Current Affairs in English – January 11 2023

January 11, 2022

National Events:

RBI Deputy Governor:

• Central government extends term of RBI Deputy Governor Michael Patra. The government has re appointed Michael Patra as deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India for an additional period of one year with effect from January 15, 2023.
• The Appointments Committee was headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Prior to being elevated to this position, Patra was an executive director with the RBI. Patra is also a member of the Monetary Policy Committee.

Union Home Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Police Training:

• Four police officials from Himachal Pradesh have been awarded the Union Home Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Police Training for the year 2021.
• The four police officials are Ramesh Chander Chhajta, IPS, (others), SI Sat Pal (Indoor), SI Krishan Chand (Outdoor) and Kultar Singh (Outdoor). They all belonged to the Himachal Pradesh Police Training College Daroh, District Kangra.

All India Presiding Officers Conference:

• The 83rd All India Presiding Officers Conference is being held in Jaipur on 11-12 January 2023. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar inaugurated the conference. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is presiding over the conference.
• Speakers and Deputy Speakers of various Legislative Assemblies were present at the function. This Conference is being held in Rajasthan after 11 years (last in 2011).

Fintech unicorn BharatPe:

• Fintech unicorn BharatPe has received in principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as a Payment Aggregator (PA).
• They do not require merchants to create a separate payment integration system of their own. Previously Open, 1Pay, etc have received approval.

Lal Bahadur Shastri:

• Death anniversary of Lal Bahadur Shastri observed on January 11. On 11 January 1966, India’s second Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri died in Tashkent, USSR (now Uzbekistan), a day after signing Tashkent Declaration with Pakistan to end the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war.
• Shastri was the second Prime Minister of India. He gave the slogan, “Jai Jawan Jai Kissan” during the Indo-Pak War of 1965 . He was awarded the Bharat Ratna posthumously in 1966.

Road Safety Week:

• Ministry of Road Transport and Highways will observe Road Safety Week across the country from January 11, 2023. The aim of the programme is to propagate the cause of safer roads for all under the Swachhata Pakhwada.
• During the week, awareness campaigns related to the causes of road accidents and measures to prevent them, Nukkad Nataks and sensitization campaigns will be conducted.

National Human Trafficking Awareness Day:

• National Human Trafficking Awareness Day observed on January 11. This day aims to raise awareness about the plight of human trafficking victims, as well as to promote and protect their rights.
• Every year it is estimated that 225000 people worldwide become victims of human trafficking. 11 January was chosen as the date because The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, the first federal law in United states to address modern – day slavery was passed.

Axis Bank & IISc Institute:

• Axis Bank has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru to establish a Centre for Mathematics and Computing at the IISc Institute.
• The centre spread over 1.6 lakh square feet will have labs and programmes benefitting faculty and students. It will also host the new IISc BTech programme in Mathematics and Computing.

NCAP:

• Delhi was the most polluted city in India in 2022 with PM 2.5 levels more than double the safe limit and the third highest average PM10 concentration, as per the report by NCAP(National Clean Air Programme)
• Among the most polluted cities with respect to PM2.5 levels, Haryana’s Faridabad ranked second and UP’s Ghaziabad third. In 2021, Ghaziabad was the most polluted with respect to PM 2.5 levels. PM-Particulate Matter.

Anurag Kumar:

• Anurag Kumar was appointed the Chairman and Managing Director of Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) on 9 January 2023. Kumar was ECIL’s Executive Director before this appointment.
• ECIL’s Director (Personnel) Samir Mukherjee was holding additional charge of ECIL’S CMD post before this appointment.

Uttarakhand Public Services (Horizontal Reservation for Women) Bill:

• Uttarakhand Governor Gurmit Singh has approved Uttarakhand Public Services (Horizontal Reservation for Women) Bill 2022.
• It provides for 20% horizontal reservation for direct recruitment in public services and posts in vacancies to be recruited until July 24, 2006.
• After that, 30% horizontal reservation will be given in favor of the women candidates permanently domiciled in Uttarakhand.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board:

• Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board signed MoUs with chapters of 8 countries of Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) at Pravasi Bhartiya Divas Convention.
• MoUs were signed with France Metropole Paris, Mauritius, Reunion Island, Martinique, Sri Lanka, GOPIO International, Malaysia, and Mauritius. The aim of MoUs is to boost cooperation in development of Tourism sector of the State.

