December 2020:

1st December:
1. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has published a flagship report titled “The
State of Food and Agriculture(SOFA) 2020′ with theme “Overcoming Water Challenges in
Agriculture”. The report states that around 1.2 billion people across the globe are under high
levels of water stress, which means that one out of every 6 people in the world are facing a
severe water stress or scarcity in agriculture with more than 15% of the rural population at
risk.
2. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade( DPIIT)’s in itsForeign Direct
Investment(FDI) data, has listed out the top investing countries FDI(Foreign Direct
Investment) equity inflows in India during April- September 2020. Singapore has invested Rs
62,084 crore(USD 8.30 billion) into India, which makes it the biggest source of FDI into
India. The USA(United States of America) becomes the second biggest source of FDI into
India by investing Rs 53,266 crore(USD 7.12 billion).
3. The Cambridge Dictionary has named “Quarantine” as the Word of the Year 2020 based on
its data which showed that the word ‘quarantine’ is one of the most searched words on the
Cambridge Dictionary in 2020.
4. Dave Prowse, the weightlifter who represented England in the Commonwealth Games in
1962 and later played the role of Darth Vader in the original “Star Wars” trilogy, died at the
age of 85.
5. In Telangana, the senior leader of the ruling Telangana Rastra Samiti and MLA, N.
Narasimhaiah passed away in Dec 2020. He served as floor leader of the Communist Party
of India (Marxist) twice in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Assembly while representing
Nakrekal constituency.
6. Nagaland celebrated its 58th Statehood Day on 1 December 2020. It became the 16th State
of the Union of India on 1st December 1963.
7. US President-elect Joe Biden has named exFederal Reserve chair Janet Yellen as his
nominee for Treasury Secretary. If confirmed, she will be the first woman ever to hold the
post. Indian American Neera Tanden has been named as Director of the Office of
 Management and Budget. He also named Wally Adeyemo as his nominee for Deputy
Treasury Secretary.
8. The Border Security Force (BSF) celebrated its 56th raising day on 1 December 2020. BSF
is the largest border guarding force in the world.
9. World AIDS Day is observed on December 1 every year. The theme of World AIDS Day
2020 is “Global solidarity, resilient HIV services”. World AIDS Day was first marked in
1988 and was also the first-ever international day for global health.
10. Papa Bouba Diop died at the age of 42 after a long illness. Diop is best known for scoring the
winning goal against then defending champion France in the opening match of the 2002
World Cup. He won the 2008 FA Cup with Portsmouth in a club career that included stints
at lens, Fulham, West Ham United and Birmingham City.

2nd December:
1. India virtually hosted the 19th meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)
Council of Heads of Government (SCO CHG) which was chaired by Vice President of India
Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu from New Delhi. This was the first Summit-level Meeting
held under India’s Chairmanship, since it gained full -membership of the organization in
2017. This is an annual summit at the level of Prime Ministers of SCO and deals primarily
with the trade and economic agenda of the organization. Turkmenistan has been invited as a
Special Guest of India.
2. According to Air Pollution Data released by United States (US) Air Quality Index 2020 on
November 30, 2020 Lahore, Pakistan topped the list of World’s most Polluted Cities. It
reported a Particulate Matter (PM) rating of 423 (Hazardous). New Delhi with a PM of 229
(very unhealthy) came Second followed by Nepal’s Kathmandu with a PM of 178
(unhealthy).
3. The Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) Observatory situated at Khodad, Pune,
Maharashtra has been accorded ‘Milestone’ facility status by Institute of Electrical and
Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The status recognizes GMRT’s contributions for exploring the
Universe through the field of Radio Astronomy. It is the 3rd Indian Project in 125 years to
get such a recognition.
4. India captain Virat Kohli, on 2 Dec 2020, became the fastest cricketer to score 12,000 ODI
runs, breaking a record held by Sachin Tendulkar.
5. Every year, National Pollution Control Day is observed on December 2nd, ever since the
disastrous accident of Bhopal Gas Tragedy happened in 1984. December 2nd, 2020, would
mark the 36th anniversary of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy. Apart from raising awareness about
the rising pollution of air, water, and soil, this day also shifts the attention of people with
regards to the pollution control act.
6. Every year on Dec 2, the world celebrates International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. It
was commissioned by the United Nations General Assembly.
7. Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton took his 11th win of the 2020 season at the Bahrain Grand Prix
on 29 November 2020.
