Latest Current Affairs For Friday 17th December, 2021

UNESCO recognises Kolkata’s Durga Puja as Intangible Cultural Heritage

UNESCO has added Durga Puja in Kolkata to its 2021 list of Intangible Cultural Heritage, giving international recognition to the biggest religious festival of the 331-year-old city and the state of West Bengal.

The UNESCO’s announcement was welcomed by Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) as chief minister Mamata Banerjee is widely recognized as the biggest patron of the festival.

US Fashion Brand “Patagonia” selects Khadi Denim for its Apparels

US-based world’s leading fashion brand, Patagonia, is now using handcrafted Khadi Denim fabric for making Denim apparels. Patagonia, through textile major Arvind Mills, has purchased nearly 30,000 meters of Khadi Denim Fabric worth Rs 1.08 crore from Gujarat.

The purchase of Khadi Denim by Patagonia has created additional 1.80 lakh man-hours, i.e. 27,720 man-days of work for Khadi artisans. In July 2017, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) signed an agreement with Arvind mills Limited, Ahmadabad, to trade Khadi Denim products around the world.

Since then, Arvind Mills has been purchasing a large quantity of Khadi Denim fabric every year from KVIC-certified Khadi institutions of Gujarat.

Nation Observes 50th Vijay Diwas on 16 December 2021

In India, Vijay Diwas (also called Victory Day) is celebrated every year on December 16. The country is celebrating the 50th Vijay Diwas in 2021.

Vijay Diwas is observed to commemorate the service, valour, and sacrifices of the gallant men of the Indian Armed Forces’ victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war.

On this day, we pay homage to all the soldiers who had defended the nation in the war. The Indo-Pakistan war of 1971 which began on December 3 lasted for 13 days and officially ended on December 16, after which Pakistan surrendered to India.

It was on this day in 1971, the chief of the Pakistani forces, General AA Khan Niazi, along with 93 thousand troops, had surrendered unconditionally to the allied forces consisting of the Indian Army and Mukti Bahini. The end of the war also resulted in the subsequent secession of East Pakistan into Bangladesh.

A Book titled ‘Pride, Prejudice and Punditry’ by Dr Shashi Tharoor

Former union minister and Lok Sabha Member of Parliament Dr. Shashi Tharoor‘s 23rd book titled ‘Pride, Prejudice and Punditry’ was launched in Hyderabad, Telangana.

There are ten sections in this book, each devoted to a particular topic such as modern Indian history, Indian Politics, etc. He has won ‘Sahitya Akademi Award’ for 2019, awarded to his book – ‘An Era of Darkness.

India inducts 148 athletes in list of TOPS athletes for 2024 Olympics

A total of 148 athletes, including 20 new inductees, in seven Olympic disciplines and six Paralympic disciplines, have been identified for support under the Target Olympic Podium Scheme at a meeting of the Mission Olympic Cell of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

The TOP scheme which is an attempt to provide assistance to India’s top athletes. This scheme was started in 2014.

The Mission Olympic Cell approved lists in Cycling, Sailing, Shooting, Swimming, Table Tennis, Weightlifting and Wrestling as well as Para Sports (Archery, Athletics, Badminton, Shooting, Swimming, Table Tennis). Archery, Athletics, Badminton, Boxing, Equestrian, Fencing, Golf, Gymnastics, Judo, Rowing and Tennis will be taken up in the next meeting later this month.

Paytm launches EdTech Platform “Paytm Wealth Academy”

Paytm, which got listed in bourses last month, has announced the launch of Paytm Wealth Academy, a tech-powered educational platform. The launch of the wealth academy is initially on the Paytm Money app, the wealth management app owned by Paytm’s wholly-owned subsidiary Paytm Money. Paytm Wealth Academy will initially be available to select users, followed by a complete rollout.

The Paytm Wealth Academy will allow users to learn trading and financial concepts at their own pace at their level of comfort. The platform offers a wide catalogue of courses and webinars along with personalized recommendations for users, curated to complement their existing knowledge.

Important For All Exam 2021:

Paytm Founded: August 2010;

Paytm Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India;

Paytm CEO: Vijay Shekhar Sharma.

Wholesale inflation surges to 14.23% in November

Producers’ inflation based on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) has reached an all-time high in the current series at 14.23 per cent in November.

