Latest Current Affairs For Wednesday 26th January, 2022

Jai Bhim & Marakkar shortlisted for the Oscars 2022

Indian Movie’s  Jai Bhim and Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham have been officially shortlisted for the Oscars 2022.  Jai Bhim is the fourth Indian film to get nominated for Oscars after Mother India, Salaam Bombay, and Lagaan.

Marakkar Arabikadalinte Simham has been also nominated for the Global Community Oscar Awards 2021. The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences has released the list of 276 films eligible for the awards this year.

Not just Jai Bhim and Marakkar, directors Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh’s Writing with Fire, a film about a newspaper run by Dalit women, has been shortlisted in the Best Documentary Feature category at the Oscars 2022.

Eminent archaeologist Thiru R. Nagaswamy passes away

Noted Indian historian, archaeologist and epigraphist from Tamil Nadu, Ramachandran Nagaswamy, has passed away. He was 91. He first director of the Tamil Nadu government’s Department of Archaeology.

Nagaswamy was known for his work on temple inscriptions and art history of Tamil Nadu. In 2018, Nagaswamy was conferred with the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award. He has authored more than 100 books and his latest book was ‘Senthamizh Naadum Pandbum’, published in January 2022.

National Tourism Day of India celebrated on 25 January

The Indian government established January 25 as the National Tourism Day to raise awareness about the importance of tourism for the country’s economy.

The day is observed to cultivate awareness among the global community on the importance of tourism and its social, political, financial and cultural worth.

The ministry of tourism is the nodal agency in India to form national policies for the promotion and development of tourism. It also coordinates with central, state agencies and the public sector.

National Voters Day celebrated on January 25

India observes “National Voters’ Day” every year on January 25 to encourage more young voters to take part in the political process. Election Commission of India is celebrating 12th National Voters Day on 25th January 2022.

The theme for this year’s NVD, ‘Making Elections Inclusive, Accessible and Participative’, envisages focus on ECI’s commitment to facilitate the active participation of voters during the elections and to make the complete process hassle-free and a memorable experience for all categories of voters.

Since 2011, National Voters’ Day has been celebrated on January 25 every year, all across the country to mark the foundation day of the Election Commission of India, i.e. 25th January 1950.

Important For All Exam 2022:

1st Chief Election Commissioner of Independent India- Sukumar Sen.

Sushil Chandra is the current 24th Chief Election Commissioner.

Ladakh team wins 9th Women National Ice Hockey Championship 2022

The women’s team from Ladakh has lifted the 9th National Women’s Ice Hockey Championship in Himachal Pradesh. The championship was organised by the Ice Hockey Association of India at Kaza area in the Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh.

A total of six teams participated in the championship from Delhi, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Telangana and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Ice Hockey Association of India President: Dr Surinder Mohan Bali.

CDRI Develops Omicron Testing Kit named “OM”

CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) has developed an indigenous RT-PCR diagnostic kit, ‘Om’, for the testing of the Omicron variant of coronavirus. It is the first kit made by any government institution, and the third to be made indigenously, for specific testing of Omicron.

Currently, two more such kits developed by private players are available in the market. The kit will give test results in around two hours.

Om enables quick and cost-effective detection of omicron variants over genome sequencing for a large population. It was made within two months and will cost around Rs 150.

Further, it will give the test results in around two hours. According to the scientists, it can also be aligned for the detection of other emerging variants of Covid infection and other respiratory infections.

India’s Koozhangal gets the best film award at Dhaka International Film Festival

P S Vinothraj directed film Koozhangal from India won the best film award in the Asian Film Competition section at the 20th Dhaka International Film Festival.

Information and Broadcasting Minister of Bangladesh Hasan Mahmud gave away the awards as Chief Guest during the concluding session organised at the National Museum auditorium in Dhaka.

The list of the award for different categories are:

The best actor award was given to Jayasurya for Ranjith Sankar-directed film Sunny.

The Best Script Writer Award went to Indranil Roychowdhury and Sugata Sinha for Indranil Roychowdhury-directed India-Bangladesh film Mayar Jonjal.

The special audience award was given to Aimee Baruah Directed film Semkhor.

Sujit Bidari directed film Aina Jhyal Ko Putali from Nepal got the best director award.

In the Women film maker’s section, the best feature film award was given to Maryam Bahrololumi directed film Shahrbanoo (Lady from the City) from Iran.

Two Bangladeshi films, Nurul Alam Atique directed Lal Moroger Jhuti and N Rashed Chowdhury directed Chandrabati Kotha got the Audience Award.

