Latest Current Affairs For Friday 11th February, 2022

World Pulses Day 2022: Observed On 10 February

The United Nations designated World Pulses Day is observed every year on 10 February. The day has been established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations to recognize the importance of pulses (dry beans, lentils, dry peas, chickpeas, lupins) as a global food.

This year World Pulses Day’s theme: “Pulses to empower youth in achieving sustainable agrifood systems”.

In 2018, the UN General Assembly decided to mark 10 February as World Pulses Day. The first WPD was held on February 10, 2019. On 20 December 2013, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution (A/RES/68/231) proclaiming 2016 as the International Year of Pulses (IYP).

The celebration of the year, led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), increased the public awareness of the nutritional and environmental benefits of pulses as part of sustainable food production.

Gujarat Titans unveiled as name for new Ahmedabad IPL franchise

Gujarat Titans is the official name of the new Ahmedabad franchise owned by CVC Capital as Hardik Pandya is all set to lead the franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022.

The naming of the Ahmedabad franchise comes days after Lucknow, owned by RPSG Group, announced its official name as Lucknow Super Giants. The Lucknow team will be led by KL Rahul.

Debuting in the 15th season of the IPL, the Gujarat Titans will pay tribute to the state’s rich cricketing legacy, which has seen it produce countless Indian international cricket legends over the years.

The franchise is inspired by the opportunity to represent and build on this deep cricketing heritage, as well as build on its future success on the pitch.

Gujarat Titans drafted in Hardik Pandya as their captain for Rs 15 crore and Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan for Rs 15 crore. They also got young India opener, Shubman Gill, for Rs 8 crore.

The Titans will head into the mega auction with a budget of Rs 52 crore. The Gujarat Titans brought on board former England cricketer Vikram Solanki as the Director of Cricket.

Ashish Nehra will be the head coach of the franchise while former World Cup-winning coach and South Africa opener Gary Kirsten will be the Head of Cricket Operations and the batting coach for IPL 2022.

Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Gautam Adani overtook Mukesh Ambani

In accordance with the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Gautam Adani net worth reached $88.5 billion overtaking Mukesh Ambani’s $87.9 billion becoming Asia’s richest person as on 8th February 2022.

With a nearly $12 billion jump in his personal wealth, he has become the 10th richest person in the world.

Globally Elon Musk was named as the world’s richest person with a total net worth of $235 Billion. He was followed by Jeff Bezos with a total net worth of $183 Billion & Bernard Arnault with a total net worth of $168 Billion.

Nitin Gadkari received 18th Late Madhavrao Limaye Award

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari will be facilitated for the first time with the 18th late Madhavrao Limaye award in the category of Karyakram Khaasdar (Efficient Member of Parliament) for the year 2020-21.

This award will be facilitated by Nashik Public Library, Sarvajanik Vachanalay. Earlier, the award was given to Karyaksham Aamdaar, an efficient Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Maharashtra.

The Sarvajanik Vachanalay annually selects one of the members of Vidhan Parishad (Lok Sabha), Vidhan Sabha (Rajya Sabha) for the Efficient MLA or Member of Parliament (MP) Award. The award has been instituted in the memory of Limaye by his daughter Dr. Shobha Nerlikar. The award consists of Rs 50,000 in cash and a memento.

ISRO decommissioned INSAT-4B through 11 Re-orbiting manoeuvres

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has decommissioned the INSAT-4B, an Indian communications satellite that forms part of the Indian National Satellite System.

The INSAT-4B underwent Post Mission Disposal (PMD) at the end of its service, followed by decommissioning on January 24.

INSAT-4B is the 21st Indian Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite to undergo post-mission disposal, the required propellant for such re-orbiting was included in the initial fuel budget as a part of standard practice followed in ISRO’s GEO mission planning.

The development is in compliance with the UN and the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) recommended space debris mitigation guidelines. The IADC guidelines provide guidance for limiting the generation of orbital debris both during and after space operations.

The guidelines also define accepted disposal orbits and other conditions, such as the timeline for abandoning commonly used orbits and controlling the risk to people and property on the Earth.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Chairman and Space Secretary of ISRO: Dr S Somanath;

ISRO Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka;

ISRO established: 15 August 1969.

Power Minister R K Singh launched Powerthon-2022

Union Minister of Power, R K Singh has launched Powerthon-2022, a hackathon competition to find technology-driven solutions to solve the complex problems in power distribution and to ensure quality and reliable power supply.

The competition will bring together qualified mentors with TSPs, innovators, and other participants to create teams for efficient electricity networks. He also encouraged technologists to come forward not only with solutions to existing problems but also with other problem statements and ideas for reliable power supply.

Technology Solution Providers (TSPs), start-ups, educational institutions, research institutes, equipment manufacturers, state power utilities and other state and central power sector entities, shall be briefed on the current challenges/ problem statements faced across the power distribution sector and invited to showcase their technology-driven solutions to solve the complex problems.

Razorpay buys majority stake in Malaysian startup “Curlec”

Razorpay has expanded into South-East Asia with the acquisition of a majority stake in a Malaysian fintech firm Curlec, valuing the company between $19-20 million. Razorpay expects to complete the full acquisition in the next one-and-a-half years.

The Kuala Lumpur-based, Curlec builds solutions for recurring payments for businesses. This marks Razorpay’s fourth acquisition overall and its first in the international markets.