8. Amitabh Jain, an IAS officer of 1989 batch, has been appointed as the new Chief Secretary
of Chhattisgarh. He succeeds Rajendra Prasad Mandal, an IAS officer of 1987 batch, who
retired from his service on 30 Nov 2020. Before being elevated to the post of Chief
Secretary, he was posted as the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Finance with an additional
charge of water resources department.

3rd December:
1. The 10th National Science Film Festival 2020 was jointly organised by VigyanPrasar, an
autonomous agency under the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of
India and the Tripura State Council of Science and Technology, Government of Tripura. The
four-day long film festival was held from 24th to 27th November 2020.
2. According to the 8th Edition of ‘Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2020: Measuring the Impact
of Terrorism’ released by Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP), India with a score of 7.353
is the 8th Most Affected Country in the World due to Terrorism in 2019.Afghanistan (9.592),
Iraq (8.682) & Nigeria (8.314) are top 3 countries which are the most affected by Terrorism.
3. Veteran Bollywood Actor Naseeruddin Shah was honoured with the Aditya Vikram Birla
Kala Shikhar Puraskar 2020 at the Sangit Kala Kendra Awards virtual function. He was
awarded in the category theatre.
4. Merriam-Webster and Dictionary.com two of the most popular dictionary companies for the
first time have chosen a common word “Pandemic” as Word of the Year. Once the World
 Health Organisation (WHO) announced COVID-19 as pandemic in early March, 2020 the
word continuously peaked in the most searched list. The announcement was made right after
the Oxford Languages issued a 16-page report explaining the urgency to the role of
Lexicographer.
5. Abhay Bharadwaj, member of BJP and Rajya Sabha MP (Member of Parliament) passed
away at the age of 66 in a hospital in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He passed away due to post
COVID-19 complications. He hails from Rajkot, Gujarat. He was born on April 2,1954 in
Uganda.
6. Mahindra Group has announced the appointment of Amit Sinha as President, Group Strategy.
He will succeed Anish Shah who was promoted as Deputy Managing Director in April 2020.
7. Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry assumed the charge as 27th Director General Border Roads
(DGBR) on 1 December 2020. He was holding the appointment of ADG LW&E in QMG’s
Branch at Integrated Headquarters of Ministry of Defence (Army) before this. He was also
nominated as Exercise Director of EX FORCE 18, a multinational exercise involving 18
countries on Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA), in 2016.
8. The 133rd birth anniversary of first President of India Dr Rajendra Prasad is being observed
on 3 Dec'20. He served as the President from 1950-1962. Dr Rajendra Prasad became an
active part of India's freedom struggle and participated in grass root level movements such as
non-cooperation movement. After independence, Prasad was elected as President of the
Constituent Assembly of India.
9. International Day of Persons with Disabilities is observed every year on 3 December. The
annual observance of day was proclaimed in 1992 by UN General Assembly resolution 47/3.
It aims to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities. The theme for the
year 2020 is “Building Back Better: toward a disability-inclusive, accessible and sustainable
post COVID-19 World”.

4th December:
1. 6th BRICS Youth Summit 2020 opening ceremony and a meeting of BRICS Ministers was
held in Ulyanovsk, Russia. Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Kiren Rijiju virtually
addressed the 6th BRICS Youth Summit 2020 on behalf of India, which was held from 29
November to 2 December, 2020. Theme for 6th BRICS Youth Summit 2020- “BRICS:
 Challenges of the Time for young People”. Organised by: The Summit and the BRICS
Ministerial meeting are organized by the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs and the
Government of the Ulyanovsk Region, Russia.
2. Bengaluru-based fintech, Finin was launched as India’s 1st full-fledged consumer ‘neobank’.
Finin has launched Hyper-personalised SmartBanking platform in partnership with SBM
Bank India(i.e. SBM Bank India has become Banking Partner for Finin). The platform helps
the users to manage,save and invest their money in a smarter, secured and simpler way.
3. Fortune India announced the 2020 Fortune 500 Ranking List of Indian companies . The list is
topped by Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) with revenue of Rs 615,854.00 crore, accounting for
7% of cumulative revenues and 11% profit of the companies featured. RIL retains the top
rank for the 2nd time.
4. Srinagar born Wushu coach and the first Dronacharya Awardee from the Union Territory of
Jammu and Kashmir, Kuldeep Handoo is appointed as the Ambassador of Fit India
movement.
5. Valéry Giscard d’Estaing the former President of France who served from 1974 to 1981
passed away at the age of 94 at his residence in Loir-et-Cher region, in central France. He
passed away due to COVID-19 complications. He was born on 2nd February 1926 in
Koblenz, French-occupied Germany (now Germany).
