Current Affairs Capsule - January - 2020

Sreedhar’s CCE CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE JANUARY-2020
CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE – JANUARY- 2020

BANKING
 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has launched a mobile app “Mobile Aided Note Identifier
(MANI)”. The visually challenged people can identify the denomination of a currency note
by using the mobile app “MANI”.
 Bank of Baroda joins hands with JM Financial for co-lending to home buyers.
 Exim Bank grants $75 mn line of credit to Cuba for solar parks.
 RevFin partners with PNB MetLife to provide life insurance to its customers.
 CSC e-Governance services India ltd has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
with Paytm Payments Bank ltd (PPBL) for selling FASTags.
 Indian Bank signed MoU with TN’s WEWA to provide credit for business establishments.
 Health insurance cover in the name ‘Arogya Sanjeevani’ mandatory for insurance
companies.
 PayPal India launches adoption assistance programme for employees.
 The Reserve Bank of India has revised its supervisory framework for Urban Co-operative
Banks (UCBs).
 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted “in-principle” approval to Shivalik Mercantile
Co-operative Bank Limited for transition into a Small Finance Bank (SFB).
 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), gave approval to Uttar Pradesh based Shivalik Mercantile
Co-operative Bank Ltd to convert to a small finance bank (SFB).
 The two Indian private sector lenders Axis Bank and ICICI Bank to close their operations in
Sri Lanka.
 State Bank of India has announced a 'residential builder finance with buyer guarantee'
(RBBG) scheme. It aims at giving a push to residential sales and improve homebuyers'
confidence.
 Deutsche Bank projects India's economy to reach $7 trillion by 2030.
 German development bank, will assist the Andhra Pradesh government with a Rs 711
crore loan for expanding the climate-resilient Zero-Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) in the
state over the next five years.
 Paytm launches all-in-one QR for merchants, to enable unlimited payments.
 HDFC Bank launches customized apps for municipalities, housing societies.
 The Reserve Bank of India has revised the Know Your Customer (KYC) norms for banks
and other lending institutions.
 Reserve Bank of India permits recurring payments through UPI.
 RBI issues new debit and credit card rules to improve convenience and security.
 NPCI Launches Blockchain-Based Vajra Platform To Secure Payments.
 UN lowers India's GDP growth rate to 5.7% for FY 2019-20.
 RBI ranked sixth among central banks in buying gold abroad.
 RBI cancels certificate of authorization of Vodafone m-pesa.
JANUARY-2020 Page 1
 ICICI Bank introduces ‘Cardless Cash Withdrawal’ through ATM using ‘iMobile.
 ICICI Lombard gets Irdai nod to pilot 5 projects under Regulatory Sandbox.
 Apollo Hospitals Group in association with Bajaj Finserv has launched a first-of-its-kind
co-branded Health EMI card to make hospital payments easy.
 India & World Bank signed $210 million loan pact for Maharashtra’s Agri & Rural
Transformation Project.
 RBI increased Investment Limits under Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) to Rs 1.5lakh
crore.
 According to the India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), there have been
about 1000 cases of fraud in the urban cooperative banks (UCBs) of the country in the last
5 fiscal years (FY), in which banks have incurred losses of 221 crores.
 NABARD predicts Rs 90,395cr credit potential for Odisha in FY21.
 National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an umbrella organisation for operating
retail payments and settlement systems, has approved part of the banks request to
remove interchange fees on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and RuPay card transactions
as long as the merchant discount rate (MDR) remains zero.
 RBI Executive Director Janak Raj appoints as MPC Member.
 ICICI Bank launches first-of-its-kind 24×7 self-service delivery facility , ‘iBox’
 Indian Bank launches credit products ‘Corporate Loan’ & ‘Ind Surya Shakthi’ for textile
sector.
PERSONS IN NEWS
 The government has created a Department of Military Affairs, to be headed by Chief of
Defence Staff (CDS) Gen Bipin Rawat.
 Malavath Poorna from Telangana scaled Mt Vinson Massif, the highest mountain peak in
Antarctica at 4,892 meters and she becomes the 1st and youngest tribal women in the
World to scale six mountain peaks in six continents.
 North Macedonia Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has resigned his post.
 P R Seshadri MD and CEO of Karur Vysya Bank has resigned from the position.
 The United Nations has declared Pakistani education activist and Nobel laureate Malala
Yousafzai as “Most Famous Teenager of the Decade”.
 Italian Veteran footballer Daniele De Rossi announced his retirement.
 Uttam prakash agarwal resigns as independent director of Yes Bank.
 Captain Tania Shergill, an officer with Army's Corps of Signals, will be the first woman
parade adjutant for the Republic Day parade 2020.
 Sachin Tendulkar nominated in Laureus's list for most inspiring sporting event of last 20
years.
 Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez to retire from international cricket after T20
World Cup 2020.
 Jacqueline Williams of the West Indies will become the first woman to officiate as the
third umpire in a men’s international.
 Prime Minister of Slovenian Marjan Sarec has announced his resignation and called for
fresh elections as the country’s coalition struggles with political deadlock.
 Rajasthan domestic cricket stalwart Vineet Saxena has formally announced his
retirement.
JANUARY-2020 Page 2
 Sachin Bansal has resigned as independent director of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank.
 New Zealand leg-spinner Todd Astle has announced his retirement from first-class cricket.
 Indian women’s hockey team captain Rani Rampal became the 1st-ever hockey player
worldwide to win the prestigious ‘World Games Athlete of the Year’ award 2019.
 Irish composer Eimear Noone will be the first woman to conduct an orchestra at the
Oscars guest-segment.
APPOINTMENTS
Name of the Person Name of the Organization
Pedro Sanchez Perez- Prime Minister of Spain
Castejon
Zoran Milanovic Prime Minister of Croatia
A Sakthivel New chairman of Apparel Export Promotion Council of India (AEPC)
M Nagaraj Chairman and MD of State-owned Housing and Urban
Development Corporation (HUDCO)
Chandra Pal Singh Yadav Chairman of Krishak Bharati Cooperative Limited (KRIBHCO)
Vinod Kumar Yadav Railway Board Chairman
Umesh Sinha Deputy Election Commissioner of India
S. Sundar MD and CEO of Lakshmi Vilas Bank
Suresh Chandra Sharma 1st Chairman of National Medical Commission (NMC)
Hillary Rodham Clinton 1st female Chancellor of United Kingdom’s Queen’s University
Abhinav Kumar Inspector General of Border Security Force (BSF)
Harjeet Kaur Joshi New CMD of Shipping Corporation of India
Rajiv Rai Bhatnagar Advisor to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir
Arun Kumar Sahu Next ambassador of India to the mountainous Caribbean island of
Dominica
Bipul Behari Saha Member of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry
(IUPAC)
Lt Col Yuvraj Malik Director of the National Book Trust (NBT)
Tsai Ing-wen President of Taiwan
Robert Abela 14th prime minister of Malta
Madan Lal and Gautam Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) members
Gambhir
Michael Patra Deputy governor of RBI
AP Maheshwari Director-General of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)
Lt General Girish Kumar Surveyor General of India
Harish Salve Queen’s counsel for the courts of England and Wales
Justice Abhay Manohar Chairman of Road safety committee
Sapre
Suresh Kishinchand Deputy MD of IDBI Bank
Khatanhar
Shalini Warrier Executive Director of Federal Bank
JANUARY-2020 Page 3
Arjun Munda President of the Suspended Archery Association of India (AAI)