This acquisition will allow us to quickly ramp up and start scaling in Southeast Asia as a market. Curlec has been powering recurring payments for multiple companies in the Malaysian market. With them as part of this team, we will have a local team that understands the nuances of the market in Malaysia and Southeast Asia at large.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Razorpay CEO: Harshil Mathur;

Razorpay Founded: 2013;

Curlec was founded by Zac Liew and Steve Kucia in 2018.

RBI 2nd largest buyer of gold in 2021

The largest buyer, the Central Bank of Thailand, bought 90 metric tonnes of gold while RBI bought 77.5 metric tonnes taking its total gold reserve to 754.1 tonnes at the end of December 2021.

When it comes to gold buying, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) emerged as the second-largest buyer of yellow metal among the world’s Central Banks in 2021. As per Goldhub, India’s official gold reserves is the ninth-largest in the world. Goldhub is the official website of the World Gold Council that maintains all the data regarding precious metals.

At the end of December 2021, RBI gold reserves stood at 754.1 tonnes, which amounts to 6.22 per cent of India’s forex reserves. As per RBI data, India’s total reserves at the end of December 31, 2021, stood at $633.61 billion, including gold reserves worth $39.405 billion.

Important For All Exam 2022:

World Gold Council CEO: David Tait;

World Gold Council Headquarters: London, United Kingdom;

World Gold Council Founded: 1987;

World Gold Council President: Kelvin Dushnisky.

UNEP tie-up with Maharashtra to support ‘Majhi Vasundhara’ campaign

The United Nation Environment Programme (UNEP) has signed an MoU with the Maharashtra government to support its ‘Majhi Vasundhara’ campaign. It is an initiative towards sustainable use of energy and environmental development.

The literal meaning of ‘Majhi Vasundhara’ is ‘My Earth’. It is an initiative of the Environment and Climate Change Department, Government of Maharashtra.

Majhi Vasundhara’ is an initiative of the Government of Maharashtra’s Environment and Climate Change Department to empower citizens with knowledge on the impacts of climate change and environmental issues and to encourage them to make a conscious effort towards improvement of the environment.

To empower citizens with knowledge on the impacts of climate change and environmental issues and to encourage them to make a conscious effort towards the improvement of the environment.

Important For All Exam 2022:

United Nation Environment Programme Headquarters location: Nairobi, Kenya;

United Nation Environment Programme Founded: 5 June 1972;

United Nation Environment Programme Head: Inger Andersen.

Sanjay Malhotra named DFS Secretary in Finance Ministry

Sanjay Malhotra has been named as Secretary in the Department of Financial Services in the Ministry of Finance. He is a 1990 batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre. Before this, Sanjay Malhotra was Chairman and Managing Director of REC Ltd. He has succeeded Debashish Panda, who completed his term as DFS Secretary on January 31, 2022.

Malhotra has an exhaustive power sector experience. The reforms-based result-linked power distribution sector scheme to be applicable till 2025-26 aims to reduce India’s AT&C loss to 12-15% and gradually narrow the deficit between the cost of electricity and the price at which it is supplied to ‘zero’ by 2024-25.

Senior bureaucrat S. Kishore appointed as new SSC Chairman

Senior bureaucrat S. Kishore has been appointed as Chairman, Staff Selection Commission (SSC).

According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Kishore to the post in the rank and pay of Secretary to Government of India by temporarily upgrading the post and keeping the Recruitment Rules of the post in abeyance.

Presently, he is serving as Special Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Staff Selection Commission Headquarters: New Delhi;

Staff Selection Commission Formation: 4 November 1975.

Instagram encourages people to ‘Take a Break’ from social media 

Instagram has announced the launch of ‘Take a Break’ in all countries, including India, to empower people to make informed decisions about the way they are spending their time.

This feature will be promoted in India through a campaign, in partnership with ‘We The Young ’, called ‘Break Zaroori Hai’. ‘Take a Break’ was first launched in the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and Australia, and it is now available for everyone globally.

Take a Break’ is a feature that will show up for people, as they have been scrolling for a certain amount of time. They will be asked to take a break from Instagram and suggest that they set reminders to take more breaks in the future.

They will also be shown expert-backed tips to help them reflect and reset. To make sure that young people are aware of this feature, they will be shown notifications suggesting they turn these reminders on.

The ‘Take a Break’ reminders build on Instagram’s existing time management tools including Daily Limit, which lets people know when they’ve reached the total amount of time they want to spend on Instagram each day, and offers the ability to mute notifications from Instagram.

Important For All Exam 2022:

Instagram launched: 6 October 2010;

Instagram Owner: Meta;

Instagram Founder Kevin Systrom.

India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant to come up at Madhya Pradesh 

India’s first commercial-scale biomass-based hydrogen plant will come up at the Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh.

Every day this plant will produce one tonne of hydrogen, from 30 tonnes of biomass feedstock. The plant is being put up by a joint venture of Watomo Energies Ltd and Biezel Green Energy with an investment of Rs 24 crore.

The company owns the technology for a ‘thermally accelerated anerobic digestion (TAD) reactor’ that can produce hydrogen, methane and biochar from biomass. Biezel Green will own 50 per cent in the yet-to-be-named joint venture; the other 50 per cent will come from interested farmers.

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.