This is the eighth successive month of double digits WPI (mainly due to the hardening of prices of mineral oils, basic metals, crude petroleum and natural gas).

Wholesale Price-based Index (WPI) inflation base year is 2011-12. Also, the spike is highest since April 2005.

ADB projected growth forecast for 2021-2022 for India at 9.7%

Asian Development Bank has trimmed its 2021 growth forecast for India to 9.7 per cent from 10 per cent but left the 2022 growth forecast unchanged at 7.5 per cent.

The inflation forecast of developing Asia was revised to 2.1 per cent for 2021 and unchanged at 7 per cent for 2022.

In its Asian Development Outlook Supplement Report of December 2021, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has trimmed the growth forecasts for developing Asia for 2021-2022 to reflect the economic impact and uncertainty caused by the new Omicron COVID -19 variant.

Axis Bank tied up with Swift to provide digital banking solution

Axis Bank is working with new digital services from provider Swift to provide a comprehensive digital solution to clients.

The bank is integrating with different digitization initiatives by government bodies and service providers to extend an end-to-end service to business clients.

Axis bank’s B2B (business-to-business) digitization efforts are being supported by Swift, a cooperative of global banks that acts as an intermediary between banks and sets standards.

Important For All Exam 2021:

Axis Bank Founded: 3 December 1993;

Axis Bank Headquarters: Mumbai;

Axis Bank MD & CEO: Amitabh Chaudhary;

Axis Bank Chairperson: Shri Rakesh Makhija.

Odisha tie-up with UNCDF to launch “Mission Shakti Living Lab”

Odisha inked an agreement with United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) to launch “Mission Shakti Living Lab” for the financial empowerment of women. A Global Centre for Financial Health, to launch Mission Shakti Living Lab empowering women economically and drive gender equality.

With the use of digital technologies and e-commerce, it will increase the income and financial well-being of women, self-help groups (SHGs) and households by helping them in the factors of planning, saving, borrow or spending better. It will address the barriers related to the autonomy and financial freedom of women.

Mission Shakti was launched in 2001 to enhance the holistic development of women, there are 6.02 lakh self-help groups (SHGs) comprising 70 lakh members across rural and urban areas of Odisha under the initiative. This initiative led to an increase in the income of SHG members from Rs 3,000 to 15,000 per month in Odisha.

Important For All Exam 2021:

UN Capital Development Fund Founded: 1966;

UN Capital Development Fund Headquarters: New York, United States;

UN Capital Development Fund Executive Secretary: Preeti Sinha.

IIT-Delhi tie-up with IAF to improve indigenisation efforts

IIT-Delhi signed an MoU with Indian Air Force (IAF) to support requirements towards indigenous solutions in various weapon systems.

Under the MoU, The IAF has identified key focus areas involving the development of technology and finding indigenous solutions towards the sustenance of various weapon systems.

The partnership between IIT Delhi and IAF will also boost the efforts by Base Repair Depots (BRDs) of Maintenance Command IAF.

Important For All Exam 2021:

Indian Air Force Establishment: 8 October 1932;

Indian Air Force Headquarters: New Delhi, Delhi;

Indian Air Force Chief of the Air Staff: Vivek Ram Chaudhari;

Indian Air Force Motto: Touch the Sky with Glory.

Govt laid foundation stone for Maa Umiya Dham Development Project in Gujarat

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has laid the foundation stone of Umiya Mata Dham temple and temple premises under Maa Umiya Dham Development Project at Umiya Campus in Sola in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

They will be developed at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore on 74,000 square yards of land. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has virtually attended and addressed the foundation stone laying of the project. He stated the Project as an example of the notion of ‘SabkaPrayas’ (Efforts of everyone).

Important For All Exam 2021:

Gujarat Capital: Gandhinagar;

Gujarat Governor: Acharya Devvrat;

Gujarat Chief minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel.

7th edition of India International Science festival begins in Panaji

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the seventh edition of the India International Science Festival at Panaji, Goa.

The theme of the 4-day science festival is ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ – “Celebrating Creativity, Science, Technology and Innovation for a prosperous India”.

First India International Science Festival was held in 2015 at IIT Delhi. The main aim of the Science Festival is to bring into use the innovations by the people and develop technology that is affordable to the masses.

