, are involved in excavating an Iron Age village. The iron village was developed into a wealthy Roman trading settlement.

41. On 12 January, 2022, the Labour Department in United States (US) reported that consumer prices increased to 7% in December 2021 as compared to 12 months earlier, that is December 2020. The jump in the consumer prices was hottest year-over-year inflation since June 1982.

42. On 13 January, 2022, UK government announced the launch of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations with India. This move is being described as a golden opportunity, of putting British businesses at the front of Indian economy. FTA is likely to take UK’s historic partnership with India to the next level.

43. The Russian defence forces recently unveiled a new Tupolev Tu-160M. It is a missile bomber. It is also known as "White Swan". The White Swan can fly at an altitude of 600 metres. The bomber has been designed to carry nuclear war heads. It is one of the most heaviest supersonic miliary aircraft.

44. The United Nations recently launched the largest country specific appeal for Afghanistan. The appeal was launched after Pakistan called the international organization to revive the banking system in the Afghanistan. It is a 5 billion USD appeal. That is, according to the United Nations member countries, 5 billion USD is required to save Afghanistan.

45. Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd signed a joint development agreement with Africa50, to continue to develop "Kenya Transmission Project" in public-private partnership mode. Kenya Transmission Project provides for the development, construction, financing, and operation of "400kV Lessos – Loosuk" and "220kV Kisumu – Musaga" transmission lines.

46. Pakistan launched its first-ever National Security Policy (NSP) on 14 January, 2022. With this launch, Pakistan makes it imperative to deter war and defend its territorial integrity and sovereignty by using all elements of national power, at all costs.

47. India and Philippines are expected to sign a $374.9 million deal in last week of January 2022, for 'BrahMos shore-based supersonic cruise missile systems' supply. This deal will be signed as part of Philippines’ plan to strengthen its defence amid territorial conflict with China.

48. The tearless onions are called "Sunions". It is to be sold in United Kingdom. These onions were produced by cross breeding onion varieties that are less pungent. The Sunions are sweet onions. They are to be sold in the Waitrose supermarkets of UK. They are ideal for those who have children or sensitive eyes. Sunions can be used in salads and also for cooking.

49. North Korea recently tested the railway-borne missile. With this, North Korea has tested three missiles in January 2022 amidst rising tensions with the US. This has pushed for fresh sanctions by the US. The railway-borne missile recently tested by the North is a ballistic missile. The missiles that were tested previously were hypersonic missiles.

50. After China’s artificial Sun reached temperatures five times hotter than the Sun, China is ready with its first artificial moon. Scientists have built an "artificial moon" research facility. The facility will help them in conducting low-gravity environments using magnetism.

51. An underwater volcano erupted in Tonga (a country in the Pacific Ocean) recently. It is called the "Hunga Tonga Hunga Haapai" volcano. The eruption was huge and loud. Though the volcano was located under water and 2,383 km away, it was heard in Tonga. Also, the eruption created tsunami waves.

52. On 17 January, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to deliver a special address at the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Davos Agenda. WEF Davos Agenda event is being held in virtual mode, amid the covid-19 pandemic, from 17 to 21 January. The WEF has been holding its annual meeting "Davos Agenda Summit" in Swiss ski resort of Davos every year.

53. As per official data, birth rate in China declined to a record low in 2021, as analysts are warning over faster-than-expected ageing in the country. According to analysts, faster-than-expected ageing would deepen economic growth concerns. China has already been grappling with a threatening demographic crisis with rapidly ageing workforce, weakest population growth in decades and slowing economy.

54. China is all set to implement a strategic agreement with Iran, in a bid to strengthen economic and political cooperation between both the countries. In a meeting, China also reaffirmed its opposition to USA’s sanctions on Iran.

55. The United States Government has recently proposed a bill to end China’s "chokehold" on rare – earth metal supplies. The rare earth metals are used almost in every latest technology starting from electric batteries to fighter jets. China has a strong chokehold on all these metals. In 2019, 80% of the US rare – earth metals was from China.

56. The trade between India and China was around 125 billion USD in 2021. India’s imports from China stood at 100 billion USD. Most of the import demands were in machinery. India faced a trade deficit of 69.4 billion USD with China in 2021. This was 22% higher than the trade deficit faced in 2019.

57. India is currently widening the road to the Lipulekh pass. The Nepalese ruling party recently issued a statement objecting this. Also, Nepal has demanded India to withdraw its troops in the region. Nepal also claimed the Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura regions.

58. A possible drone attack sparked an explosion and struct three oil tankers in Abu Dhabi while another fire at the Abu Dhabi International Airport killed three people and injured six, on 17 January, 2022. Two dead people were identified as Indian nationals while one was from Pakistan.

59. A 555.55-carat black diamond called "The Enigma" was unveiled in Dubai on 17 January, 2022. It is believed to have come from outer space. It was unveiled by auction house Sotheby’s. Number five has an importance significance to the diamond because, it has 55 facets.

60. Novak Djokovic has not taken the COVID vaccine. Therefore, the Australian Government considers the Serbian player as a threat to the country. This is why the top ranked tennis player was deported from Australia. Australian Open is one of the four important tournaments of the Grand Slam.

61. A group of hundred billionaires have submitted a plea to the World Economic Forum. The title of the plea is "Make us Pay more tax". The "Make us pay more tax" plea suggests to make a deal with the big companies. These companies will have to pay a minimum tax of 15% of their annual turnover.

62. The Indonesians are moving to a new capital. It is East Kalimantan. It is now called 'Nusantara'. Earlier, Jakarta was the capital of Indonesia. East Kalimantan or Jakarta is located in the Borneo island. The plan to shift the capital here was announced in 2019. It was announced by President Joko Widodo.

63. As per a recent study, one of the oldest known Homo sapiens fossils, Omo Kibish I, may be around 35,000 years older than it was previously thought. The study used volcanic ash to date the fossils and thus there were 22,000-year margin of error.

64. India and Denmark recently agreed to initiate joint research and development on green fuels, including green hydrogen, at a virtual meeting. The agreement was signed as a part of already adopted "Green Strategic Partnership – Action Plan 2020-2025", at a virtual meeting on January

65. The first BRICS 2022 Sherpa meeting was held recently. The two day meeting was chaired by China. China thanked India for its hosting in 2021. During the meeting the countries discussed about the agenda of 2022. Also, they created the BRICS Calendar for the year 2022.

66. Amid the cybersecurity concerns in Chinese Olympics App, National Olympic Committees (NOC) are advising athletes from some western countries to leave personal devices at home or use temporary phones, at the Winter Games in Beijing. NOCs will provide their athletes and staff with temporary devices to do away the security risks and combat any surveillance during Games.

67. India and Israel recently widened the I4F during their eighth governing body meet. I4F is India – Israel Industrial research and development technological Innovation fund. The fund has now been widened to 5.5 million USD. During the governing body meet, the countries agreed on the new I4F strategy. The countries will broaden the scope of the fund in the new strategy.

68. Content creator and actress Prajakta Koli become India’s first UN Development Programme (UNDP) Youth Climate Champion. She won the title under her partnership with the UNDP. Title has been conferred to her because of her contribution towards mental health, girl child education and women’s rights through various global social campaigns.

69. On 20 January, 2022, the Russian central bank proposed to crack down the cryptocurrencies. If this move is adopted, it could disrupt the burgeoning virtual money sector because Russia is one of the largest crypto-mining nations worldwide.

70. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is set to invest $150 million in the development of data centers to mostly serve emerging Asia. AIIB will channelise funds through the Keppel Data Centre Fund II (KDCF II), which is a private equity vehicle. It is managed by Alpha Investment Partners Limited (Alpha).

71. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently launched series of projects in Mauritius. India is to assist the neighbour in implementing these projects. The projects were launched virtually by PM Modi and his Mauritian counterpart Pravind Jugnauth.