6. American legend Rafer Johnson, who won the gold medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics for
the decathlon event, died in Dec 2020. He was considered by many as the ‘World's Greatest
Athlete’. He was the first Black captain of a United States Olympic team in 1960.
7. Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is celebrating its 63rd Founding Day on 4 Dec
2020.
8. PM Modi delivered a keynote address at the IIT2020 Global Summit, organised by PanIIT
USA on 4 Dec 2020. The theme of 2020's summit is ‘The Future is Now’.
9. Indian Navy Day is celebrated every year on December 4 to commemorate the attack on the
Karachi harbour during the India-Pakistan war in 1971. On this day, the Indian Navy's attack
on Karachi harbour contributed to the ultimate victory of the Indian Armed Forces over
Pakistan. The theme of Navy Day 2020 is "Indian Navy Combat Ready, Credible &
Cohesive".
10. John Abraham has been named the Person of the Year for 2020 by the People for the Ethical
Treatment of Animals (PETA).
11. ISRO scientist and Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre's former director Dr S Ramakrishnan
passed away in Thiruvananthapuram in December 2020. A native of Chennai, Dr
Ramakrishnan joined VSSC in 1972. He is a recipient of several prestigious awards
including the Padma Shri.
12. Stephanie Frappart became the first woman to referee a men’s Champions League game on 2
December 2020. Frappart has already made history as the first woman to referee in Ligue 1,
and took charge of the 2019 Uefa Super Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea. She also
made her Europa League debut in October 2020.
13. The National Defence Academy has instituted a new award for cadets. It has been named
after Lt Ummer Fayaz who was killed by terrorists in 2017 in the Kashmir valley. The
winner of 1st Commandant's Motivation Award - Lieutenant Ummer Fayaz, Rajputana Rifles
Regiment Trophy and Silver Medal for displaying overall improvement in performance has
been awarded to Cadet Vijay Bahadur.
14. Nongpok Sekmai police station in Manipur’s Thoubal district has been selected as the best
police station in India. This was announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs in its fresh
rankings for 2020.
15. Sandeep Kataria, 49, who is currently Bata India’s CEO, has been elevated as global CEO of
the company as the current incumbent, Alexis Nasard, moves on. Kataria becomes the first
Indian to head Bata globally.
16. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has been ranked Number One in the ‘2020 Fortune India
500’ list of India’s largest. According to 'Fortune India', Reliance pipped the public-sector
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) last year to top the 'Fortune India 500' for the first time ever.

5th December:
1. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) released the annual list of India’s Top 10 Police
Stations for 2020 during the virtual 55th annual DGPs (Director Generals of Police) and IGPs
(Inspector Generals of Police) conference 2020 which was attended by the Prime Minister
(PM) Narendra Modi, Union Minister Amit Anilchandra Shah, MHA among others. The list
was topped by Manipur’s Nongpok Sekmai police station in Thoubal district as the best
 performing police station in India. It was followed by AWPS-Suramangalam in Tamil
Nadu’s Salem city and Kharsang in Arunachal Pradesh’s Changlang district.
2. Equity financing firm Sequoia India partnered with NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship
Platform (WEP), to promote women entrepreneurship in India.In line with this partnership,
Sequoia India, launched a year long Programme, ‘Sequoia Spark’, in association with WEP
for women entrepreneurs in India and Southeast Asia.
3. CREDAI-MCHI partnered with State Bank of India, Google and BookMyShow for the first
virtual edition of India’s largest real-estate expo from 4th December 2020 to 13th December
2020. This collaboration between CREDAI-MCHI, SBI Google & BookMyShow is the first
of its kind in the Real Estate sector.
4. Ranjitsinh Disale, a teacher from Zilla Parishad Primary School, Paritewadi, Solapur district
in Maharashtra, India won US $1 million annual Global Teacher Prize 2020.
5. The 2nd edition of “Kotak Wealth Hurun – Leading Wealthy Women” 2020 was jointly
launched by Kotak Wealth Management, a division of Kotak Mahindra Bank(Kotak) and
Hurun India. Roshni Nadar Malhotra (32 years), the chairperson of HCL Technologies has
topped the Kotak Wealth Hurun India 2020 and was named as India’s richest woman with a
wealth of Rs.54,850 crore.
6. Shrikant Madhav Vaidya, Chairman of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) was appointed as the
first Vice President of the World Liquefied Petroleum Gas Association (WLPGA), an
authoritative voice of the LPG industry across the globe which represents the complete LPG
value chain.
