Current Affairs Quiz 17th January 2022 : Daily GK Update Quiz

Exp. India’s first coal to methanol plant built by BHEL inaugurated in Hyderabad

Union government has dedicated India’s first BHEL-built ‘coal to methanol’ (CTM) pilot plant to the nation in Hyderabad.

The 0.25 TPD capacity CTM pilot plant is currently producing methanol with purity of more than 99% from high-ash coal.

This conversion of high-ash Indian coal to methanol through the gasification route is the first-of-its-kind technology demonstration in India.

Exp. Chhattisgarh Government will launch Rojgar Mission to create job opportunities

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. The chief minister Bhupesh Baghel is the chairman of the implementing committee. The Chief Secretary of the state is the vice chairman and the principal secretary will act as Chief Executive Officer.

The committee will also include the managing director of minor forest produce federation of the state.

Exp. 16th India Digital Summit 2022 organised by IAMAI

Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, addressed the 16th edition of India Digital Summit, 2022 through a video conference.

The two-day virtual event was organised on January 11 and 12, 2022 by the Internet And Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) with the theme “Supercharging Startups”.

During the event, the Minister unveiled ‘LEAP’ (Leverage, Encourage, Access & Promote) as the way forward to further strengthen our Startups ecosystem.

Exp. RIL signed MoU with Gujarat for investing Rs 5.95 lakh crore in Green Projects

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) signed an MoU with the Government of Gujarat for investment of Rs 5.955 lakh crore in various projects as part of the Investment Promotion Activity (IPA) for Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2022.

RIL will help in setting up 100 GW Renewable Energy Power Plant and Green Hydrogen Eco-System in Gujarat in a 10-15 years span.

A 100 GW renewable energy power project started in Kutch, Banaskantha and Dholera of Gujarat.

RIL will invest another Rs 60,000 crore in setting up New Energy Manufacturing-Integrated Renewable Manufacturing: 1) Solar PV Module (manufacture of Polysilicon, wafer, cell & module); 2) Electrolyzer; 3) Energy-storage Battery; 4) Fuel Cells.

Exp. PM will deliver ‘State of the World’ address at WEF’s Davos Agenda

PM Narendra Modi will virtually deliver State of the World special address at World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda

WEF Davos Agenda event is being held in virtual mode, amid the covid-19 pandemic, from January 17 to 21.

During the event, several Heads of State and Govt will address the forum. WEF virtual meeting will be aligned with the objective of “orienting global leaders on the imperatives of the year ahead”.

WEF is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation. It is based in Cologny, Switzerland. The organisation was founded on January 24, 1971 by Klaus Schwab.

Exp. Oxfam India released ‘Inequality Kills’ Report

According to Oxfam India “Inequality Kills” report, wealth of India’s richest families reached to a record high in 2021.

In the report, India was described as ‘very unequal,’ country, as top 10 people in India holds 57 per cent of the wealth. On the other hand, share of bottom half is 13 per cent.

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.

Number of Indian billionaires increased from 102 to 142, during 2021. Wealth of the top 100 families is Rs 57.3 trillion.

Exp. Rakesh Anand & Bhupender Singh Bajwa appointed as Chef de Mission for CWG & Asian Games 2022 respectively

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) announced the appointment of Rakesh Anand as India’s Chef de Mission for Commonwealth Games 2022 (CWG 2022) and Bhupender Singh Bajwa was appointed as the India’s Chef de Mission for Asian Games 2022.

The CWG 2022 games will be organized in Birmingham, United Kingdom (UK) from July 28 to August 8, 2022 and Asian Games 2022 will be organized in Hangzhou, China from September 10 to 25, 2022.

Rakesh Anand is IOA senior vice-president and Bhupender Singh Bajwa is President of the Wushu Association of India.

Exp. Rakesh Anand & Bhupender Singh Bajwa appointed as Chef de Mission for CWG & Asian Games 2022 respectively

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) announced the appointment of Rakesh Anand as India’s Chef de Mission for Commonwealth Games 2022 (CWG 2022) and Bhupender Singh Bajwa was appointed as the India’s Chef de Mission for Asian Games 2022.