72. Amid the ongoing standoff between India and China in eastern Ladakh, China is building another bridge on the Pangong Tso. Construction of new bridge was spotted in satellite images. China is building the bridge near to friction points on north bank of Pangong Tso and Chushul sub-sector on south bank. The bridge is around 400 m long and 8 m wide.

73. On 20 January, 2022, members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) went on a virtual field trip to Columbia, with the help of Virtual Reality (VR) technology. On the virtual trip, they listen, watched and got insights into the peace process and what it looks like in Columbia.

74. The United Nations recently announced that the world is to face five major risks in 2022. These risks are referred to five – alarm global fire. The five alarms are COVID-19, lawlessness in cyberspace, climate crisis, bankrupt global financial system and diminished peace and security.

75. Recently, the Serbian Government cancelled licenses for a major lithium project, which is owned by Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto Plc. Lithium is in hot demand because of rapidly growing production of electric vehicles, which use lithium-ion batteries.

76. The Saudi – led coalition recently conducted airstrikes in Yemen. More than hundred people were killed during the attack. The airstrikes were conducted in Saada of Yemen. The Saada region has a strong hold of Houthis. The attack was a response to the Houthis attack on UAE.

77. On 21 January, 2022. Twitter announced a new way for users to authenticate their profile pictures, which is fuelled by non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It is significant for NFT owners who have been uploading their digital assets as profile pictures in jpeg format.

78. A new translation of a letter to the Indian Government in 2005, written by chief priest of Tokyo’s Renkoji temple in Japanese language, reveals that Justice MK Mukherjee was given permission to conduct DNA test of ashes and bone fragments, which is believed to be of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

79. Kirbati is one of the most isolated islands in the world. It is located in Pacific Ocean, at 4,800 kimlometres from North America. So far Kirbati had recorded only two COVID-19 cases. Recently, Kirbati is facing community transmission. The island has been following strict travel measures.

80. Australia’s Online Safety Act has come into effect from 23 January, 2022. The act was passed in July 2021. The act allows adults to report cases of online bullying in Australia, to the eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman Grant. With this act, the eSafety commissioner is empowered to order social media websites to take down content related to bullying against Australian adults.

81. Government of Australia has bought copyright of Aboriginal flag, in order to free the identity symbol from fights over who can use it. The Aboriginal flag was created by indigenous artist Harold Thomas in 1971 as a protest image. However, it is now an official national flag and the dominant Aboriginal emblem.

82. Peru is a South American country. The Government of Peru recently declared an environmental emergency due to oil spill. The emergency is to last for 90 days. Around six thousand barrels of oil were spilled into the Pacific Ocean. A tanker of Repsol, a Spanish Energy firm, was transporting oil to Vantinalla refinery in Peru. The name of the tanker is "Mare Doricum".

83. India and Israel recently launched a commemorative logo to mark the 30 years of diplomatic relations. The logo has Ashoka Chakra and Star of David. It also has the numeral 30, featuring 30th anniversary of the countries.

84. On 24 January, 2022, Guatemala Court ruled that, five former paramilitary patrolmen were guilty of sexually abusing and raping the Indigenous women during the war. This ruling has been welcomed by survivors of Guatemala’s decades-long armed conflict.

85. The Sudan security forces recently killed three protestors. This has re-kindled the Sudan unrest. In the early January 2022, the Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok resigned. This led to civilian unrest in the country.

86. Government of Serbia revoked the licenses for lithium mining to Rio Tinto, after protests for around two months. Rio Tinto is an Anglo-Australian multinational mining organisation. Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic have fulfilled all the demands from environmental protests and have put an end to Rio Tinto in the country.

87. CHIRU is a naval drill recently conducted by China, Russia and Iran in Gulf of Oman. China sent Urumqi, missile destroyer to take part in the exercise. The countries are now looking for opportunities to deepen their military cooperation. Russia sent its Pacific Fleet task force to participate in the exercise. This included the anti–submarine warfare ship Admiral Tributs and Nakhimov missile cruiser.

88. As per Chinese government data, India’s bilateral trade with China has increased to 43.3 percent in 2021, despite India’s measures to reduce dependence on imports from China and increased emphasis on self-reliance. India’s total trade with China was USD 125.7 billion, in 2021.

89. Russia recently held military drills in the annexed Crimean region. More than six thousand troops participated in the drills. Russia had already stationed 100,000 soldiers in the Ukraine border. The drill involved bombers, fighter jets, anti–aircraft systems, ships from the Caspian Sea fleets and Black sea fleets.

90. The International Monetary Fund recently asked El Salvador to remove the legal status of bitcoin. In September 2021, El Salvador became the first country to allow its consumers to use cypto currencies. Fear arose all over the country that bitcoin might bring inflation and instability to the country.

91. On 27 January, PM Modi will host India – Central Asia Summit. The five central Asian presidents will attend the summit. They are Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyz republic. This is first India – Central Asia Summit. The summit is to be held virtually. India has been planning to hold the summit since Modi’s visit to these central Asian countries in 2015.

92. Pakistan raised USD 1 billion loan through Sukuk bond, at a record 7.95% interest rate. It is the cost that Pakistan has agreed to pay on an Islamic bond. Country has also agreed to pledge a portion of Lahore-Islamabad Motorway in return for highly-needed loan.

93. The recently legislated America Competes Act of 2022 to open new doors for the talented experts from all over the world. COMPETES means Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre–Eminence in technology and Economic strength Act. The main aim of the act is to make the supply chains stronger.

94. According to Nepal’s Central Bureau of Statistics, its population has increased by 10.18 percent, reaching to 29,192,480 in last 10 years. Total data also include population of the Lipulekh, Kalapani, and Limpiyadhura areas, for the first time in 60 years through informal census. According to bureau, there are around 750 people in these areas.

95. India and France recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding on inherited disorders and emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. The MoU was signed between France Institut Pasteur and CSIR of India. It was signed under the purview of Ministry of Science and Technology.

96. World’s largest desert, The Sahara Desert, witnessed snowfall recently. The town of Ain-Sefra is located in Naama province of north-western Algeria. It is known as "The Gateway to the Sahara". Sand dunes in this area can be as high as 180 metres. It also witnesses water scarcity. Recently, temperatures reached to -2 degrees Celsius in the town, resulting into snowfall.

97. China is the first country to host both summer and winter Olympic games. China is creating artificial snow flakes for the winter Olympics to be held in 2022. China is to create artificial snow flakes at snow boarding, ski jumping venues of Olympic games. The cross country, biathlon, Nordic, freestyle and snow boarding games are to be held in Zhangjiakou.

98. The Chinese Government recently launched import sanction on Lithuania. This means the Chinese companies should not import goods or raw materials from Lithuania. Earlier in 2021, Lithuania had recognised Taiwan as an independent state and had opened a Taiwan office in its soil.

99. The European Union is first in the world to propose digital rights. The rights aim to support democracy and support people’s rights. It ensures a safe online environment. EU digital rights cover digital devices as well. It ensures the sustainability and green transition goals of the bloc.

100. India and UAE have together created 150 million USD fund to support the startups. The fund will help to create ten unicorns within 2025. Unicorns are startups whose value is more than 1 billion USD. The fund was launched at the EXPO 2020 held in Dubai.

101. On 28 January, 2022, central government announced its decision to convert around 150 villages into ‘Villages of Excellence’ across 12 States. These villages will be converted into Villages of Excellence, with technical assistance from Israel government.

102. North Korea launched its Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile on 30 January, 2022. Month of January was one of the busiest months of missile tests for North Korea. With the launch of Hwasong-12, the country highlights efforts of ensuring its reliable systems for delivery of nuclear warheads.

103. Xiomara Castro was sworn in as the first woman president of Honduras. Honduras is a Central American country. Its capital is Tegucigalpa. It is located along the coast of Caribbean Sea. She is a leftist. That is, she is a socialist leader. She has promised to tackle the drug trafficking in the country. Also, she is to liberalize the strict abortion laws.

104. The Green Climate Fund is invested in developing countries. It helps the countries to fight against climate change. The countries are not receiving Green Climate Fund, especially those in Africa. This is due to the lengthy and complicated process of accessing the fund.