7. The Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu released the book titled “40 Years with
Abdul Kalam- Untold Stories”, a book on the life of the former President of India Dr. APJ
Abdul Kalam. The book was authored by Dr A.Sivathanu Pillai. The book is published by
Pentagon Press LLp and the foreword was written by Pranab Mukherjee, former president of
India.
8. Gitanjali Rao,15-year-old Indian-American Scientist and Inventor has been named as the first
ever “Kid of the Year” by TIME Magazine. She was selected from a field of more than 5000
nominees for her work “to tackle issues ranging from contaminated drinking water to opioid
addiction and cyberbullying using technology”.
9. Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen and Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga have been named by
Fortune among the Businessperson of the Year 2020. The list has been topped by Tesla CEO
Elon Musk for the second time. Narayen was ranked 8th in the list, while Banga was ranked
9th. Banga, who had been Mastercard’s CEO for 10 years, will step down from his role and
Michael Miebach will be the new CEO.
10. Flag Officer Commanding in Chief of the Western Naval Command, Vice Admiral Ajit
Kumar dedicated the 'Gaurav Stambh' to the nation on 4 Dec 2020. Set against the ramparts
of Bombay Castle in the Naval Dockyard, the monument depicts a submariner, a surface
warrior and a naval aviator to represent all three dimensions of the Indian Navy and is
inscribed with a Sanskrit shloka.
11. World Soil Day is held annually on 5 December as a means to focus attention on the
importance of healthy soil. In Dec 2013, the UN General Assembly designated 5 Dec 2014 as
the first official World Soil Day. This date was chosen because it corresponds with the
birthday of the late H.M. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand, who was one of the
main proponents of this initiative.
12. The Indian Navy is undertaking a Passage Exercise with Russian Federation Navy in the
Eastern Indian Ocean Region (IOR) from 4 to 5 December 2020. This exercise is being
conducted on the occasion of ‘Navy Day’ of the IN on 4th December, which emphasizes the
strong bonds of friendship shared between the two friendly militaries. This PASSEX would
be another step towards strengthening Indo-Russian defence relations.
13. G.R Udhwani passed away due to Covid19. He was 59. He began his law practice in 1987
and was elevated as additional judge of the Gujarat High Court in 2012. Prior to that he was
Registrar General in the High Court. According to sources, late Shri Udhwani was among the
three sitting judges who were tested positive last month.

6th December:
1. Indian-American Dr Vivek Murthy was Surgeon General during the Obama administration.
The Surgeon General serves a four-year term and is the top government official on public
health issues US President-elect Joe Biden has selected his key Covid-19 advisor Dr Vivek
Murthy as the next Surgeon General, a role for which he was appointed during the Obama
administration, according to a media report.
2. Adar Poonawalla, the chief executive of the world's largest vaccine manufacturer Serum
Institute of India, is among six people named "Asians of the Year" by Singapore's leading
daily, The Straits Times for their work in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Pune-based
Serum Institute of India (SII) has collaborated with the University of Oxford and the British-
Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca for making the COVID-19 vaccine,
'Covidshield', and is conducting trials in India.
3. Chinese e-commerce company JD.com Inc has become the country's first virtual platform to
accept Beijing's homegrown digital currency. JD Digits, the company's fintech arm, will
accept digital yuan as payment for some products on its online mall. China's digital yuan is
one of the world's most advanced "central bank digital currency" initiatives.
4. Writer and critic in Hindi Ranendra has been honoured with the Shrilal Shukla Smriti IFFCO
Sahitya Samman for the year 2020 by Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited
(IFFCO). The award is given annually to a person who has made an important contribution
in the field of literature. This award was started in the year 2011 in the memory of the
storyteller Shrilal Shukla.
5. Athletics Federation of India has appointed Radhakrishnan Nair as its full-time Chief Coach,
filling the post left vacant after the resignation of Bahadur Singh in July 2020. Nair was the
acting Chief Coach of Indian athletics since then.

7th December:
1. Armed Forces Flag Day is marked in India every year on December 7 since 1949.
Interestingly, the Centre, this year, has declared that Armed Forces Flag Day would be
celebrated throughout December. The Day provides us an opportunity to honour the
sacrifices made by defence personnel in the line of duty. The Day also urges citizens to
support defence personnel and their families by contributing to Armed Forces Flag Day Fund
(AFFDF).