Nripendra Misra Chairman of Nehru Memorial Museum and library executive council
Lieutenant General SK Saini Vice Chief of Army Staff
Challa Sreenivasulu Setty Managing director of SBI
Sanjiv Chadha MD and CEO of Bank of Baroda
Lingam Venkata Prabhakar MD and CEO in Canara Bank
Atanu Kumar Das MD and CEO in Bank of India
Manoj Kohli Head of Softbank group India
Hassan Diab Prime Minister of Lebanon
Katerina Sakellaropoulou 1st Woman President of Greece
Sunil Arora New Chairman of the Forum of the Election Management Bodies of
South Asia (FEMBoSA) for the year 2020
Sunil Mehta CEO of Indian Banks’ Association
Taranjit Singh Sandhu Next Indian ambassador to the United States
Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin New Prime Minister of Qatar
Abdelaziz Al Thani
Alastair Nathan Cook and New members of MCC’s World Cricket Committee
Ricky Skerritt
Anil Khanna Life President of Asian Tennis Federation (ATF)
Ramesh Joshi Non-Executive Chairman of Vakrangee Limited
Janak Raj Third internal member of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)
Gita Sabharwal United Nations Resident Coordinator (RC) of Thailand
INTERNATIONAL
 The President of Nepal “Bidhya Devi Bhandari” has launched the “Visit Nepal Year 2020”
during the ceremony held at historic Dasaratha Rangashala in Kathmandu.
 In the honour of 200th birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, the World Health
Organization designated the year 2020 as the “Year of Nurse and Midwife”.
 India and Pakistan exchanged lists of nuclear installations.
 US President Donald Trump has signed the 2020 National Defense Authorization
Act. With the signing of the act, US has authorized the establishment of US Space Force.
 The UAE has introduced a multiple-entry tourist visa scheme valid for five years for all
nationalities, with the aim of turning the Gulf state into a tourism hub.
 The Indian High Commission has organized an “art exhibition” in Dhaka, Bangladesh. An
“art exhibition” has been organized to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of
Mahatma Gandhi.
 The Iranian parliament has designated US Armed Forces & Pentagon as ‘Terrorist
Entities’ with a motion passed at an open parliament session.
 The 18th edition of the Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF) 2020 held in Bangladesh.
The theme of the festival is ‘Better Film, Better Audience and Better Society’.
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 First phase of “Bishwa Ijtema” has commenced in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