105. The ocean waters are melting the glaciers in Greenland as much as the warm air is melting them from the above. The Ocean Melting Greenland mission, generally referred to as OMG mission was launched by NASA. It was a five year mission. The mission mainly measured the ice loss in Green land.

Defence

1. 64th foundation day of "Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)" was celebrated on 1 January, 2022. In 63 years, DRDO has transformed the landscape of defence research and development in India. DRDO also played a significant role in fighting against COVID-19 pandemic. It set up around 850 oxygen plants and Covid hospitals with the help from PM CARES Fund.

2. The Multi Agency Centre (MAC) was formed to share intelligence inputs. It was formed after the Kargil war. The Intelligence Bureau (IB) was the nodal agency in creating the centre. More than 28 national and state organizations are part of MAC. This includes Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), state polices and armed forces.

3. According to an officer of Indian Railways, Under the "Mission Jeewan Raksha", RPF personnel have saved 1650 lives from the wheels of running trains at railway stations in last four years. Out of this, around 350 lives were saved CR and WR. RPF personnel saved 601 persons, without caring for their own safety, going far beyond their call of duty in the year 2021.

4. On 11 January, 2022, the Defence Research Development Organization test fired the Brahmos Advanced Variant. It is a sea–to–sea variant of the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile. It was tested from INS Vishakhapatnam. This is a step of India becoming self-reliant. Also, the test confirmed the readiness of Indian Navy.

5. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) flight tested the Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM), successfully. During the flight test, final deliverable configuration of the MPATGM was tested. MPATGM is an indigenously developed anti-tank missile, a low weight and a 'fire and forget' missile.

6. 74th Indian Army Day is being celebrated in India on 15 January, 2022. Indian Army Day is celebrated to honour soldiers of the armed forces in India, for their selfless service. The day is celebrated at all army command offices across India as well as the headquarters in New Delhi.

7. The Indian Army is to provide new uniform to more than 12 lakh military personnel. Unlike the old uniform, the new uniform has a combat T–shirt underneath. It was designed by a team of twelve designers from National Institute of Fashion Technology. It included seven professors and three students and also two alumni.

8. On 17 January, 2022, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as West Bengal’s tableau for the Republic Day parade was rejected without providing reasons or justifications. West Bengal Tableau was set to commemorate contributions of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and his INA marking his 125th birth anniversary year.

9. The Border Security Force, BSF launches Operation Sard Hawa. Under the operation, the BSF increases the surveillance in the Pakistan border. It is usually launched in the Rajasthan border, especially in the Jaisalmer region. It is a regular annual exercise. It is launched in the month of January.

10. As a part of larger contract to manufacture AK 203 assault rifles in India, the armed forces received first batch of 70,000 rifles from Russia. The first batch has been delivered at a fast pace, on request by India, amid Covid-19 pandemic. First batch is likely to be used by the air force.

11. Hybrid terrorists are those people brought in by the terrorist groups only to carry out one or two missions. They basically assist the terrorist groups. For instance, shopkeepers allowing terrorists to store their arms, passing information, etc are hybrid terrorists. They are like temporary or contract labours. They are not a part of the terrorist group.

12. On 26 January, 2022, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) notified a drone certification scheme for ensuring minimum safety and quality requirements, because it will boost indigenous manufacturing. The drone certification scheme was notified under Rule 7 of the liberalized Drone Rules, 2021.

13. CHIRU is a naval drill recently conducted by China, Russia and Iran in Gulf of Oman. China sent Urumqi, missile destroyer to take part in the exercise. The countries are now looking for opportunities to deepen their military cooperation. Russia sent its Pacific Fleet task force to participate in the exercise. This included the anti–submarine warfare ship Admiral Tributs and Nakhimov missile cruiser.

14. Pilot Shivangi Singh is India’s first Woman Rafale pilot. She was a part of the Indian Air Force Tableau at the Republic Day celebrations. She joined the Indian Air Force in 2017. She is the only second woman pilot to participate in the Indian Air Force Tableau. Fighter Jet pilot Bhawna Kanth was the first woman pilot to participate in the IAF tableau.

15. The Exercise Paschim Lehar is conducted to enhance the cooperation among the different naval commands in the Indian Navy. It involves Indian Army and Indian Air Force as well. Recently, the exercise was conducted in the west coast. The exercise was held for twenty days. The headquarters of southern naval command is located in Kochi.

Business, Economy & Banking

1. PowerGrid Corporation Limited celebrated the anniversary of the achievement of "One Nation One Grid", as a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. On this occasion, Free health check-up and medical camps were organised across 70 locations.

2. The much-awaited Water Taxi Services is likely to start in Mumbai, from January 2022. This service is likely to provide connectivity between Domestic Cruise Terminal at Ferry Wharf and terminals at Belapur & Nerul. Water Taxi Service is expected to be inaugurated in first week of January 2022, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Presently, there are three operators ready. Fourth operator will join after their catamaran is certified fit.

3. On 3 January, 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released a framework for small-value offline transactions in digital mode. As per framework, offline payments can be made using any channel or instrument such as wallets, mobile devices or cards. However, they shall be made in proximity, or in face-to-face mode only.

4. The Energy Transition Advisory Committee was formed by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. It is headed by Tarun Kapoor, former Secretary of Petroleum Ministry. It will focus on increasing the share of clean energy sources such as hydrogen, biofuel, nuclear, geothermal, tidal in the energy mix of the country.

5. India reported a record $55.7 billion on gold imports in 2021. India bought more than double tonnage, as compared to previous tonnage, as a price drop favoured retail buyers. 2021 gold import bill got doubled the $22 billion, which were spent in 2020.

6. Wholly-owned subsidiary of national Payments Corporation of India, NPCI BillPay Ltd. (NBBL) introduced a unique functionality called "Unified Presentment Management System (UPMS)" with the aim of enriching and simplifying bill payments in India. UPMS will help the customers to set up standing instructions, for any mode and from any channel on their recurring bill payments.

7. Ministry of Mines has created a joint venture (JV) company called "Khanij Bidesh India (KABIL)" with participating interest from Hindustan Copper (HCL), National Aluminium Company (NALCO), and Mineral Exploration Corporation (MECL). The equity participation ratio of the JV company is- 40 (NALCO): 30 (HCL) : 30 (MECL).

8. The IRDAI recently issued guidelines for surety insurance. Under the guidelines, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India has capped the surety insurance to 10% of the premium. And the maximum threshold was set to five hundred crores of rupees.

9. Around 2,500 kg of potatoes are transported from UP to Telangana every day. Telangana government has now banned the potatoes imported from UP. This was done for two reasons. One, UP is exporting old stocks. Two, Telangana has become self sufficient in potato production. Telangana prefers freshly in grown potatoes (that is potatoes grown within the state) to the old stocks from UP.

10. According to Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari, Union Government will framework a policy to know the age and condition of all the bridges in India. Ministry had prepared the Indian Bridge Management System for collecting information on all the bridges of the country.

11. As per Reserve Bank of India (RBI), State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs), similar to 2020 list of D-SIBs. These three banks continue to be in the list, under the same bucketing structure as it was there in the 2020 list of D-SIBs.

12. The Reserve Bank of India recently provided a new special window for bond houses called "Primary Dealers". The window allows to exchange illiquid securities. Illiquid securities are those securities that cannot be sold easily or directly. That is, the investors buying the securities can sell them only in limited instances.

13. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) set up an internal "FinTech department" for focusing on the dynamically changing financial landscape in India. As per RBI circular, the FinTech department was set up on 4 January, 2022. Decision to set up the department was taken in a bid to further focus on the area and innovation in FinTech sector in keeping pace with dynamically changing landscape.

14. Power and new & renewable energy minister Raj Kumar Singh launched 'Automatic Generation Control (AGC)' on 4 January, 2022. The AGC sends signals to the power plants every four seconds in order to maintain frequency. Thus, it also maintains the reliability of India’s power system.