PM Narendra Modi to be awarded prestigious Lokmanya Tilak Award 2023

The Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust (Hind Swaraj Sangh) would confer the prestigious Lokmanya Tilak National Award 2023 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Pune on August 1, 2023.

Reason: This award recognizes PM Modi's supreme leadership under which India has climbed the ladder of progress

It is presented annually on the occasion of Lokmanya Tilak's death anniversary.

Other awardees: Indira Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Sharad Pawar, Cyrus Poonawalla, and Manmohan Singh. 

J&K Bank wins award for Best Performance in CASA

Jammu & Kashmir Bank has been felicitated for the Best Performance in CASA-India (1st Runner up in Small Bank Category) at ICC Emerging Asia Banking Conclave & Awards 2022.

The event was participated by banks from India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & Myanmar.

The function was organized by the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Goa.

Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group headquartered in Calcutta.

India poised to become world’s 2nd-largest economy by 2075: Goldman Sachs

According to the Investment Bank Goldman Sachs, India is poised to become the world’s second-largest economy by 2075.

As per the report, India would cross Japan, Germany, and the US With a population of 1.4 billion people.

India’s GDP is estimated to expand remarkably, reaching 52.5 trillion dollars surpassing the US GDP projection.

The labour force participation set to make India the second-largest economy in the world by 2075.

L&T and Spain's Navantia sign agreement for submarine project

L&T has signed a teaming agreement with Spanish-based Navantia for the submission of a techno-commercial bid for the Indian Navy’s prestigious P75 (India) submarine program.

P75 (India) Submarine Project is expected to be valued at €4.8 billion.

Navantia would carry out the design of P75(I) submarines based on its S80 class of submarines.

The first S80 class submarine was launched in 2021 and is undergoing sea trials prior to its delivery to Spanish Navy. 

India overtakes China as most attractive emerging market for investing

According to a study by Invesco Global Sovereign Asset Management, India has overtaken China to become the most attractive emerging market for investing in sovereign wealth funds this year.

Reason: This is due to its solid demographics, political stability, and proactive regulation. 

Positives for the nation also include the rapidly expanding demography, strong regulatory actions, and a welcoming climate for sovereign investors.

World Population Day 2023: 11 July

World Population Day is observed every year on July 11 in order to raise awareness about global population issues, including population control.

2023 theme: Unleashing the power of gender equality: Uplifting the voices of women and girls to unlock our world’s infinite possibilities. 

It was established by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1989, after the day the world approximately reached a population of five billion, which was observed on 11 July 1987.

MoHUA conducts SBM-U 2.0 Planning & Implementation Review-cum-Workshop

The Housing Ministry organized a review-cum-workshop to evaluate and accelerate the planning and implementation of the SBM-Urban 2.0.

PM Modi launched the 2.0 versions of SBM-U and AMRUT on October 1, 2021.

SBM-U 2.0: Achieving 100% waste segregation in all households and premises and 100% door-to-door collection of segregated waste from each. 

AMRUT 2.0: To provide complete coverage of water supply to all households and sewerage and septage in 500 AMRUT cities. 

Gujarat CM launches pilot project of ‘Antyodaya Shramik Suraksha Yojana’

Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel launched the Antyodaya Shram Suraksha Accident Insurance Scheme from Kheda

All those registered under the e-Shram portal from Nadiad will benefit from the scheme.

It is being implemented through the Indian Postal Department, the IPPB, and the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

Under this scheme, insurance with a premium of Rs. 289 and Rs. 499 per year will be a big support to workers in the event of death or partial disability.

OCA elects Sheikh Talal as the new President

Kuwait’s Sheikh Talal Fahad Al Ahmad Al Sabah has been elected as the new President of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA).

He replaced his older brother Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, who led the OCA for 30 years until 2021.

The OCA was founded in 1982 by his father Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who led it until 1990.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) is a governing body of sports in Asia, currently with 45 member National Olympic Committees.

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance wins Insurer Innovation Award 2023

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has won the Insurer Innovation Award 2023 for the APAC region at the 8th World Digital Insurance Awards, hosted by TDI - The Digital Insurer.

Recognition: Bajaj Allianz Life's ground-breaking WhatsApp Conversational Platform - empowering customers to digitally services their policies seamlessly. 

The award entries were shortlisted by industry experts and the winner was selected by the community through pre-voting and live event voting.