 The World Health Organization (WHO) released the Global challenges for 2020. 13 health
challenges in this decade were also identified.
 South Africa will now offer an e-visa facility for Indian tourists.
 As Google-parent Alphabet Inc became the fourth U.S. Company to top a market value of
more than $1 trillion.
 Guyana has assumes the chairmanship of Group of 77 (G77) for the year 2020 from the
State of Palestine.
 The Central Government has declared the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to be a
“reciprocating territory” under Section 44A of Civil Procedure Code (CPC), 1908.
 External Affairs Minister Shri Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has inaugurated the “first
Mahatma Gandhi convention centre” in the West African state of Niger.
 India and Bangladesh signed an agreement to upgrade the 50.58-kilometre long road
between Ashuganj river port and the Akhaura land port in Bangladesh into a 4-lane
highway.
 New Zealand has minted the world’s smallest gold coin of 2.96 millimeter (0.12 inches).
 Prime Minister (PM) of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina Wazed has launched e-passport in
Dhaka, Bangladesh.
 Britain unveiled a commemorative 50 pence coin to mark the country’s imminent
departure from the European Union (EU).
 The 13th edition of International Children’s Film Festival was inaugurated in Dhaka,
Bangladesh. The theme is ‘Under The World’ and slogan is “Future in Frames”.
 The UK government has launched 4 million pound (about Rs 37 crore) fund in India to
support collaborative research into emerging technologies.
 Nepal has set an all new Guinness World Record for the highest altitude fashion show
event ever held.
NATIONAL
 The central Government has formed a 7-member group of ministers (GoM) headed by
Defense Minister to review the crop insurance scheme ,“Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima
Yojana (PMFBY)” & make suggestions to improve it according to the needs of the farmers.
 The Delhi Government’s renaming committee has renamed Pragati Maidan metro station
as Supreme Court metro station.
 The Indian Railways has renamed its security force RPF (Railway Protection Force) as
Indian Railway Protection Force Service.
 The Indian Railways launched an integrated helpline number 139 for quick grievance and
enquiries by the passengers during journeys.
 The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has announced
the 1, 70,000 grave violations against children in conflict were verified which is the
equivalent of more than 45 violations a day for the last 10 years.
 Union HRD Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nisank’ inaugurated the 28th edition of New
Delhi World Book Fair 2020 (NDWBF) at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, with the theme
Gandhi: The Writers’ Writer.
 107th international science congress inaugurated in Bengaluru, with the theme Science
and Technology: Rural Development.
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 PM Modi released the 3rd installment of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana of
Rs.2000 for December 2019- March 2020 period.
 The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has set up a New, Emerging and Strategic
Technologies (NEST) division which helps to deal with new and emerging technologies.
 Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai has inaugurating the 4th All India
Police Judo Cluster Championship 2019, in New Delhi.
 Neutral pronoun ‘they’ has been voted word of the decade by US language experts.
 Shri Amit Shah will head the Group of Ministers (GOM) to discuss and examine the
proposed National Tariff Policy 2016.
 The Union Minister of Commerce and Industries Piyush Goyal inaugurated the National
Stock Exchange (NSE) Knowledge Hub in New Delhi.
 Defence Minister inaugurated the National Traders Convention at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi.
 Union Home Minister has laid the foundation stone of Delhi Cycle Walk project in
Tughlakabad, New Delhi.
 High Level Committee (HLC) chaired by Amit shah sanctioned Rs 5908 crore to 7 states
from National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).
 India to set its New World-Class Facility center in Challakere, Karnataka to train
astronauts.
 Mizoram will organize the 1st edition of Zo Kutpui festival 2020 across 10 states in India
& Maryland in the US (United States), Tahan in Myanmar and Bangladesh.
 Vijay Rupani has announced the setting up of the Vikram Sarabhai Children Innovation
Center (VSCIC) to identify, nurture and promote children’s innovation in Gujarat.
 The Indian Railways has given approval for the installation of Internet Protocol
surveillance system across 983 stations under the Nirbhaya Fund. The Project worth Rs
250 crore.
 The Union Government has launched 2nd phase of vaccination drive under Intensified
Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 2.0 at block level in 35 districts of Uttar Pradesh.
 Under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme an income of Rs.6000 per year in
three equal installments of Rs.2000 is provided to small and regional farmers.
 Eight North-Eastern states to celebrate Madhavpur Mela in Gujarat on 2nd April 2020.
 The Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has inaugurated the submarine cable works on
lying between Chennai – Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
 The world’s highest railway bridge (Chenab Bridge) is being built in Jammu and Kashmir
will connect between Bakkal (Katra) and Kauri (Srinagar).
 South Central Railway (SCR)’s Nandyal – Yerraguntla section in Guntakal Division became
the first ‘solar section’ in Andhra Pradesh.
 The Airports Authority of India (AAI) announced that Four Indian airports have received
the International recognition for reducing the carbon emission level as per the standards
set by Airports Council International (ACI).
 The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), has launched
paperless licensing process for road tankers for transportation of petroleum.
 Union Minister Amit Shah has inaugurated the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre
(I4C) in New Delhi and also dedicated National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal to the
Nation.
JANUARY-2020 Page 6
 Wings India 2020, an international exhibition and conference on civil aviation sector, will
be held at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad.
 Indian Navy commenced security operations “Operation Sankalp” in order to ensure safe
passage of Indian Flag Vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Kolkata Port Trust will be renamed as
Syama Prasad Mukherjee Port.
 Union Minister of Steel launched mission PURVODAYA for the development of eastern
India through integrated steel hub in Kolkata, West Bengal.
 Union Minister for Women and Child Development and Textiles, Smriti Irani has launched
Yashaswini Scheme for Women entrepreneurship in Goa.
 Home Minister Amit Shah has launched the country’s first Cyber Crime Prevention Unit
AASHVAST in Gandhinagar.
 India's Statue of Unity has been included in the list of eight wonders of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization (SCO).
 Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has inaugurated a new Centre of Excellence for Studies
in Classical Telugu in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh.
 Infosys has partnered with automotive transport and logistics provider GEFCO to support
its digital transformation over the next five years.
 Indian Railways has signed MoU with RailTel for phase 2 of the National Informatics
Centre (NIC) e-office project.
 Union Culture and Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel has been launched the exhibition
“Indian Heritage in Digital Space” at the National Museum in New Delhi.
 Mega campaign on fuel conservation 'Saksham' inaugurated in New Delhi.
 Goa is hosting the 5th edition of Science Film Festival of India (SCI-FFI 2020).
 Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has launched the 7th Economic Census process in the
state.
 Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has flagged off the 51st K-9 Vajra-T gun at the
Larsen and Toubro Armoured Systems Complex at Hazira in Surat.
 The Two states Mizoram and Tripura have signed a quadripartite agreement between the
central government and representatives of the Bru tribe to end 23-year old Bru-Reang
refugee crisis.
 Fertilizer Minister D V Sadananda Gowda unveiled the logo and brand 'Apna Urea Sona
Ugle' of Hindustan Urvarak and Rasayan Ltd (HURL).
 Microsoft announced its investment of $1 billion in a climate innovation fund for
technology for carbon capture and removal.
 The Indian Postal Department has released a commemorative stamp of legendary Indian
footballer Chuni Goswami on his 82nd birthday at his residence in Kolkata, West Bengal.
 Bahadurpur and Kheri Viran are set to become India's first 'Model Sports Villages' as part
of Institute of Management Technology (IMT) Ghaziabad's plan to evolve a sports culture
in the country.
 The government awarded the crucial Z-Morh Tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir to APCO
Amarnathji Tunnelway Pvt Ltd to be built at a cost of Rs 2,379 crore.
 The Union Minister for Heavy Industries Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated as
ELECRAMA 2020 in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
JANUARY-2020 Page 7
 Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad has inaugurated ‘Centre of Excellence in Block chain
Technology’ in Bengaluru.
 The Indian PM Modi and Nepal PM K P Sharma has jointly inaugurate Jogbani-Biratnagar
border check post.
 Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan announced that the 'One Nation, One Ration Card'
scheme will be implemented by June 1 across the country.
 The Government of India has set up National Startup Advisory Council to advice the
central government to create a strong ecosystem to nurture innovation and start-ups in
India.
 Brazilian President ‘Jair Messias Bolsonaro‘ will be the chief guest at the 71st Republic
Day Parade at Rai Path, New Delhi.
 Online bus ticketing platform RedBus has tied up with Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited to
start carpool service for train passengers.
 The defence ministry has approved procurement of military equipment worth over Rs
5,100 crore.
 Bengaluru airport has partnered with Kunz Gmbh to develop and maintain specialized
disabled aircraft recovery equipment (DARE) for the airport.
 Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) NITI Aayog and United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) hosted the Youth Co:Lab -national innovation challenge in New Delhi.
 The Government of India has providing loan to Micro Small and Medium Enterprises
(MSME’s) within 59 minutes nearly 70,000 crore rupees has been disbursed till January
13, 2020.
 The Union Minister of State Shri Mansukh Mandaviya has participated in the High-level
roundtable of United Nations AIDS (UNAIDS) programme at World Economic Forum in
Davos, Switzerland.
 The 44th edition of Kolkata Book Fair 2020 (IKBF) has commenced at Central Park Mela
Ground in Kolkata, West Bengal with Russia as a “Focal Theme Country”.
 Dr. Jitendra Singh inaugurated India’s first global Mega Science Exhibition “Vigyan
Samagam” at National Science Centre, New Delhi.
 Bharat Parv 2020, the programme to celebrate the spirit of India, began at Red Fort
ground in New Delhi, with the theme ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat' and 'Celebrating 150
Years of Mahatma Gandhi’.
 Indian Railways has commissioned the country's first governmental waste to energy
plant in Bhubaneswar under the East Coast Railway zone.
 The govt has announced to set up country’s 1st war memorial for service animals such as
dogs, horses, mules in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
 France will be the guest of honour country at the New Delhi World Book Fair 2022.
 Dr Jitendra Singh launched the Bhuvan Panchayati V 3.0 web portal in Bengaluru for to
enhance network application of gram Panchayati’s.
 Oxford University Press announces 'Samvidhaan' as the Oxford Hindi Word of the Year
for 2019.
 Indian Navy has launched 'Operation Vanilla' to provide support in view of the torrential
rains and floods that have ravaged Madagascar.
 The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has commissioned a 3rd high-speed interceptor boat C-448
in Mangaluru, Karnataka.
JANUARY-2020 Page 8
 The 16th edition Mumbai International Film Festival-2020 for Documentary, Short Fiction
and Animation films), inaugurated at Nehru Centre Auditorium, Mumbai.
 Assam Rifles (military unit) has constructed a war memorial “Veer Samriti” in Nagaland,
Kohima for 357 Army & Assam Rifles personnel.
 Indian Railways(IR) undertook the Radio-frequency identification (RFID) project which
aims for automatic identification & data collection of rolling stock with focus on improving
the safety and reliability.
 The latest edition of the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary features 26 new Indian
English words, including Aadhaar, chawl, dabba, hartal and shaadi are added.
 India has announced a new book of compilation of selected writings by former finance
minister Arun Jaitley, namely “New India: Selected Writings 2014-19.
 List of important MoU’s and agreements
Signed Between Purpose of MOU and Agreements

Government of India and Flipkart For selling the products made by women self-help
groups under Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National
Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) on the e-
commerce platform
India and Mongolia To enhancing the Cooperation in the Exploration &
Uses of Outer Space for Peaceful and Civilian Purpose
India and Sweden To co-operation in Polar Science
India and United Kingdom To Enabling Energy Self-Sufficiency for Indian Railways
India and Mauritius To cooperation in electoral management
Indian Institute of Management- To produce short video modules on management
Indore and ‘Tik Tok’ courses for students and trained professionals.
IIM-Indore and Utter Pradesh Police To provide effective communication and crowd
management training to UP Police Personnel
Indian Navy and Geological Survey of To sharing seabed sediments data, products and
India (GSI) expertise regarding naval application in meteorology
and oceanography
Indian Oil and National Petroleum For providing its assistance and technical expertise in
Authority of Ghana the implementation of Ghana’s National LPG
Promotion Policy
India and Brazil For Cooperation on legal assistance in criminal
matters, oil and natural gas sector, early childhood &
Geology and Mineral Resources
India, Tunisia and Papua New Guinea For cooperation in electoral management
Ministry of Rural Development and Bill To strengthen grassroots of institutions for rural poor
and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF)
 List of Cabinet approved recently

Cabinet approved Reason
North East Natural Gas Pipeline CCEA has approved the North East Gas Grid project of
Grid approved Indradhanush Gas Grid Limited (IGGL) with viability Gap
Funding(VGF)/ Capital Grant at 60% of the estimated cost of Rs
JANUARY-2020 Page 9
9265 crore (Including interest during construction).