15. The Government of India recently held conversion operation. It is also called Switch operation. Under the operation, the government bought back securities from the Reserve Bank of India. These government securities were maturing in 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25. These securities were bought for Rs. 1,19,701 crores. And fresh securities are to be issued to make the transaction cash neutral.

16. On 5 January, 2022, Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA) scheme completed 7 years. UJALA scheme has evolved as the world’s largest zero-subsidy domestic lighting programme, which addresses concerns such as high electrification cost and high emissions resulting from inefficient lighting.

17. As per recent research of International Energy Agency (IEA), India is on track to become world’s third-largest ethanol market by 2026. India will only be left behind United States and Brazil by 2026, as it has accelerated the transition towards clean energy environment to become carbon neutral by 2070.

18. On 5 January, 2022, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Education Minister Jitu Vaghani launched "Student Start-up and Innovation Policy (SSIP) 2.0" in the state of Gujarat. SSIP 2.0 was launched with the aim of financially supporting the school students in innovation, at International Conference of Academic Institutions (ICAI-2022).

19. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently included Airtel Payment Bank in the second schedule of RBI Act, 1934. And HDFC, ICICI and SBI are to remain as D–SIB. D–SIB is Domestic Systematically Important Banks. The bank should belong to the category of CET 1. CET 1 is Common Equity Tier 1. It is a precautionary to self-protect from financial crisis.

20. On 7 January, 2022, the commerce ministry’s arm APEDA identified potential districts in Uttar Pradesh, for covering it under the Varanasi Agri-Export Hub (VAEH) in a bid to promote exports from that region. Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has started initiatives for promoting exports from Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh, by developing VAEH.

21. According to first advance estimates of National Statistical Office (NSO), India’s gross domestic product (GDP) is estimated to grow 9.2% in the financial year 2021-22. Growth in GDP is supported by an uptick in the farm sector output, mining sector output and manufacturing sector outputs.

22. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is going to organise "Start-up India Innovation Week" during 10 - 16 January, 2022. Start-up India Innovation Week is a virtual innovation celebration, to be organised with the aim of commemorating the 75th year of India’s independence.

23. The Assam Government recently signed an agreement with the National Dairy Development Board. Under the agreement, the signatories agreed to establish Rs. 2000 crore joint venture. The joint venture to be established can process ten lakh litres of milk.

24. The AgFunder and Omnivore, a capital released the "India AgriFood Startup – Investment Report". According to the report, the investment in agri and food tech start ups increased by 97% in 2020-21. It increased to 2.1 billion USD. The investments are mainly driven by restaurant funding.

25. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) recently launched helpline numbers for E–Commerce. The helpline will aid in smooth functioning of E–commerce supply chains. Wholesaler, manufacturers, transporters, E–commerce companies facing transport difficulties, mobilization of resources and distribution of goods.

26. The Government of India is planning to bring a new tourism policy. The policy aims to provide better facilities and services to the tourists visiting India. It will create five missions in the country. National Green Tourism Mission, National Digital Tourism Mission, Sectoral Mission on Skill Development, National Mission on Destination Management, National Mission on Tourism MSMEs.

27. Union Food Processing Ministry has created a dedicated grievance cell, for maintaining uninterrupted supplies of food-related essentials. Decision to create 'grievance cell' was taken as State governments in India have started imposing several restrictions for curbing the surge in Covid cases.

28. The Kochi Water Metro Project is a ferry transport project. It provides feeder service to the suburbs. With this Kochi has become the first city in India to launch water metro project. The project is operated by the Kochi Metro Rail Limited. 15 routes are identified under the project. It connects ten islands.

29. The Government of India recently decided to allow 20% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in LIC (Life Insurance Corporation). This is to be done by amending the Foreign Exchange Management Rules (FEMA). The DFS, DIPAM are to create a plan to amend the FDI in insurance sector after consulting DPIIT. DFS is Department of Financial Services.

30. On 11 January, 2022, India and Korea held a bilateral trade talk. The talks focused on non – tariff barriers, market access issues, trade deficit faced by the Indian exporters. The countries also discussed investment related issues. The India – Korea bilateral trade was 20 billion USD in 2018. However, it started decreasing after that. And it was largely hit by the pandemic.

31. The Vodofone recently announced that its board members have given permission to convert the Adjusted Gross Revenue dues to equity. With this GoI will now have 35.8% of share in Vodofone company. This makes it the largest shareholder of Vodofone.

32. Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, launched the "Jagananna Smart Township website" on 11 January, 2022. The website was launched from the Tadepalli Camp office. The website would help the citizens in completing their dream of owning a house.

33. World bank’s Global Economic Prospects’ Report was released on 11 January, 2022. The report notes that, Global economic growth will decrease sharply to 4.1% in 2022 and 3.2% in 2023, from 5.5% in 2021. It projects India’s annual growth to be 8.3% in the fiscal year 2021-2022, 8.7% in 2022-23, while 6.8% in 2023-24.

34. Government of Tamil Nadu notified the "Regional Plan (Preparation, Publication and Sanction) Rules, 2021" in accordance with the Tamil Nadu Town and Country Planning Act, 1971. As per notification, the Regional Planning Authority (RPA) should prepare a land-and building-use map for regional planning areas as well as for different parts of regional area, within 18 months of its constitution.

35. KVIC is Khadi and Village Industries Commission. It operates under Ministry of MSME. It has recently launched hand made use and throw paper slippers and also khadi baby wear slippers. For the first time, the KVIC has introduced baby wear produce. The Khadi baby wear can be used by babies up to two years. It is made of hand-woven khadi cotton.

36. On 12 January, 2022, the Labour Department in United States (US) reported that consumer prices increased to 7% in December 2021 as compared to 12 months earlier, that is December 2020. The jump in the consumer prices was hottest year-over-year inflation since June 1982.

37. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its "Annual Report of the Ombudsman Schemes for the year 2020-21", highlighting a rise in Banking Ombudsman complaints. During April 2020-March 2021, report witnessed a 22.27 per cent increase in number of complaints under various ombudsman schemes.

38. The Government of India is to finalize the 2047 plan by May 2022. The plan is being framed by a Sectoral Group of Secretaries. That is, the sectaries are from ten different sectors. They will draw a plan that will start by this decade.

39. On the 58th Foundation Day of Food Corporation of India (FCI), the food Minister Shri Piyush Goyal released a "5-point reform agenda for FCI". It is also called "5 Sutras". The agenda aims to improve FCI and its progress. According to the food ministry, India should focus on improving its Global Hunger Index. India ranked 101 in the Global Hunger Index 2021.

40. The private companies in India have joined together to form India EdTech Consortium. It was formed under the guidance of Internet Mobile Association of India. It was launched after Government of India announced that it is to launch as policy to regulate the edtech sector, that is education and technology sector.

41. On 17 January, 2022, the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal flagged off the first electric bus of the Delhi Transport Corporation. The E – buses are to run on 27 – km long route. These buses were manufactured by the JBM Auto Limited. These electric buses are low floor buses. They are fully air conditioned.

42. According to Oxfam India "Inequality Kills" report, wealth of India’s richest families reached to a record high in 2021. Report states that, 84 per cent of Indian households witnessed an income decline amid covid-19 pandemic. Richest 98 Indians own the same wealth as bottom 552 million people.

43. Under "Chip to Start-up (C2S) Programme", central government is seeking application from 100 start-ups, MSMEs, R&D organisations and academia to train 85,000 engineers in very-large-scale integration (VLSI) and embedded system design areas.

44. The Ministry of Power recently released revised guidelines for electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The ministry has released these guidelines to increase the adoption of EVs and also to fasten the adoption. It allows the entities or individuals to create charging stations without the need for license. However, they should meet certain technical and safety standards.

45. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) released its report titled "World Employment and Social Outlook". In the report, ILO has projected global unemployment of 207 million in 2022. Total hours worked in 2022 will be about 2% below than the pre-pandemic level.