The CWG 2022 games will be organized in Birmingham, United Kingdom (UK) from July 28 to August 8, 2022 and Asian Games 2022 will be organized in Hangzhou, China from September 10 to 25, 2022.

Rakesh Anand is IOA senior vice-president and Bhupender Singh Bajwa is President of the Wushu Association of India.

Exp. Mon District Administration of Nagaland received National Award for e-Governance (Silver) 2020-21

National Award for e-Governance 2020-21 (Silver) was recently conferred to Mon District Administration of Nagaland.

The award was presented at 24th National Conference on e-Governance at Hyderabad. It is presented by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG). It comprises of a trophy, certificate, and cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh

The National Award for e-Governance was presented under the category 6 of “Use of ICT in the Management of Covid-19” to Mon district. It was aimed at recognizing the initiatives undertaken by district administration.

Exp. GoI announced National Start-up Awards 2021

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. This marked the second edition of National Start-up Awards.

Winners:

In fintech category’s financial inclusion sub-sector, Bengaluru-based Naffa Innovations Private Limited (ToneTag) was declared the winner.

In fintech category’s insurance sub-sector, Umbo Idtech Private Limited won the award.

In Robotics sub-sector, Sagar Defence was declared the winner.

In the women-led start-up category, Jaipur-headquartered Frontier Markets was honoured.

Exp. Lavni artist Sumit Bhale won gold medal at the International Folk Art Festival in Dubai

A young Lavni artist from Maharashtra, Sumit Bhale of Fulbari taluka has won a gold medal at the International Folk Art Festival in Dubai.

Lavani is a genre of music popular in Maharashtra and is a combination of traditional song and dance, which is particularly performed to the beats of Dholki, a percussion instrument.

Exp. Indian Navy and Russian Navy conducted PASSEX exercise in Arabian Sea

Indian Navy and Russian Navy undertook PASSEX exercises at the port of Cochin, in the Arabian Sea.

The Indian Navy’s indigenously designed and built guided-missile destroyer, INS Kochi, took part in the exercise. Russian Federation Navy was represented by RFS Admiral Tributs.

Two other Russian naval ships Russian Naval Missile Cruiser Varyag, and Russian Tanker Boris Butoma were also accompanied.

Exp. Yonex-Sunrise India Open Badminton 2022: Lakshya Sen & Busanan Ongbamrunghphan won men’s & women’s singles titles resp.

India’s Lakshya Sen secured his maiden Super 500 title by winning the Yonex-Sunrise India Open with a stunning straight-game victory over reigning world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore in the men’s singles final.

In an all-Thailand final, Busanan Ongbamrungphan defeated Supanida Katethong 22-20, 19-21, 21-13 to win the women’s singles title.

In the doubles final, top doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty scripted a stunning straight-game win over three-time world champions Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan of Indonesia to become the first men’s team from the country to win the Yonex-Sunrise India Open.

Men’s singles: Lakshya Sen (India)

Women’s singles: Busanan Ongbamrungphan (Thailand)

Men’s doubles: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty (India)

Women’s doubles: Benyapa Aimsaard & Nuntakarn Aimsaard (Thailand)

Mixed doubles: Terry Hee and Tan Wei Han (Singapore)

Exp. Kathak maestro Pandit Birju Maharaj passed away

Legendary Kathak dancer Pandit Birju Maharaj (Brij Mohan Nath Mishra) has passed away at the age of 83.

A recipient of the country’s second-highest civilian award, Padma Vibhushan, he was fondly called Pandit-ji or Maharaj-ji by his disciples and legions of followers and was one of India’s best-known artistes.

Birju Maharaj was a descendant of the Maharaj family of Kathak dancers, which includes his two uncles, Shambhu Maharaj and Lachhu Maharaj, and his father and guru, Acchan Maharaj.

While he was best known as a Kathak dancer, he was an equally prolific singer, poet and painter.

Exp. Former PM of Japan Toshiki Kaifu passed away

The former Prime Minister of Japan, Toshiki Kaifu passed away at the age of 91 years in Japan. He served as the PM from 1989 to 1991.

He is known for sending the Maritime Self-Defense Force to the Persian Gulf in 1991.