Closure of CPSE named Grant of interest free loan of Rs.77.20 crore by the Govt. to
Hindustan Fluorocarbons HFL for expenditure exclusively on its closure and it will be
Limited helpful in implementation of VRS (Voluntary Retirement
Scheme)/ VSS (Voluntary Separation Scheme, payment of
outstanding salary & statutory dues, etc.
Over Rs 4300cr to establishing CCEA has approved the revised cost estimates (RCE) for the
permanent campus of new NITs establishment of permanent campuses of NITs, at a total cost
of Rs.4371.90 crore for the period till 2021 – 2022.
Medical Termination of It will amend the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971.
Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, The amendment will increase access of women to safe
2020 abortion services
ECONOMY
 HDFC gets requisite approval to hold a 51.2% stake in Apollo Munich Health Insurance
Company.
 According to the data released by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal
Trade (DPIIT), the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India rose 15% to $26 billion in the
first half of FY2020.
 India to place restrictions on non-essential imports from China by March 2020.
 India’s foreign exchange reserve touches a record level of $457.46 bn.
 Adani Ports to buy 75% stake in Krishnapatnam Port.
 Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), an Indian state-owned aerospace & defence
company, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Wipro 3D.
 Uber Technologies Inc and automaker Hyundai Motor have teamed up to develop electric
air taxis.
 NSE arm launches AI-powered ‘knowledge hub’ to serve financial sector.
 According to the National Statistical Office (NSO), India's GDP growth rate for 2019-20
estimated at 5%.
 SBI lowers GDP estimates for FY20 to 4.6% from 5%.
 World Bank slashes India’s GDP forecast for FY 20 to 5% from 6%.
 HDFC completes majority acquisition in Apollo Munich Health Insurance for ₹1,495.81
crore.
 Retail inflation rises sharply to 7.35% in Dec 2019 from 5.54% in Nov.
 Government to cut 20% wasteful expenses to control fiscal deficit.
 India's GDP growth rate for 2019-20 estimated at 5% against 6.8% in FY19.
 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) slashed India’s growth forecast by 1.3 percentage
points to 4.8% for 2019-20.
 Adani Capital acquires Essel Finance’s MSME lending business.
 Bharti Airtel Ltd has received approval from the telecom department to increase foreign
direct investment in the company to 100%.
 Reliance Jio becomes 1st telecom operator to launch UPI payments feature.
 Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has signed a licensing agreement with the Intercontinental
Exchange (ICE) Futures Europe.
 Government of India has decided to sell 100 percent stake of Air India.
JANUARY-2020 Page 10
 NTPC to develop 300 MW solar power projects in West African country Togo.
 Google announces $1-million grant to promote news literacy in India.
 Tata AIG in collaboration with DFI to develop insurance products for drone industry.
 The Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman presented
the Economic Survey 2019-20 in the Parliament. The Key Highlights of the Economic
Survey 2019-20 are https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=197771
PLACES IN NEWS
 31st International Kite Festival launched in Ahmedabad.
 First edition of Krishi Manthan begins in Ahmedabad.
 13th Jaipur Literature Festival began in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
 Srinagar declared Open Defecation Free.
 India’s first e-waste clinic opens in Bhopal.
 India’s first underwater metro, ‘Kolkata metro’ to be opened by March 2022.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
 ISRO to set up second launch port in Thoothukodi district of Tamilnadu for small satellite
launch vehicles.
 Indian Space Research Organisation will establish a second launch port in Thoothukodi
district in Tamilnadu exclusively to launch small satellite launch vehicles.
 A contract has been signed by Indian Air Force (IAF) for purchasing 14 Dornier aircraft in
2015, which are flight inspection system planes, for Rs 1,090 Crore from state-run
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
 President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind, launched a mobile app named “Telangana Red
Cross” of the Red Cross Society of India in Hyderabad, Telangana.
 Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) sets its fourth Regional Academic Centre for
Space (RAC-S) at the National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NIT-K).
 An international team of astronomers funded in part by NASA has found the farthest
galaxy group identified as “EGS77“.
 Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has signed a pact with Indian Institute of
Astrophysics (IIA) to establish an Optical telescope under ‘Project NETRA’ for tracking
space objects.
 Indian Army to sign MoU with Russia for 7.5 lakh AK-203 assault rifles procurement.
 Challakere is the ISRO’s astronaut training hub.
 The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) will observe 2020 as the ‘year of mobility’ that
will have a special focus on the creation of more residential units and implementation of
various welfare measures for the troops.
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched a web portal for undertaking aerial survey.
 NASA Discovers Potentially Habitable Earth-Sized World in Star's 'Goldilocks' Zone.
 China successfully launches new communication technology experiment satellite.
 For the second time, a collision between two neutron stars in another galaxy has rattled a
gravitational-wave detector on Earth.
 The naval version of the Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA) landed for the first time on an
aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya.
 Isro's GSAT-30 satellite successfully launched aboard Ariane rocket.
 Indian Oil Corporation launches special NATO class diesel for Indian Navy.
 Wolf Cukier's 17-year-old intern helps NASA find planet in habitable zone.
 Russia to deliver S-400 air defence systems to India by 2025.
 India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable K-4 ballistic missile off Andhra.
 IAF inducts its first squadron of Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft equipped with BrahMos missiles.
 Face recognition app to be used in Telangana Municipal polls on pilot basis.
 Meghalaya celebrates 48th anniversary of its statehood day on 21 January.
 Scientists of the University of Vermont and Tufts University have created the world’s first
living and self-healing robots Xenobots.
 POLNET 2.0 was inaugurated by the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand
Rai.
 Indian Army to induct Artillery gun ‘Sharang’ by March 31, 2020.
 The Indian Space Research Organisation has unveiled a human robot that will be sent to
space as part of the Gaganyaan mission.
 Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) documents another new snake eel species “Ophichthus
kailashchandrai” in Odisha.
 The 11th edition of ‘DefExpo 2020’ will be held on February 5 to February 9, 2020 in
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh with theme “India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub”.
 GRSE set to deliver ASW corvette INS Kavaratti to Navy.
 New meat-eating Dinosaur species Allosaurus jimmadseni found in Utah, US.
 Researchers at IIT-H develops essential-oil-based drug carrier to treat fungal diseases.
 Dr Jitendra Singh launched ISRO’s Bhuvan Panchayat V 3.0 Web portal.
 New mission launched by NASA & ESA to take first pics of Sun’s poles.
 Indian Navy Launches ‘Op Vanilla’ to Support Relief Operations in Cyclone-Hit
Madagascar.
 Assam Rifles builds war memorial in Nagaland for 357 martyrs.
 NCRB (National Crime Records Bureau) Launched ‘Searching the missing persons’ &
‘Generate Vehicle NOC’ services.
 OPPO signs MoU with IIT Hyderabad for research on 5G, AI.
STATE
 Kerala became 1st State to pass resolution against citizenship Amendment Act.
 UPSRTC launched ‘Damini’ helpline service for women in Uttar Pradesh.
 ‘Lai Haraoba’ ritualistic festival begins in Tripura.
 10k cameras to be used for 2020 Asiatic lion census in Gujarat.
 Odisha govt launches India’s 1st e-Gazette portal for all gazette notifications.
 ‘Cyber Safe Women’ campaign launched in Maharashtra by state cyber police.
 The Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan launched K-RERA (Kerala Real Estate
Regulatory Authority) to bring confidence and transparency in real estate sectors among
the customers.
 Telangana government declared 2020 as AI year.
 The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) opened its first “Patola Saree” silk
processing plant in Gujarat.
 1st of its kind rehabilitation centre for freshwater turtles is to be inaugurated in January
2020 in the Bhagalpur forest division of Bihar.
 CM Jagan Mohan reddy inaugurates YSR Aarogyasri scheme at Eluru, Andhra pradesh.
 Kolkata Police begins 3rd edition of ‘Sukanya’ project.