46. LEAP is the new start up programme of Flipkart. It is also called Leap Ahead. It aims to help the start ups in India. Under this LEAP programme, Flipkart is to implement two programmes. They are FLIN and FLA. FLIN is Flipkart Leap Innovation Network. FLA is Flipkart Leap Ahead.

47. A group of hundred billionaires have submitted a plea to the World Economic Forum. The title of the plea is "Make us Pay more tax". According to them, they have witnessed wealth gain while the rest of the world suffered in different angles. And so they want to pay a fair share of their earnings to the global recovery.

48. The Securities and Exchange Board of India, SEBI launched the Saarthi mobile application. The application provides information about security markets. It is highly useful for investors. The application provides explanation about mutual funds, its working, trading and settlement, KYC (Know Your Customer) processes, developments in the market, etc.

49. The Union Cabinet recently extended the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis for three more years. The current tenure of the commission ends in March 2022. The commission has been extended for three years after this. The extension is being made at a cost of Rs. 43.68 crores.

50. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) conducted a variable rate repo operation on 20 January, 2022 for infusing liquidity, instead of using variable rate reverse repo operations (VRRR) to suck out cash. This measure was taken because larger goods and services tax (GST) collection tightened liquidity recently.

51. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is set to invest $150 million in the development of data centers to mostly serve emerging Asia. AIIB will channelise funds through the Keppel Data Centre Fund II (KDCF II), which is a private equity vehicle. It is managed by Alpha Investment Partners Limited (Alpha).

52. The Central Government recently approved to build a plastic park at Ganjimutt, Managaluru, Karnataka. The park will be created at Rs. 62.77 crores. It is to be built by the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) land. Of the total estimated cost of 62.77 crores of rupees, the union government will share 50%, that is, 31.38 crores of rupees. The rest of the 50% is to be borne by the KIADB.

53. The NITI Aayog has suggested including electric vehicles in the priority sector of lending guidelines of RBI. This will give a push to retail lending of electric vehicles. According to the report released by NITI Aayog, the financing market size of electric vehicles is to increase to Rs 40,000 crores by 2025. And it is to increase to Rs 3.7 lakh crores by 2030.

54. Ice 360 survey is conducted by PRICE. PRICE is People’s Research on India’s Consumer Economy. The survey collects house hold income, financial details, expenditures, occupation, quality of living, etc. The house hold income of the rich people increased by 39% in the last five years.

55. On 21 January, 2022, government launched a portal called "Koyla Darpan" for sharing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to the Coal Sector. Koyla Darpan portal was inaugurated by Coal Secretary Dr Anil Kumar Jain. The portal can be accessed through the website of Ministry of Coal, for maximum public outreach.

56. India emerged as the 'Pickle King of The World', in a recent development. India crossed the exports if worth USD 200 million of agricultural processed product, pickling gherkins, cucumber or cornichons, in the financial year 2020-2021. With this, India became the largest exporter of cucumbers and gherkins worldwide.

57. The Spice Board of India recently launched the Spice Exchange Portal. The portal will act as a meeting point between the Indian spice exporters and the buyers all over the world. This platform is first of its kind in the country. The platform was launched by the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

58. The Common Service Centre operating under the Ministry of Electronics and IT recently launched the Yogyata Mobile Application. The main objective of the application is to provide skill development opportunities to the youths in the rural areas. The app will offer courses in 3D printing, CAD, cybersecurity and several other IT tools.

59. The Government of India is to promote the use of drones in agriculture. For this, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare has amended the SMAM guidelines. SMAM means Sub–Mission on Agricultural Mechanisation. Also, the ministry has issued funding guidelines.

60. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released its World Economic Outlook on 25 January, 2022. As per report, Global economic growth will decrease by half a percentage point less than it was forecasted earlier. The growth will decrease from 5.9% in 2021 to 4.4% in 2022. It will further reduce to 3.8% in 2023.

61. On 25 January, 2022, the Government imposed restriction on export of human hair. This ban was imposed with the aim of curbing alleged smuggling of products from India. With this decision, exporters would now require permission or licence from Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) to send shipments of hair outside India.

62. On 25 January, 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that, government has notified a draft scheme for amalgamation of Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank with Unity Small Finance Bank (SFB). Final scheme envisages to start pay-outs for depositors with around Rs. 5 lakh in balance within one year, as opposed to two years in the draft scheme.

63. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology recently released a five year road map for the electronics sector. The ministry also released a vision document called "300 billion USD Sustainable Electronics Manufacturing and Exports by 2026".

64. Deccahorns are private firms whose value exceeded over ten billion USD. Recently Swiggy has become the fourth Indian company to earn the tag. The other three companies that hold the tag already are Paytm, a FinTech, Oyo (a hotel aggregator) and Byjus (an Edtech).

65. Union Minister for Power and New & Renewable Energy R. K. Singh announced government’s plan to de-license "stand-alone Energy Storage System". Now, people may be free to set up standalone energy storage systems (ESS). Elements of draft policy on energy storage system was discussed with renewable energy developers, industry and government representatives.

66. On 27 January, 2022, the Union government transferred its shares in Air India to Tata Sons subsidiary, Talace. Apart from Shares, its control and management were also transferred to Talace. With this, disinvestment process ended which started five years ago.

67. Coal Controller’s Organization released its flagship publications "Coal Directory of India 2020-21", recently. Coal Controller’s Organisation is a subordinate office under Ministry of Coal. The publication was released by the Secretary of Ministry of Coal, Dr. Anil Kumar Jain in Delhi.

68. The Drug regulator in India has granted conditional market approval for the COVISHIELD and COVAXIN vaccines. This means that the private hospitals shall administer the vaccines. However, the vaccines will not be available in retail medical stores.

69. On 27 January, 2022, the first goods train reached the Rani Gaidinliu station of Manipur. This is the first freight train to enter Manipur after 75 years. This shows the rapid transformation happening in the state of Manipur. Manipur is a hilly state. Because of this reason it was difficult to build railway lines in this region.

Science & Technology

1. Assistant professor Subodh G of Kerala University and research scholar Vidhya Lalan have developed fifth-generation (5G) microwave absorbers. Development of 5G microwave absorbers could act as an effective shield against electromagnetic radiations.

2. The QuantumScape Corp, a battery start-up backed by Volkswagen AG is working on a technology called "Iron-Air Battery". This technology could make car batteries cheaper, more reliable and suitable for quicker recharge.

3. The Quadrantid meteor shower occurs in January every year. The radiant of the shower lies in the Bootes constellation. The meteor showers are caused due to debris or trail of dust left by a comet. When the earth moves through the left-over dust particles, they catch fire.

4. Zero tillage is an agricultural practice. It maintains permanent soil cover. It increases natural biological processes that occur in the soil. It improves sustained crop production and increases soil nutrition. There is no soil disturbance.

5. The Indian Space Research Organisation Chairman K Sivan recently announced about plans for 2022. He also provided details about the missions accomplished in 2021. Earth Observation Satellites 4 and 6 are to be launched on PSLV. ISRO will also launch Aditya L1, Chandrayaan 3, XpoSat, Technology demonstration missions and IRNSS in 2022.

6. Scientists in France have identified a new and more mutated strain of SARS-CoV-2 virus, causing covid-19 disease. New virus was identified, when the world is still grappling with highly mutated strain of coronavirus, called Omicron. Omicron has already been leading to surge in covid-19 cases worldwide.

7. INSACOG is a multi-lab agency. It was established by the Government of India in 2020 to monitor the genomic variations of COVID-19. In the beginning, there were ten labs. The number has now increased largely. The labs identify and expand the genome sequences of COVID-19 virus. Through this they understand how the virus evolves and spreads.

8. Andhra Pradesh recently found that 'Mud Crab Reovirus (MCRV)' has been the reason for mass mortality of wild crab (Scylla serrata). Presence of MCRV in samples collected from Nagayalanka fields was confirmed by Joint research by Centre for Advanced Study in Marine Biology (Annamalai University, Tamil Nadu) and M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF).

9. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recently approved 'OMISURE'. Omisure is a RT–PCR kit. It is used to detect Omicron, a COVID-19 variant. It was manufactured by Tata Medical and Diagnostics. The kit was designed and developed by a US–based company Thermo Fisher. It was manufactured by Tata.

10. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), scientists have detected a newborn star and the surrounding cocoon of a complex organic matter, for the first time. The discovery revealed the hidden chemical complexity of Universe. It was published in a paper, in "The Astrophysical Journal".

11. Satellite Internet Company of Elon Musk, Starlink, is facing a tough time in Indian market. Starlink’s India head Sanjay Bhargava also announced to quit the company. Starlink rolled out internet services quietly in India, in early 2021. But it was forced to shut down services after government intervention.

12. On 8 January, 2022, the body of Nobel Peace Prize winning Anglican archbishop Desmond Tutu underwent aquamation in Cape Town. Aquamation is a green alternative to traditional cremation methods. Aquamation, also called as alkaline hydrolysis, is a process in which the dead body is immersed in a mixture of water and a strong alkali in pressurized metal cylinder, for a few hours. It is then heated to about 150 degrees centigrade.

13. The International Space Station is the most expensive laboratory in the world. It has more than twenty years of operation. The tests and experiments conducted in the ISS has provided insights into the effect of microgravity on human body and other interesting things.

14. Recently, doctors transplanted a pig heart into a patient in a last effort to save his life, in Maryland hospital in USA. It was done for the first time in the history of medical. The patient is doing well three days after this highly experimental surgery.

15. The Government of India is to provide third dose of vaccine. This third dose has been named "precaution dose" or booster dose. The health care workers, comorbid patients (people with severe medical conditions) and frontline workers are eligible to get the precaution dose.

16. In less than two months three sub lineages of Omicron has been detected. Omicron is a COVID-19 mutant variant. The Pango lineage of Omicron called the B.1.1.529 was declared as Variant of Concern by the World Health Organization. This has now spawned (reproduced or produced) into three sub types called BA.1, BA.2 and BA.3.

17. Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh launched Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven Start-Up for water purification through innovative technology. AI driven start-up for water purification has been developed by an IIT Alumni. The start-up was launched with the aim of providing clean drinking water at a lesser price, as opposed the market price.

18. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) issued new guidelines on "Purposive Testing Strategy", amid rising cases of covid-19 cases. ICMR issued guidelines on who needs to get tested for the infection, and who doesn’t. As per the guidelines, asymptomatic individuals, and contacts of Covid patients are not required to be tested unless identified as "high-risk individuals based on co-morbidities or age.

19. The Art restoration processes use laser techniques and chemicals to remove oil, dirt, glue and pollutants from stone works, monuments and paintings. But after 1980s, they have been using microorganisms. Researchers first used Desulfovibrio vulgaris bacteria to clean a marble monument. The monument was obtained from Cave Hill Cemetery located in Louisville, US.

20. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully conducted the qualification test of cryogenic engine for Gaganyaan programme on 12 January, 2022. The test was conducted for 720 seconds at ISRO Propulsion Complex, in Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu.

21. The space travel damages the red blood cells in human body. Such condition where the RBC count in the body reduces due to space travel is referred to as Space anemia. In simple terms, lower RBC count in space is called space anemia.

22. Scientists have recently discovered a new group of metals. The newly discovered metal group is called as "New Strange group of metals". The characteristics of metals like copper or iron are predictable. That is, their melting point, reaction nature, malleability, ductility are known to human.

23. The Government of India had put Ultra Violet – C Disinfection Technology for testing in Parliament, AC buses and trains. The technology is a huge success. It is now to be rolled out for the public. Also, the technology is to be used during ECI (Election Commission of India) poll meetings.

24. The government has started a special awareness drive in Jammu and Kashmir, with the goal of enhancing employment opportunities for the youths of the union territory. Awareness drive has been started for growers on the cultivation, processing of aromatic plants in Kashmir.

25. The asteroid 1994 PC1 is to pass by earth on 18 January, 2022. It will pass by at a distance of 1.2 million miles. This is five times the distance between moon and the earth. Therefore, the asteroid will not cause any harm to the earth. It is also known by the name "7482". Its length is more than one kilometer.

26. A group of scientists recently discovered a new planet. The planet is of the size of Jupiter. The new planet is 379 light years away from the earth. It is 105 times denser than the earth. The planet is named TOI-2180 b. It takes 261 days for the planet to orbit its star.

27. A recent Lancet study says that Antimicrobial resistance is now the leading cause of death. It has surpassed HIV and malaria. The study says that in 2019 antimicrobial resistance killed more than 1.27 million people all over the world. This is higher than those died of malaria and HIV.

28. On 20 January, 2022, members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) went on a virtual field trip to Columbia, with the help of Virtual Reality (VR) technology. On the virtual trip, they listen, watched and got insights into the peace process and what it looks like in Columbia.

29. On 21 January, 2022. Twitter announced a new way for users to authenticate their profile pictures, which is fuelled by non-fungible tokens (NFTs). It is significant for NFT owners who have been uploading their digital assets as profile pictures in jpeg format.

30. The Genome Consortium INSACOG recently announced that Omicron is at the "Community Transmission" stage in India. The ICT admissions and hospitalisation of patients are increasing. The Omicron has become dominant in metros though the infections are asymptomatic and mild.

31. According to Facebook parent company Meta, its new "artificial intelligence supercomputer" will be the fastest across the world, by the middle of year 2022. Meta introduced the AI Research Super Cluster (RSC) on 24 January, 2022. It is believed to be among fastest AI supercomputers running today.

32. Recently, in a Twitter exchange, CEO of Tesla Elon Musk, co-founder of Ethereum Vitalik Buterin and founder of e-commerce platform Gumroad Sahil Lavingia talked about population collapse and use of 'artificial wombs' to tackle this crisis. Their talk was focused on possible world population collapse as well as the options of creating synthetic or artificial wombs as a solution.

33. The Lok Sabha secretariat launched a new app titled "Digital Sansad" on 27 January, 2022. The digital sandad app was launched to make it easier for people to follow proceedings in Parliament and their lawmakers. The app is available in both android and IOS platform.

34. Data Privacy Day is celebrated on 28 January, every year, with the objective of spreading awareness on Privacy. Observance of the day is "an international effort of creating awareness on importance of respecting privacy, enabling trust and safeguarding data".

35. The scientists from 'CSIR – Central Drug Research Institute' have developed an indigenous RT-PCR kit called ‘Om’. This kit will be used to test the omicron variant. Om kit is the first kit developed by any government institution for the omicron variant.

36. Recently, 61 winners of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) 2021 and 2022 got digital certificates, that use blockchain-driven technology. The blockchain-driven technology has been developed under the "National Blockchain Project", by Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur).

37. The first Graphene innovation centre of the country is set up in Kerala. This is the first research and development centre being established for graphene. Graphene is the strongest material in the world. Also, it is the thinnest material. Graphene has good electrical conductivity and chemical stability. It is transparent, light in weight and has a large surface area.

38. The researchers from the Guru Nanak Institute of Dental Sciences in West Bengal have created a new method to detect oral cancers. It differentiates the cancerous stages and precancerous stages. The differentiation is done through high – standard biopsy reports.

39. The James Webb Space Telescope succeeded the Hubble Space Telescope. It was jointly built by NASA, European Space Agency and Canadian Space Agency. It uses infrared light to make observations. It was at first called the "Next Generation Space Telescope". It was renamed in 2002. James Webb was a former NASA administrator. He played a major role in the Apollo programme of NASA.

40. Realizing a 50-year-old goal of integrating single molecules into circuit for achieving scaling limits of Moore’s law, Roswell Biotechnologies has developed first molecular electronics chip. Molecular electronic chip uses single molecules as universal sensor elements in the circuit for creating a programmable biosensor with real-time, unlimited scalability in sensor pixel density and single-molecule sensitivity.

41. According to Chinese researchers, a type of coronavirus called NeoCov, which spreads among bats in South Africa is likely to pose threat to humans if it mutates further, in future. Study was posted on the preprint repository BioRxiv. However, it is yet to be reviewed.