2. Minister of State (MOS), External Affairs V Muraleedharan addressed the 6th India-CLMV
(Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar & Vietnam) Business Conclave 2020: “Building Bridges for
Constructive Development” held in CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) HIVE, the virtual
platform of CII from December 3-4, 2020. The conclave was organised by the CII, in
partnership with the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry,
 Government of India. Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry was the
Chief Guest at the event.
3. The 7th meeting of the India-Mongolia Joint Committee on Cooperation 2020 was held
virtually. It was chaired jointly by Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister, India & Mr.
L. Oyun-Erdene, Minister and Chief Cabinet Secretary, Government of Mongolia. Both
Countries acknowledged the 65th Anniversary of Establishment of Diplomatic Relations
between the two countries.
4. The book titled ‘The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge and the Raj’
authored by Journalist Anita Anand, a British Indian wins £2,000 annual PEN Hessell-
Tiltman Prize 2020. PEN stands for Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists, Novelists.
5. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) elected Uday
Shankar as its President for the year 2020-21.He will succeed Sangita Reddy.Mr. Shankar is
the first person from the media and entertainment industry to lead a national industry
chamber like FICCI.
6. Pixxel, a satellite-imaging startup has signed a one-of-its-kind agreement with NewSpace
India Limited (NSIL), Department of Space (DoS) under the Indian National Space
Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to launch India’s 1st Private remote-
sensing satellite on ISRO’s (Indian Space Research Organization) PSLV (Polar Satellite
Launch Vehicle) rocket in early 2021. Pixxel’s agreement with NSIL is one of the first since
the setting up of IN-SPACe.
7. Japan will host the Club World Cup in its existing format in late 2021. It means there will be
two Club World Cups in the same year, with Qatar hosting the 2020 edition between
February 1 and 11, 2021 before another seven-team edition goes ahead in Japan in December
2021.
8. The International Civil Aviation Day is observed on December 7 every year. The day is
celebrated all over the world to increase awareness about the role and importance of the
organisation, International Civil Aviation in air transport. International Civil Aviation Day
2020 theme is, “Advancing Innovation for Global Aviation Development”.
9. Kotak Mahindra AMC (Kotak Mutual Fund) has launched Kotak International REIT Fund of
Funds. It is India's first diversified REIT Mutual Fund. It is an open-ended mutual fund
scheme that will invest in units of SMAM Asia REIT Sub Trust Fund. This mutual fund
 scheme will have a diversified investment portfolio comprising of listed REITs (Real Estate
Investment Trusts).

8th December:
1. IIT-Bombay researchers have come up with an urban quality of life index tailored to the
reality of life in India. The first time, they have factored in gender parity Chennai, it turns
out, is the most women-friendly and Patna the least. Overall, Mumbai tops the list of 14,
followed closely by Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai. The study found that Jaipur has the highest
crime rate against women, Chennai has the lowest.
2. Japan's PM Yoshihide Suga is set to unveil his first stimulus package. The measures put
together by Suga’s government will have an overall value of 73.6 trillion yen ($707 billion).
The package will include around 40 trillion yen in fiscal measures, such as loans, investment
and direct expenditure.
3. The Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU), Ludhiana
has secured the 1st rank amongst State Veterinary Universities in India for 2019. The
ranking was conducted by the Education Division of Indian Council of Agricultural Research
(ICAR). Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has also been accorded No.2 ranking
amongst Agricultural Universities by ICAR for 2019.
4. Journalist-author Raj Kamal Jha has won the 3rd Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize for his
novel, "The City and The Sea". Jha's book, which is based on the December 2012 Nirbhaya
rape and murder case, was chosen from ten shortlisted books. The Rabindranath Tagore
Literary Prize was founded in 2018 by US-based publisher Bundalo and carries a cash prize
of USD 5,000.
5. Renowned physicist, businessman and Sikh activist Narinder Singh Kapany passed away in
December 2020. He was called the ‘Father of fiber optics’ and had more than 100 patents in
his name.
6. Sergio Perez Mexico-Racing Point-BWT Mercedes , Sergio Perez , won the 2020 Sakhir
Grand Prix,, at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain.
7. Jehan Daruvala emerged on top in the support race of the season-ending Formula 1 Grand
Prix after a thrilling battle against F2 champion Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ticktum.