 Madhya Pradesh (MP) state Cabinet led by its Chief Minister (CM), Kamal Nath has
approved the Mukhya Mantri Karmchari Swasthya Bima Yojana (Chief Minister Employees
Health Insurance Scheme) implementation from April 1, 2020, for the welfare of all 12.55
lakh employees of the state.
 Journalists’ Day celebrated on 6th January in Maharashtra.
 The 2nd phase of Mission Indradhanush 2.0 rolled out at block level in 35 districts of Uttar
Pradesh.
 4th edition of the Buxa Bird Festival 2020 has begun in Buxa National Park in the
Alipurduar district of West Bengal.
 Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has launched the Himachal MyGov
portal – (https://himachal.mygov.in/en) to strengthen public participation in the
government system.
 Maharashtra CM inaugurates "Advantage Maharashtra expo 2020”.
 Smriti Irani launches Yashaswini Scheme for Women entrepreneurship in Goa.
 In Tamil Nadu, fresh investment proposals worth 6608 crore rupees have been approved.
They have been cleared by the higher-level committee on industrial guidance and single
window system, led by the state chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy.
 3 new species of tiny frogs discovered in Arunachal Pradesh.
 Kiren Rijiju and Pramod Sawant flag off ‘Fit India Cyclothon’ in Panaji.
 Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal launches a 10-point shorter election manifesto
“Kejriwal Ka Guarantee Card”.
 Reading of Preamble to become mandatory in Maharashtra schools.
 Uttar Pradesh Government has launched Mukhyamantri Krishak Durghatna Kalyan Yojana
which will provide financial assistance to family of farmers who die or become
handicapped while working in fields
 Uttarakhand becomes first state to implement agricultural land leasing policy.
 Uttar Pradesh government implements ‘Mukhyamantri Krishak Durghatna Kalyan Yojana’
for the state’s farmers.
 GeM signed MoU with Uttar Pradesh for GOTT Project Management Unit.
 Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray inaugurates Nagpur Metro’s Aqua line.
 Flipkart signs MoU with Gujarat State Handloom and Handicrafts Development
Corporation Ltd (GSHHDC) to promote artisans and craftsmen.
 Tamil Nadu (TN) Chief Minister (CM) Shri Edappadi K Palaniswami, announced a new
scheme, ‘Direct Consent to operate (CTO) scheme for green industries’ to get faster
clearances from government for green category industries.
 CM Naveen Patnaik launches Odisha Police’s transformational projects including state’s
1st virtual police station.
SURVEYS
 Indore city in Madhya Pradesh was ranked the cleanest city in India for the fourth time in
a row.
 NITI Aayog released the second edition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India
Index, which comprehensively documents the progress made by India’s States and Union
Territories towards achieving the 2030 SDG targets.
 The union Minister of Finance Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman released a report of the task
force on National Infrastructure Pipeline for 2019-2025 (NIP 2019-25) inorder to achieve
the $5 trillion economy by 2024-25.
 Indian paddler Manav Thakkar became world no.1 in the latest International Table Tennis
Federation (ITTF) rankings in the Under-21 men’s singles category.
 Chandigarh railway station is fifth in the country and first in North India to inaugurate
Navigation facilities for visually impaired.
 According to a 2019 report by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) which was based on a study
carried out along forest fire points (FFP) identified across the country from 2004 to 2017,
about 21.40% of forest cover of the country has been prone to fires.
 Uttar Pradesh became 1st state to shortlist migrants for citizenship.
 According to the Eurasia Group, India is one of the world's top geopolitical risks for 2020.
 Indian passport ranked 84th in Henley Passport Index 2020.
 In India, the under-five mortality rate for boys, in 2018, was 36 per 1,000 population while
that for girls was 37.
 Government launches Integrated Road Accident Database (IRAD) developed by IIT-
Madras.
 World Economic Forum released 15th Global Risk Report 2020.
 As per the Index, India ranked has 76th position with a score of 42.7, while Denmark
topped the list.
 The 1st edition of Global Social Mobility Report 2020 titled “The Global Social Mobility
Report 2020: Equality, Opportunity and a New Economic Imperative” released by World
Economic Forum.
 The United Nations has released its annual flagship report “World Economic Situation
and Prospects Report 2020″.
 Survey on trust on climate science & 1st positive impact rating 2020 launched.
 NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India), a policy think tank of the
Government of India (GoI), released the ranking of Aspirational Districts of the country for
the month of December 2019.
SPECIAL DAYS
DATE SPECIAL DAY THEME

06 January Government of Maharashtra celebrates
state’s Journalists’ Day
09 January 16th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, NRI (Non-
Resident Indian) day
10 January International Hindi Day
12 January National Youth Day “Channelizing Youth Power
for Nation Building”.
13 January The festival of harvest, Lohri celebrated
every year
11th-17th Jan 2020. Transport department in Maharashtra
observed 31st Road Safety Week
14 January 4th Armed Forces Veterans Day

15 January 145th Foundation Day of India
Meteorological Department (IMD)
72nd Indian Army Day
18 January National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) A workshop conducted on

celebrated its 15th Raising Day ‘Urban flooding &
challenges’ and ‘Biological
Emergencies & New
Technology in Disaster
Management’.
19 January National Immunization Day (NID) also
known as ‘Polio Ravivar’
21 January Meghalaya celebrated the 48th

anniversary of statehood day
24 January National Girl Child Day was celebrated in “Aware Girl child-able
Madhya Pradesh (MP) Madhya Pradesh” (Jagruk
Balika-Samrath Madhya
Pradesh)
2nd edition of International Day of ‘Learning for people,
Education planet, prosperity, and
peace’
January 24 to 30. National Girl Child Week
25 January 10th National Voters’ Day ”Electoral Literacy for

Stronger Democracy”
26 January 71st Republic Day of India
International Customs Day “Customs fostering

Sustainability for People,
Prosperity and the Planet”
27 January International Holocaust Remembrance “75 years after Auschwitz-
Day Holocaust Education &
Rememberance for Global
Justice”
January 30 World Neglected Tropical Diseases day Motto:“#BeatNTDs: For
2020 good. For all”.
World Leprosy Day observed in India “Leprosy isn’t what you

think”
72nd National Martyrs’ Day
2020 CISF observes 2020 as the ‘Year of Mobility’
SEMINARS AND MEETINGS
SEMINARS AND MEETINGS PLACE THEME/TAGLINE

2nd National GST Conference of the New Delhi.
Commissioners of State Tax and Chief
Commissioners of Central Tax
South Asian Trade and Travel Exchange New Delhi
Expo (SATTE), 2020
5th edition of the prestigious Raisina New Delhi
Dialogue
6th meeting of the Island Development New Delhi "Holistic development of
Agency (IDA) islands".
India Bangladesh Information and New Delhi
Broadcasting Ministers' Meet 2020
Indian Army conducts biggest airborne North-Eastern
exercise ‘Winged Raider’ theatre, New Delhi
1st session of India-Norway Dialogue on New Delhi
Trade and Investment
Conference on Census 2021 New Delhi
3rd edition of Pariksha Pe Charcha 2020 New Delhi