42. The Volatile organic compounds are chemicals that are lighter than air at room temperature. They are used as paint thinners. Also they are used in perfumes. They are naturally found in petroleum products. They are also produced by plants, animals and micro organisms. Frequent exposure to volatile organic compounds leads to cancer and respiratory irritation.

43. NIPER is National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER). The Ministry of Chemicals has recently launched NIPER Portal to facilitate innovation and research in the pharmaceutical sector. The portal will assist the researchers in contacting appropriate organizations.

44. On 30 January, 2022, Congress gave a notice in Lok Sabha to move a privilege motion against Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw, alleging that he misled the House on Pegasus spyware issue. A similar notice will be issued in Rajya Sabha as well.

45. ISRO is likely to launch "Aditya-L1 mission" to study the sun, in year 2022. The Aditya-L1 mission will be placed into a point called L1 Lagrange point. This mission will be ISRO’s 2nd space-based astronomy mission after AstroSat. AstroSat was launched in 2015.

Government Schemes

1. On 1 January, 2022, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched a 100-day Reading Campaign called 'Padhe Bharat'. Padhe Bharat Campaign was launched to improve learning levels of students. It marks a significant step to improve learning levels because it develops creativity, critical thinking, vocabulary as well as ability to express in writing & verbal forms.

2. On 3 January, 2022, Union Education Minister Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched "National Educational Alliance for Technology (NEAT) 3.0". NEAT 3.0 was launched as a single platform for providing the best-developed ed-tech solutions and courses to the students in India.

3. The project was launched by AYUSH Ministry. Ayush Aahaar is a healthy diet. The ministry is to make this diet available in its canteen. It was launched at Ayush Bhawan canteen of the ministry. The project aims to promote healthy living through nutritious diet. The healthy diet that includes kokum drink, gajar ka halwa, bhajani vada and vegetable poha.

4. The Karnataka E – Bike Taxi scheme recently received an application. This is the first application received by the scheme after six months of its unveiling. The user can avail the electric bike for ten kilometres. An odometer is fixed to measure the distance travelled. Under the scheme, the fares fall in two slabs. They are Rs. 25 for the first five kilometres and Rs. 50 till ten kilometres.

5. The Government of India recently announced that it has disbursed 50% of the ECRP – II funds. The announcement came as a clarification as some of the media reported that only 26.14% of the funds were disbursed. ECRP basically aims to accelerate the preparedness of health system.

6. SAAR was launched by the Smart Cities Mission. SAAR will document the projects implemented by Smart Cities Mission. It is a part of Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav celebrations. SAAR is mainly implemented by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

7. The Ministry of Food Processing Industries recently launched six one district one product (ODOP) brands under the PMFME Scheme. PMFME is Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises. Earlier the ministry had signed an agreement with NAFED.

8. The United Nations World Food Programme, UN – WFP has signed an agreement with a Bengaluru based NGO (Non – Governmental Organization) to improve the effectiveness of PM – POSHAN. PM – POSHAN is Pradhan Mantri POshan SHakti Nirman. The scheme was called the Mid – Day Meal Scheme before.

9. On 6 January, 2022, the Government of India approved Green Energy Corridor Phase – II. The estimated outlay of the phase is Rs. 12,031 crores. Under this phase, 10,750 kilometres of transmission lines are to be constructed and 27,500 MVA sub stations are to be added.

10. On 7 January, 2022, the external affairs ministry and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) signed an agreement for second phase of the Passport Seva Programme (PSP-V2.0). The PSP-V 2.0 provides for rolling out of microchip-embedded e-passports. It is the largest e-governance programme of India, wherein TCS would deploy the latest technologies to ease the services.

11. Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh launched Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven Start-Up for water purification through innovative technology. AI driven start-up for water purification has been developed by an IIT Alumni. The start-up was launched with the aim of providing clean drinking water at a lesser price, as opposed the market price.

12. Subhas Sarkar, Minister of State for Education, Subhas Sarkar, launched the Swachh Vidyalaya Puraskar (SVP) 2021 – 2022, in virtual mode on 12 January, 2022. While launching the awards, the minister highlighted the importance of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Schools because it plays a significant role in deciding the learning outcomes, health of students, attendance, and dropout rate.

13. The Supreme Court has directed the High Courts of the country to provide an estimate of manpower required to create Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centre (VWDC) scheme in their states within three months. It has introduced new definitions to the vulnerable victims.

14. The Government of India is working on creating a digital stack of agricultural data. That is storing data related to farmers. Apart from farmer details, the digital agristack also holds all information about which seeds to buy, weather updates, what manures and fertilizers to use, insurance, best agricultural practices to maximize the yield.

15. Under "Chip to Start-up (C2S) Programme", central government is seeking application from 100 start-ups, MSMEs, R&D organisations and academia to train 85,000 engineers in very-large-scale integration (VLSI) and embedded system design areas.

16. Government of India announced the winners of "National Start-up Awards 2021" and felicitated 46 start-ups for their contribution in their respective sectors. Government also conferred an incubator and an accelerator with the award during this ceremony.

17. The Chhattisgarh Government is to launch an employment mission called the Rojgar Mission. The mission aims to create 15 lakh job opportunities in the state in the next five years. The mission will leverage experts from IITs, IIITs, IIMs. It is to be headed by the Chief Minister of the state.

18. On 17 January, 2022, Ministry of textiles cleared 20 strategic research projects, worth Rs. 30 crores, in the areas of specialty fibres and geotextiles. These projects fall under government’s flagship programme 'National Technical Textiles Mission.'

19. The Mana Ooru Mana Badi programme was launched by the Telangana Government. The programme will create school infrastructure in the state. It is to be implemented at a cost of Rs. 7,289 crores. More than 19.84 lakh children are to benefit from the programme.

20. Azadi Ke Amrit Mahotsav means Festival of Independence. Swarnim Bharat ke Ore means towards Golden India. The programme is "Azadi ke Amrit to Golden India". The programme began on 20 January, 2022. It was started by PM Modi. Azadi Ke Amrit Mahotsav means Festival of Independence. Swarnim Bharat ke Ore means towards Golden India.

21. The Streets for People Challenge is an online event organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The results of the event were announced recently. The Streets for People challenge along with the India Cycles4 challenge brought in changes to make the roads cycle friendly, walking friendly and child friendly.

22. The KCR kit scheme was launched by the Telangana Government. It is a welfare scheme launched for mother and child. After deliver, the mother is provided with the KCR kit. The kit consists of 16 items that are essential to keep the new born clean and hygienic. The kit supplies would suffice the needs of the baby for three months.

23. The Digital Government Mission was launched by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The mission will deliver government services to the citizens. It will use machine learning and artificial intelligence to deliver the services.

24. The Delhi Government recently launched the one-stop website to promote electric vehicles. The website is ev.delhi.gov.in. The website is open for manufacturers, buyers, charging station explorers. The main features of the website are EV search, EV calculator and EV dashboard.

25. The Ministry of Panchayati Raj recently revised the Rural Area Development Plan Formulation and Implementation. The plan has been revised to increase rural prosperity. The town areas are increasing. The spatial development in gram panchayats is not planned well. The census towns are increasing.

26. Delhi government took a decision to conduct a large-scale survey in a bid to understand the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the psychological and emotional behaviour of school children. This study will be the fourth survey in the past two years, conducted by Delhi government.

27. According to north-west district Delhi Police, number of police control room calls have decreased by 24 percent, after the launch of 'Operation Sajag'. As per police, since the launch of operation, 8006 criminals and anti-social elements, including robbers and snatchers have been arrested.

28. The Delhi Government is to begin a redeveloping, streetscaping and beautification project. Around 540 km of roads in the national capital are to be beautified. Under the project, the roads in the country capital will be redeveloped to European standards, that is, 30 metres or above. Also, the project will make the roads safe for the pedestrians.