Fullerton India partners with Paytm to expand digital lending to MSMEs

Fullerton India and One97 Communications Limited, which owns the brand Paytm, have announced a partnership to provide lending products to merchant partners and consumers.

With the partnership, the two established institutions will leverage data-driven insights and wide reach to bring credit to new-to-credit users. They aim to co-create innovative merchant loan products using customer payment behaviour and Fullerton’s years of experience of understanding of this segment.

The program will offer Paytm Postpaid (buy-now-pay-later) to millions of consumers on the Paytm platform while utilizing Fullerton’s deep risk assessment capabilities and scale.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Fullerton India CEO: Shantanu Mitra;

Fullerton India Founded: 1994;

Fullerton India Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Swiggy turns decacorn with valuation of $10.7 billion

Food-ordering and instant grocery delivery platform, Swiggy has signed a $700 million funding round led by asset manager Invesco. With this, the total valuation of Swiggy has reached to $10.7 billion i.e. it is now a decacorn.

A decacorn is a startup with a valuation of more than $10 billion. Swiggy’s latest valuation is almost double that of Zomato before the latter went for its initial public offering. Zomato was valued at $5.4 billion before its IPO.

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank launched ‘Platina Fixed Deposit’ Scheme

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank (SFB) has launched ‘Platina Fixed Deposit’, offering interest of 15 basis points (bps) higher than the regular term deposit rates provided by Ujjivan SFB.

The Platina FD is a non-callable deposit, where partial & premature withdrawal is not applicable. While the interest amount can be received on monthly, quarterly or at the end of the maturity period.

The general FD for 990 days tenure gives 6.75% interest for general citizens and 7.50% for senior citizens, while Platina FD offers 6.90% & 7.65% interest rates. 

FD limit: the minimum amount is Rs 20 lakh and the maximum amount is Rs 2 crores, with tenure ranging from 1 year to 5 years.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Founded: 2017;

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Headquarters: Bengaluru;

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank MD & CEO: Ittira Davis.

Govt appoints Vinodanand Jha as new chairperson to PMLA Adjudicating Authority

Vinodanand Jha has been appointed as the Chairperson of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Adjudicating Authority, for a period of 5 years. Jha is a 1983-batch retired IRS officer, who was serving as the Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax in Pune before this.

The PMLA Adjudicating Authority is a three-member body whose mandated is to adjudicate the cases of attachment of assets orders issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and order for its continuity and further confiscation or release, considering the merits of the investigation.

Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted by the NDA government to prevent money laundering and to provide for confiscation of property derived from money laundering. PMLA and the Rules notified there under came into force with effect from July 1, 2005.

Himachal Pradesh and Haryana govts tie-up for construction of Adi Badri Dam

Governments of Himachal Pradesh and Haryana have signed an MoU at Panchkula, for the construction of Adi Badri Dam that would come upon 77 acres in Himachal Pradesh near the Adi Badri area of Yamuna Nagar district of Haryana. The proposed dam aims for the rejuvenation of the Saraswati river with an estimated cost of Rs 215.35 crore.

The Dam would get 224-hectare metre water from Himachal Pradesh’s Somb River that falls in the Yamuna near Adi Badri in Yamuna Nagar district. The executing agency for the construction of Adi Badri Dam would be Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited. Adi Badri, also Sri Sarasvati Udgam Tirath, is located in the foothills of the Sivalik Hills in the Bhabar area. It is situated in the northern part of Haryana’s Yamunanagar district.

AIIB invests USD 150 million in data center development to serve emerging Asia

Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral development bank has committed USD 150 million to invest in the development of data centres that mostly serve emerging Asia.

This project is being AIIB’s 1st data centre project. India is a key founding member of AIIB. AIIB’s investment of USD 100 million through a parallel fund structure and USD 50 million through co-investments mark the final close of KDCF II, a development fund making strategic investments in the fast-growing data center sector with a focus on the Asia Pacific.

Important For All Exam 2022:

AIIB Headquarters: Beijing, China;

AIIB Membership: 105 Members;

AIIB Formation: 16 January 2016;

AIIB Head: Jin Liqun.

29 Children Awarded Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar 2022

Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) for the year 2022 has been conferred to 29 children.

These winners include 15 Boys and 14 Girls, belonging to 21 States and UTs. The PMRBP award is given by the Government of India to children with exceptional abilities and outstanding accomplishments in 6 categories. The award carries a cash prize of Rs.1,00,000/-.

Category wise distribution of awards is given below:

Innovation: 7

Social Service: 4

Scholastic: 1

Sports: 8

Art & Culture: 6

Bravery: 3

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.