2nd edition of NIC Tech Conclave-2020 New Delhi “Technologies for Next-Gen
Governance”
32nd edition of PRAGATI platform New Delhi
meeting
An International Summit on Women in New Delhi
STEM - Visualizing the Future: New
Skylines
1st Ganga-Volga Dialogue of New Delhi
civilizations 2020 between India &
Russia
World Sustainable Development New Delhi ‘Towards 2030 Goals: Making
Summit (WSDS) 2020 the Decade Count’
12th South Asia Conference New Delhi India’s “Neighbourhood First”

Policy: Regional Perceptions.
3rd Global Potato Conclave 2020 Gandhinagar,
Gujarat
International Conclave on ‘Globalising IIM Kozhikode,
Indian Thought’ Kerala
18th meeting of the SCO’s Council of Tashkent,
heads of government 2019 Uzbekistan
19th council of heads of government of India
the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

(SCO)
14th Global healthcare summit in 2021 Visakhapatnam,
Andhra Pradesh
107th Indian Science Congress (ISC) Bangaluru, "Science and Technology for
Karnataka Rural Development"
Women Science Congress inaugurated Bengaluru,
at the Indian Science Congress Karnataka
Global Investors Meet: ASCEND 2020 Kochi, Kerala
3rd international symposium on marine Kochi, Kerala
ecosystems challenges and
opportunities (MECOS-3)
1st tri-dimensional expedition ‘Maha- Mumbai,
Navy Connect 2020’ was launched by Maharshtra
Indian Navy
12th naval exercise ‘Naseem-Al-Bahr’ Mormugao Port in
between India and Oman Goa
th
5 Asia Pacific drosophila research Pune,
conference (APDRC) Maharashtra
International naval exercise ‘MILAN’ in Vishakhapatnam, ‘Synergy Across the Seas’
March 2020. Andhra Pradesh
5th edition 'The Pulses Conclave' 2020 Amby Valley City
in Lonavala,
Maharashtra.
Coast Guards of India and Japan took Chennai Coast
part in a joint exercise 'Sahyog-Kaijin'
7th Conference of Commonwealth Lucknow, Uttar 'ROLE OF LEGISLATORS'
Parliamentary Association (CPA) India Pradesh
Region g
First ever Food Processing Summit Ladakh
3rd North Zone Conference of Media Jammu
Units.
3rd international symposium on marine Kochi, Kerala
ecosystems challenges and
opportunities (MECOS-3)
1st edition of Krishi Manthan- the IIM, Ahmedabad
largest Food, Agri-business and Rural
Development Summit of Asia
SAMPRITI-IX: India-Bangladesh Joint Umroi, Meghalaya
Military Exercise
50th Annual Meeting of the World Davos, Switzerland “Stakeholders for a Cohesive
Economic Forum and Sustainable World”
Conference of Speakers and Presiding Ottawa, Canada The theme of the 1st
Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC) workshop is 'Parliamentary
with four workshop sessions Engagement: Openness,
Transparency, and
Accountability.
2nd 'Challenges and
Opportunities Arising from
the Displacement of a
Parliamentary Assembly'.
3rd 'Parliamentarians as
Effective Legislators and
Constituency Representatives:
Evolving Support Required'.
4th 'Security of Individuals in
the Parliamentary Context
and Beyond'
23rd Persian Gulf International Tehran, Iran
Conference
World Future Energy Summit UAE "Rethinking Global
Consumption, Production, and
Investment."
AWARDS AND HONOURS