29. The World Bank recently approved a loan of thousand crores of rupees for the West Bengal government. The loan amount is to be used in implementing 400 programmes run by the state government. The loan is to be used to help the vulnerable and poor groups of the society.

Awards & Honours

1. On 3 January, 2022, the Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh launched a web portal for the PM Excellence Award registration. The selection process of the award has undergone several changes since 2014. In 2022, the award is institutionalized based on performance of the district and not on the performance of the collector. The award is presented by the Prime Minister.

2. Urjit Patel served as the 24th Governor of RBI (Reserve Bank of India). He was recently appointed as the Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. He was born in Kenya. In 2018, he resigned as RBI governor. His resignation came in as a shock to the country. He resigned after serving for two years. He cited personal reasons for his resignation.

3. The Assam Mission on Malnutrition was launched in 2020 to eradicate malnutrition among children in the age group of six months to five years. It was launched under the name Project Parvarish. It was launched during Poshan Maah 2020. It is celebrated to increase people participation in the nutrition initiatives, especially Poshan Abhiyan.

4. Hollywood opened its "awards season of the Golden Globe". The Golden Globe Awards event was organised behind the closed doors on 9 January, 2022. "The Power Of The Dog" ” won the Best Film (Drama) Award while its director "Jane Campion" won the Best Director award. Will Smith and Nicole Kidman won "The Golden Globe", that is Best Film Actor and Actress award.

5. Government appointed new directors to the Indian Institutes of Technology in Delhi, Indore, Madras, and Mandi, on 10 January, 2022. Prof. Rangan Banerjee was appointed as next director of IIT Delhi, Prof. V. Kamakoti has been elevated as director of IIT Mandi, Prof. Laxmidhar Behera has been appointed as director of IIT Mandi and Prof Suhas Joshi has been appointed as director of IIT Indore.

6. Dr S. Somnath is to become the new chairman of ISRO. He is to succeed K. Sivan. He is the fourth Keralite to occupy the top most place in ISRO. The previous Keralites were K. Radhakrishnan, Madhavan Nair and K. Kasturirangan. Somnath was nominated way back in 2019. He was nominated based on his seniority. However, the term of Sivan was extended for one year.

7. National Award for e-Governance 2020-21 (Silver) was recently conferred to Mon District Administration of Nagaland. Award was presented at 24th National Conference on e-Governance at Hyderabad. Award was handed over to Deputy Commissioner of Mon district, Thavasselan K, by union Minister of State (MoS) Dr. Jitendra Singh.

8. The Best FIFA Football Awards are presented by the FIFA (Federation Internationale de Football Association). It revived the FIFA World Player of the year. Best Player in the world (men): Robert Lewandowski, Best Player in the world (women): Alexia Putellas, Special best Men award: Cristiano Ronaldo, Best Goal keeper (men): Edouard Mendy, FIFA Puskas Award: Erik Lamela and Best Coach (men): Thomas Tuchel.

9. On 23 January, 2022, India celebrated 125th Birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. His birth anniversary is also marked as "Parakram Diwas" or "Courage Day". This day was announced in 2021. The government of India decided to celebrate the birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as Parakram Divas.

10. The Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to unveil a hologram statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose near India Gate in Delhi. The statue is to be unveiled on Netaji’s 125th birth anniversary. His birth anniversary falls on 23rd January. The statue is powered by 4k projectors, capable of delivering 30,000 lumens of brightness value.

11. Renowned archaeologist and first director of Tamil Nadu archaeology department, Padma Bhushan R. Nagaswamy, passed away on 23 January, 2022 in Chennai. Nagaswamy is known for his epigraphy research on sculptures in Mahabalipuram and his several books on Tamil literature.

12. Ahead of Republic Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually interacted with the awardees of Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) on 24 January, 2022, amid covid-19 pandemic. Prime Minister also awarded them certificates digitally using block chain technology. The technology was used for the first time to give certificates to awardees.

13. The Government of India has appointed Anantha Nageswaran as the new Chief Economic Advisor. He is a former member of Prime Minister Economic Advisory Council. Nageswaran has taught in B–schools in India and Singapore. He is a visiting professor at Kre University. Krea University is one of the top private universities of the country. It is sponsored by IFMR. IFMR is Institute for Financial Management and Research.

14. Government of Assam conferred its highest civilian award 'Assam Baibhav' on Ratan Tata, on 24 January, 2022. However, Ratan Tata did not attend the event personally because of Covid-19 situation. Award was received by his representative during a programme held in Guwahati.

15. On 25 January, 2022, President Ram Nath Kovind approved 384 gallantry awards and other military decorations for security forces personnel. He also approved 12 Shaurya Chakras for soldiers who demonstrated exceptional courage during operations.

16. Former West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and former General Secretary late EMS Namboodirpad are among the two personalities who refused the Padma Awards, from state. As a policy, both the CPI(M) leaders, do not accept awards from the State.

17. Smriti Manadhana of India has won the ICC Women Cricketer of the year 2021. She is the second woman player to win the award in the world. Ellyse Perry of Australia was the first woman player to win the award. The ICC Women Cricketer of the year is presented as a part of the ICC Awards ceremony.

18. The Padma Awards 2022 is to be conferred to vaccine makers to semiconductor market rulers. This time, the Padma awards are being presented to a diversified list of recipients. Around 128 people are to receive the award in 2022. The awards will be presented by President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhawan.

19. The Gujarat Institute of Disaster Management (GIDM) as well as Sikkim State Disaster Management Authority’s Vice Chairman Vinod Sharma received the "Subhas Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan Puraskar 2022". Both were presented award for their excellent work in disaster management.

20. The Olympic Gold medal winner Neeraj Chopra was honoured with the Prama Vishisht Seva Medal. Neeraj Chopra brought fame to India by winning the country’s first athletic gold medal. In Tokyo Olympics, Chopra won the medal throwing javelin to 87.58 metres. Along with Neeraj Chopra, 18 other are being honoured with the award.

21. Sangoli Rayanna was a warrior from Kittur princely state. Kittur is the current Karnataka. He ruled during the time of Rani Channamma. The State Government of Karnataka is building a military school in the name of Sangoli Rayanna at a cost of Rs. 180 crores. The school will be administrated by the defence ministry.

22. On 28 January, 2022, Pandit Jasraj Cultural Foundation was launched marking the occasion of 92nd birth anniversary of late Indian classical vocalist, Pandit Jasraj. During the launch, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke at the online event and remembered him. PM requested the cultural foundation to focus on globalisation of Indian music.

Sports

1. The Khelo India Games were introduced to revive the sports culture in India. The 2021 Khelo India Games were postponed due to COVID crisis. It is now to be conducted in Haryana in January 2022. The Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur is to attend the games.

2. On 9 January, 2022, Fourteen-year-old Bharath Subramaniyam became India’s 73rd chess Grandmaster. He secured the third and final Grandmaster norm at an event at Cattolica in Italy. He scored 6.5 points from nine rounds along with four others and finish seventh in the event.

3. India’s Lakshya Sen secured his maiden Super 500 title by winning "Yonex-Sunrise India Open", on 16 January, 2022. He secured the title with a stunning straight-game victory over reigning world champion from Singapore, Loh Kean Yew in the men’s singles final. 20-year-old Lakshya had earlier claimed his maiden world championships medal with a bronze in Spain in December 2021.

4. P. V. Sindhu won the 2022 Syed Modi India International Badminton. Malvika Bansod was the runner. The men’s final match was cancelled as the players tested COVID positive. Arnaud Merkle and Lucas Claerbout were to play the finals. In the men’s doubles category Man Wei Chong & Kai Wun Tee won the title. The runners in the category were Krishna Prasad & Vishnuvardhan Goud.

5. Rafael Nadal won his 21st Grand Slam title. He beat Daniil Medvedev at the Australian Open Final to grab his Grand Slam. With this Nadal has become the first player to win 21 grand slam titles. Roger Federer of Switzerland and Novak Djokovic of Serbia have won 20 Grand slams.

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References:
jagranjosh.com
gktoday.in
business-standard.com