RRR:

• SS Rajamouli’s film RRR won Best Original Song for Naatu Naatu, one of the two categories it was nominated in. It was also nominated in the Best Non-English Language Film which was won by ‘Argentina 1985’.
• RRR has already won other international honours including Best Director for Rajamouli at the New York Film Critics Circle awards.

Aspirational Blocks Program:

• The Aspirational Blocks Program was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 7 January 2023. It was launched with the aim to improve the performance of locks within backward districts in various parameters.
• The Aspirational Block Program (ABP) was announced in the Union Budget 2022-23. Under this program, 500 blocks have been identified for quarterly ranking based on their performance.

Prithvi- II:

• India on 10 January 2023 successfully carried out a test launch of the tactical ballistic missile Prithvi-II. The Prithvi-Il missile has a range of around 350 kilometers. The test was carried out from the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur off the coast of Odisha.
• Prithvi missiles are indigenously produced and are the first missile to be developed under India’s prestigious IGMDP program.

CCI:

• The 63rd annual conference of the Chhattisgarh Chamber of Commerce and Industrial (CCI) was organized at Deendayal Upadhyay Auditorium in Raipur, Chhattisgarh on 10 January 2023.
• Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel attended the program as a chief guest. The state government has given over Rs 1.5 lakh crores to farmers through the purchase of paddy in the last four years.

Sudarsan Pattnaik:

• Renowned sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik built the world’s largest hockey sculpture on the banks of the Mahanadi river in Cuttack, Odisha. He built a 105 feet long hockey stick, using 5000 hockey balls.
• He has also been awarded Padma Shri in 2014, for his contribution to sand art. He also holds the Guinness Record ( 2017 ) for building the tallest sand castle at 48 feet.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma:

• Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma launched Jio True 5G services at Guwahati in Assam on 10 Jan 2023. By December 2023, Jio True 5G services will be made available in every town and taluka of Assam.
• Other than the launch, Smart Healthcare Solutions like teleradiology and connected ambulances were showcased during the event. Capital: Dispur. Governor: Jagdish Mukhi.

International Events:

Golden Globe Awards:

• Golden Globe Awards 2023 winners announced. The 80th Golden Globe Awards were held in Los Angeles on Jan 11, 2023.

Best Actor (Motion Picture-Drama)-Austin Butler for Elvis.

Best Picture (Drama)-The Fabelmans.

Best Actress (Motion Picture-Drama)-Cate Blanchett for Tár.

Best Director (Motion Picture)-Steven Spielberg for The Fabelmans Best Picture (Non-English Language)- Argentina, 1985.

Best Drama Series-House of the Dragon.

Ozone Layer:

• Ozone layer is recovering, expected to be healed completely in decades Earth’s ozone layer is expected to recover within four decades, according to a United Nations-backed panel of experts.
• It is expected that if the current trends continue, ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 levels by the year 2040. The conclusions are in line with the goal of the Montreal Protocol of 1987.
• The report added that it will return to normal in the Arctic by 2045. The Montreal Protocol is an Multilateral Agreement regulating the production, consumption, and emissions of ozone depleting substances.
• Signed in 1987 & Came into force in 1989. Ratified by 197 Parties making it first United Nations treaty to be ratified by every country in the world. The Kigali Amendment to the protocol aims for the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) .

Fifth – warmest year:

• Report by Europe’s Copernicus Climate Change Service had said that 2022 was the fifth – warmest year for the planet since records began. The report shows that the last 8 years have been the warmest on record.
• The annual average temperature reached 1.2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The reason behind this was a rise in concentration of heat-trapping gases.

‘Kraken variant’:

• The first case of the new highly transmissible Covid omicron variant has been detected in South Africa in Jan 2023. Canadian biology professor Dr. Ryan Gregory had nicknamed XBB.1.5 the ‘Kraken variant’ because it is able to spread quickly.
• A Kraken is a mythical giant tentacled sea monster from Scandinavian folklore. XBB.1.5 is the most transmissible omicron sub-variant detected so far.