 Piyuus Jaiswal has been awarded the Global Bihar Excellence Award 2019 by Rajya Sabha
MP (Member of Parliament) and Padma Shri Awardee Dr CP Thakur & Bihar Women
Commission president Dilmani Devi in Patna, Bihar for his invaluable and outstanding
contribution towards social welfare, women empowerment and introducing new talent in
the field of arts and culture.
 Famous Portuguese professional football player Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded by 11th
Dubai Globe Soccer Awards 2019 as the best men’s player of the year in the international
football function held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Ronaldo has won the
award six times out of its nine years of its existence and also marked 4th consecutive
time.
 Krishnamachari Srikkanth & Anjum Chopra will be conferred with the CK Nayudu
Lifetime Achievement Award.
 Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB) Shri Prakash Javadekar conferred
the 1st edition of the Antarrashtriya Yoga Diwas Samman (AYDMS) to 30 media
organisations in New Delhi. The awards were given as an honour to media organisations
for contributing to the spread of yoga in the society.
 The 17th edition of Crossword Book Awards was held in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Twinkle
Khanna won the Popular Best Fiction Award for her novel ‘Pyjamas Are Forgiving’.
 Eminent Sindhi writer Vasdev Mohi will be conferred with 29th Saraswati Samman. He
has been selected for this prestigious literary award for his short stories collection-
Chequebook.
 Ishwar Sharma from the UK has been honoured with the Global Child Prodigy Award
2020. The award recognized for the achievements in spiritual discipline yoga.
 Road, Transport and Highway Minister, Nitin Gadkari presents National Highway
Excellence Awards 2019 in New Delhi.
 A five-year-old boy from Hyderabad, Aashman Taneja has made a Guinness world record
in Taekwondo for the most full contact knee strikes in one-hour non-stop.
 Kerala Sports Minister EP Jayarajan announced the sports awards instituted by Kerala
State Sports Council with Indian sprinter Muhammad Anas winning GV Raja award
(Male) for athletics. Anas had won silver for India in the 400-meter race at Jakarta Asian
games
 The Iranian film ‘Castle of Dreams’ directed by Reza Mirakarimi won the Best Film Award
in Asian Competition section of the 18th Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF). The
film also won the Best Director Award.
 The winners of the 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, which honours the year’s
biggest achievements in TV and film were announced at an event held at the Shrine
Auditorium in Los Angeles, USA.
 'cVIGIL' and 'Voter Helpline App' -- two innovative ICT applications of the Election
Commission of India, developed in-house, have won the eGovernance 'Award of
Excellence' for the year 2019. The award was presented at KiiT, Bhubaneswar
 President Ramnath Kovind conferred the Bal Shakthi puraskar awards to 49 children in
the age group of 5-18 years at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
 Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was conferred with the "Champion of Change
Award-2019" for his work in the Barhait and Dumka assembly constituencies in the state.
 The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind presented the 14th Ramnath Goenka Excellence
in Journalism Awards in New Delhi. These awards are one of the most prestigious awards
in India in the field of journalism, held annually since 2006.
 Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW), which selects children for the National Bravery
Awards every year, Twenty two children - 10 girls and 12 boys - from 12 states have
been selected for the ICCW National Bravery Awards 2019. One award has been given
posthumously.
 The Home Ministry announced the winners of Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan
Puraskar 2020. The award will be conferred to Uttarakhand’s Disaster Mitigation &
Management Centre in the institution category and Kumar Munnan Singh in the
individual category.
 Kerala Tourism's Barrier-Free Tourism Project has won global recognition with the United
Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) making a special mention of the south
Indian state as an "Emerging Global Destination" in the Accessible Destination Awards
2019.
 This year the President has approved conferment of 141 Padma Awards including 4 duo
cases (in a duo case, the Award is counted as one) as per list below. The list comprises of 7
Padma Vibhushan, 16 Padma Bhushan and 118 Padma Shri Awards. 33 of the awardees
are women and the list also includes 18 persons from the category of
Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI and 12 posthumous awardees.
 Full list of Padma Awards: https://padmaawards.gov.in/PDFS/2020AwardeesList.pdf
 Eminent journalist and chairman of The Hindu Group of Publications N Ram has been
selected for the Kerala Media Academy's national media award for his outstanding
contribution to journalism.
 Graphic designer Sneha Pamneja was awarded this year's Oxford Bookstore Book Cover
Prize at the Jaipur Literature Festival for designing the cover of "Tiffin: Authentic Recipes
Celebrating India's Regional Cuisine".
 The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) has announced that it will be
felicitating actor-director Andy Serkis for 'revolutionary' contribution to cinema at its
annual film awards.
 N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, has been conferred
‘Harit Ratna Award 2019’ by the All India Agricultural Students Association for
dissemination of ₹30-crore entrepreneurship project in agri-business and for motivating
students to the agriculture sector in the State.
 The Hindu Tamil has won the Election Commission of India’s award for its voter
awareness and education campaign in 2019 as part of the poll panel’s national awards
given on the occasion of the 10th National Voters Day.
 Bajaj Housing Finance Limited (BHFL), a 100% subsidiary of Bajaj Finance Limited, has
won the 'BFSI Digital Innovation Award' for Cloud Solutions at the recently held Express
BFSI Technology Conclave and Awards 2020.
 Noted theatre personality Sanjna Kapoor, the daughter of Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor,
will be conferred prestigious French honour, Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters, for
her outstanding contribution to theatre.
 Ayurveda Day celebrated at the European Parliament, Dr Chauhan conferred with
prestigious Ayurveda Ratan Award in Brussels.
 Senior journalist from Jammu and Kashmir Yusuf Jameel has been selected for the 2019-
2020 PEN Gauri Lankesh Award for Democratic Idealism.
SPORTS
 Chief Executive Officer of “Khelo India Games” has announced that “Lawn bowls” and
“cycling” will be included in the 3rd edition of Khelo India Games. The two games will be
included in the event for the first time. The 3rd edition of the tournament will be held in
Guwahati, Assam in January 2020.
 Indian women’s hockey team defender Sunita Lakra aged 28, who was part of the 2018
Asian Games silver-winning side, announced her international retirement, citing a knee
injury.
 Humpy Koneru (32), an Indian chess grandmaster from Andhra Pradesh, has
settled 12th overall in the 2-day FIDE World Blitz competition 2019 held at at the Luzhniki
Stadium in Moscow, Russia. Kateryna Lagno (13 points) of Russia and Magnus Carlsen of
Norway (16.5 points) retained their titles in the Women’s and Men’s Blitz Championships
respectively
 Indian shooter Saurabh Chaudhary has won the men’s 10 metres air pistol gold medal at
the 63rd National Shooting Championship in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. Second-
place Sarabjot Singh of Haryana, while world number two Abhishek Verma settled for
bronze in a high-quality final. Abhishek and Sarabjot together won the team gold for
Haryana. Sarabjot also won the junior men’s gold.
 The 1st edition of Khelo India University Games is scheduled to be held at the KIIT
University in Bhubaneswar, Odisha from February 22 to March 1, 2020. Union Sports
Minister Kiren Rijiju and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik unveiled the logo and
jersey of Khelo India University Games.
 New Zealand‘s batsman Leo Carter has become the seventh batsman in the history
of cricket to smash six 6s in an over. He achieved the feat in New Zealand’s domestic
T20 tournament Super Smash.
 Former Roma & Italian professional footballer and the 2006 FIFA (Fédération
Internationale de Football Association) world cup winner Daniele De Rossi (36 years) has
announced his retirement.
 India’s grandmaster (GM) Magesh Chandran Panchanathan from Madurai, Tamil Nadu
wins the title in the 95th edition of the prestigious Hastings International Chess Congress
at Hastings in England.
 Weightlifter Sarbjeet Kaur from Punjab has been banned for four years by the National
Anti Doping Agency (NADA) for a doping violation.
 Ladakh lifted the 7th National Ice Hockey Championship Women trophy held at the
Karzoo Ice Hockey Rink in Ladakh.
 Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli has retained his top position with 928 points in
the list of Test batsmen. Cheteshwar Pujara slipped one place to 6th spot with 791 points
while Ajinkya Rahane dropped two places to 9th position with 759 points.
 In Bowling Australian speedster Pat Cummins was at the top of the standings with 904
points ahead of Neil Wagner (852) and West Indies' Jason Holder (830).
 Double Asian Games medallist equestrian Fouaad Mirza secured an Olympic quota after
finishing as the top-ranked rider in his group in the qualifiers, ending a wait spanning
nearly two decades.
 Serbian professional tennis player, Novak Djokovic has defeated Rafael Nadal of Spain to
make Serbia the champion of 1st edition of ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) Cup
i.e. ATP Cup 2020 held at Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney, Australia
 India finished the year 2019 as the top shooting nation in the world, leapfrogging
Olympic heavyweights China and the USA.
 Japanese badminton player Kento Momota (world number 1 ranked) won the Malaysia
Masters 2020 title. He has defeated Viktor Axelsen from Denmark by 24-22, 21-11.
 Norwegian chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen has stretched his unbeaten run to a
record-breaking 111 games after securing a draw in a tournament. The reigning world
champion surpassed the 110 classical games undefeated set by Sergei Tiviakov in 2005
after drawing against Jorden van Foreest in the fourth round of the Wijk aan Zee
tournament.
 The ICC Under-19 World Cup Cricket begins in South Africa. Indian team, under the
captaincy of Priyam Garg, will look to defend the title when it begins its campaign against
Sri Lanka at the Oval, Bloemfontein.
 In a dream start to her second innings after a two-year break, Sania Mirza lifted the WTA
Hobart International trophy with partner Nadiia Kichenok after edging out Shaui Peng
and Shuai Zhang in the final.
 Vinesh Phogat won her first gold medal of the 2020 season at the Rome Ranking Series
event after teen sensation Anshu Malik settled for a silver in 57kg competition
 Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon lifted the Indonesia Masters 2020 women's singles title
after defeating Carolina Marin in the summit clash, Intanon defeated Marin 21-19, 11-21,
21-18 in one hour and twenty minutes long match.
 Rohit Sharma became the fastest to claim 7000 ODI runs as an opener. He achieved this
feat in 137 innings. In this case, he left behind former South African batsman Hashim Amla
(147 innings) and Sachin Tendulkar (160 innings).
 Indian captain Virat Kohli broke the record of former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. He
became the fastest captain to complete 5000 runs in ODIs. Dhoni had scored 5000 runs in
127 innings. At the same time, Kohli reached in his feat by just 82nd innings. Ricky Ponting
of Australia arrived in 131 innings.
 Indian captain Virat Kohli also held the record for being the fastest captain to score
11,000 international runs. He scored 11,208 international runs as captain, surpassed the
previous record held by MS Dhoni with 11,207 runs. Kohli has played 199 innings as
captain, while Dhoni had played 330.
 The team of the Indian Consulate in Dubai defeated the team of the Pakistan Consulate
to lift the Diplomat Cup Cricket Championship of 2020. The Championship was organized
by Skyline University College in Sharjah. Consulates of eight countries participated in the
tournament.
 ICC Women's World Cup 2021 will be held in New Zealand. Christchurch to host final
 World Archery decided to lift the suspension imposed on the Archery Association of
India (AAI). The decision was taken by World Archer's executive board postal vote and
this comes after AAI's independent elections.
 Dattu Bhokanal’s two-year suspension on charges of tanking a race during the 2018 Asian
Games was lifted by the Rowing Federation of India (RFI), after the intervention of Indian
Olympic Association (IOA) president Narinder Batra.
 Brazilian Joao Souza has been banned from tennis by the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU) for
life after being convicted of multiple match-fixing and other corruption offences
 The 71st edition of International Boxing Tournament “Strandja”2020 was held in Sofia,
Bulgaria from January 19-26, 2020.
 India set to host Barca Academy Cup, Asia Pacific for second Year in row. Over 650
aspiring footballers from seven countries will take part in the Barca Academy Cup - Asia
Pacific, scheduled to be held in Gurgaon from January 30 to February 2.
 Saurav Ghosal missed out on his maiden PSA world tour event title after suffering a
straight-game defeat to top seed Fares Dessouky of Egypt in the final of the Pittsburgh
Open squash tournament.
 Indian cyclist Esow Alben has bagged a gold in the men's Keirin individual event of the
Six Day Berlin Tournament.
 Indian women’s football star Ngangom Bala Devi has become the first Indian woman to
earn a professional football contract abroad after signing for Scottish giant Rangers FC.
 Canadian forward Christine Sinclair became the all-time top scorer in international
soccer, breaking the mark held by American Abby Wambach when she netted her 185th
goal against St. Kitts and Nevis in south Texas
BOOKS AND AUTHORS

Name of the Book Author Speaks About
In "The Cuckoo's Nest", the author
attempts to fight against these
The Cuckoo’s Nest A.Sethumadhavan divisions in society through the
character of the eternal optimist,
Madam Agatha, a former nun.
PAX SINICA presents a
comprehensive view of how
PAX SINICA:Implications Samir Saran and Akhil
President Xi Jinping’s, China will
for the Indian Dawn Deo
implicate the world order in the
21st century.
This book is a collection of essays
Essays & Reminiscences: on law, policy, economics and
A Festschrift in Honour of Arvind P Datar governance, and reminiscences
Nani A Palkhivala written by people who knew and
worked with Palkhivala.
The book deals with all the
The Winning Sixer Woorkeri Venkat Raman attributes required for a leader
that exists in each one of us.
'The Gateway' by Hariharan
Balagopal draws attention to the
The Gateway: A Social
plight of senior citizens who are
Commentary on Safety of Hariharan Balagopal
susceptible to a multitude of
Senior Citizens
crimes against them - ranging
from petty robberies to murders
The books portrays the author’s
Human Dignity – A view on issues related to freedom,
Ashwani Kumar
purpose in perpetuity dignity and justice faced in
society.]
The Story of Yoga: From The book discusses about the
India to the Alistair Shearer practice of yoga since ancient time
Contemporary World in India till now.
The book revolve the concepts of
society misleding by religious,
Balwa Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi’s
political and administrative
machinery.
The book describes Sinha’s
Relentless Yashwant Sinha journey from a normal life to a
high political powered life.
The book discusses about past
Calcutta, the capital of British
Calcutta Nights Hemendra Kumar Roy India attracted many people from
different parts of the country
besides europeans & other
foreigners.
OBITUARIES
Name of the Person Field/Importance
Vikho-o Yhoshu Nagaland Assembly Speaker
Alajangi Viswanath Swamy Former Rajya Sabha member
Devi Prasad Tripathi NCP leader
Renowned Assamese dramatist, writer and social
Ratna Ojha
activist
Qassem Soleimani Iran’s top commander General
The former commissioner of the NBA (National
David Joel Stern
Basketball Association)
Bhim Chandra Jana Centenarian Freedom fighter
P.H. Pandian Former Tamil Nadu Assembly speaker
T.N.Chaturvedi Former Karnataka Governor
Former Member of Parliament (MP) of the country’s
Kamal Bahadur Singh
1st Lok Sabha
Former Western Army Commander Lieutenant
Prem Nath Hoon
General
Hans Tilkowski Former West Germany football Goalkeeper
Akbar Padamsee Padma Bhushan artist
Minati Mishra Veteran Odissi Danseuse
R.P.Ulaganambi Former Vellore Lok Sabha MP
Idu Sharif Dhadi folk singer
Buck Henry Veteran screenwriter
Gopinath Gajapati Narayan Odisha’s Gajapati dynasty head and the former MP
Deo
Qaboos bin Said Sultan of Oman from 23 July 1970 until his death.
Chidananda Murthy Noted Kannada scholar
Obaid Siddiqui Veteran broadcaster, poet and academician
Neil Peart Canadian rock group drummer
Eminent caricaturist and Kerala Cartoon Academy
Thomas Antony
secretary
Paulo Goncalves Portuguese motorbike racer
Manmohan Mohapatra 8-time National Award winner
Roger Scruton British philosopher and conservative lightning rod
Rocky Johnson Canadian professional wrestler
Liang Jun China's first female tractor driver, and national icon
Ummer Koya Veteran chess administrator
Bapu Nadkarni Former India all-rounder
Khagendra Thapa Magar World's shortest man
Ashwini Kumar Chopra Former Member of the Lok Sabha
Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee & Odia Hindustani
Sunanda Patnaik
vocalist
Shamsher Singh Surjewala Former Haryana Congress Chief
Man Mohan Sood Former India Test batsman

Saleha Sultan Titular Queen of Bhopal
Terry Jones Monty Python star
Jagannath Rout Former Minister of Odisha
Nagaland’s first MP to Rajya Sabha & Padma Shri
Melhupra Vero
awardee
Kobe Bryant American basketball player
Sher Singh Kukkal Noted artist and sculptor
Kodman Amarnath Shetty JDS leader and former Karnataka Minister
Golok Chandra Goswami Assamese linguist
Sunita Chandra Former women’s hockey team captain
Vinay Sinha Veteran film producer
Robbie Rensenbrink Netherland’s football player
Sunita Chandra Former Women’s Hockey Captain
Jameela Malik Veteran south actress
Former Bihar minister & RJD party (Rashtriya Janata
Abdul Ghafoor
Dal) MLA
Tushar Kanjilal Padma Shri awardee and Indian Social Worker
M. Kamalam Former Kerala Minister
Ajmal Sultanpuri Noted Urdu poet
Matthew Satya Babu Former India basketball captain
Sashi Sarma Assamese litterateur
***

Current Affairs Capsule - January - 2020

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Sreedhar’s CCE CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE JANUARY-2020

CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE – JANUARY- 2020

Arjun Munda President of the Suspended Archery Association of India (AAI)

 First phase of “Bishwa Ijtema” has commenced in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Signed Between Purpose of MOU and Agreements

 List of Cabinet approved recently

9265 crore (Including interest during construction).

 Kolkata Police begins 3rd edition of ‘Sukanya’ project.

DATE SPECIAL DAY THEME

14 January 4th Armed Forces Veterans Day

72nd Indian Army Day

18 January National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) A workshop conducted on

21 January Meghalaya celebrated the 48th

25 January 10th National Voters’ Day ”Electoral Literacy for

International Customs Day “Customs fostering

World Leprosy Day observed in India “Leprosy isn’t what you

SEMINARS AND MEETINGS

SEMINARS AND MEETINGS PLACE THEME/TAGLINE

3rd edition of Pariksha Pe Charcha 2020 New Delhi

12th South Asia Conference New Delhi India’s “Neighbourhood First”

the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

AWARDS AND HONOURS

BOOKS AND AUTHORS

Man Mohan Sood Former India Test batsman

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