8. On the occasion of Indian Navy Day i.e. December 4, 2020, a two-day long Passage Exercise
(PASSEX) 2020 between Russian Federation Navy (RuFN) and Indian Navy (IN) was held
from 4 to 5 December 2020 in the Eastern Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The Indian side was
represented by 2 warships viz. indigenously constructed guided missile frigate Shivalik and
anti-submarine corvetteKadmatt along with integral helicopters while Russian side included
3 ships- RuFN guided missile cruiser Varyag, large anti-submarine ship Admiral Panteleyev
and medium ocean tanker Pechenga.
9. Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually addressed the World’s largest virtual Summit- IIT-
2020 Global Summit on the inaugural day of the summit. The 2 day summit(4th & 5th
December) is organised by PanIIT USA.The summit is chaired by Sanjiv Goyal & Co-
chaired by Witty Bindra. Theme of the IIT-2020 Global Summit - "The Future is Now".
10. Pole Vaulter Mondo Duplantis of Sweden was named as the male World Athletes of the Year
(2020) and Triple Jumper Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela as the female World Athletes of the
Year (2020) at the World Athletics Awards 2020. The award is annually given by World
Athletics, the international governing body for the sport of athletics. Mondo Duplantis, who
is 21 years old is the youngest athlete ever to be named as the World Athlete of the Year. He
is also the first Swedish man or woman to win the award. Mondo Duplantis and Yulimar
Rojas are world Record Breakers.
11. Tabaré Vázquez(Tabaré Ramón Vázquez Rosas), former president of Uruguay passed away
at the age of 80 in Montevideo, Uruguay due to lung cancer. He is the 1st Socialist President
of Uruguay.Later he became the member of Broad Front party.He served as the president for
2 terms(2005-2010 and 2015-2020). He was born on 17th January 1940 in Montevideo,
Uruguay.

9th December:
1. A non-profit, non-governmental organization, Germanwatch has released the 16th edition of
Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) i.e. CCPI 2021 for 57 countries and European
Union (EU) in which India was ranked at 10th spot with a score of 63.98 out of 100. This
was the second consecutive time that India remained in top 10 as it was at 9th position in
2019 with an overall score of 66.02.
2. Sanjiv Chadha, Managing Director(MD) and Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of Bank of
Baroda (BoB) launched ‘Atmanirbhar Women Scheme’ virtually at BOB’s Ramamurthy
Nagar branch, Bengaluru, Karnataka.
3. ICICI Lombard General Insurance Limited partnered with Plum Benefits Private Limited to
co-create India’s first technologically backed group health insurance products. Aim– To offer
employers and employees flexibility, transparent pricing, and exceptional healthcare
experience.
4. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has
inscribed the fort cities of Gwalior and Orchha in Madhya Pradesh (MP) in its world heritage
cities under urban landscape city programme. This was informed by the state government of
MP. With this Inclusion the total number of UNESCO World Heritage Cities of India will
increase to 40.
5. “Invest India” won the 2020 UNCTAD Investment Promotion Award by the United Nations
Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The award was presented at the award
ceremony organised at the headquarters of UNCTAD, Geneva, Switzerland. The UNCTAD
presented the award to Invest India recognising its best practices like Business Immunity
Platform, Exclusive Investment Forum webinar series, its social media engagement and focus
COVID-19 response teams.
6. WHO Foundation appointed Anil Soni, Indian-origin global health expert as its 1st Chief
Executive Officer(CEO) or inaugural CEO. He will take charge on January 1, 2021.
7. Five-time Grand Slam doubles champion Dennis Ralston died at the age of 78. He was the
highest ranked American Tennis player for three years and got inducted into the International
Tennis Hall of Fame 10 years after his retirement.
8. Nidhi Vadhera, India’s first woman on sales authored the book titled “Romancing Targets:
Get Closer to Selling in 7 Steps”, which shows a systematic approach to achieve the targets
through 7 effective steps, which were examined and explained in the book.
9. West Bengal Cabinet approved the Construction of the State’s 1st Deep Sea Port at Tajpur,
Purba Medinipur, West Bengal. The Port is expected to attract investment of about INR 15,
000 Crores and generate employment for 25, 000 people. West Bengal Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee stated that the port will be built entirely by the West Bengal Government.
10. Justice GR Udhwani, sitting judge of Gujarat High Court passed away at the age of 59 at a
private hospital in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He died due to COVID-19. He was born on 25th
November, 1961 in Ahmedabad. During the career of 30 years he served as additional judge
of special Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) court and was confirmed as a permanent
judge in the High Court in July 2014.
11. Mondo Duplantis of Sweden and Yulimar Rojas of Venezuela are the 2020 Male and Female
World Athletes of the Year. They are their countries' first recipients of the prestigious
athletics award. Duplantis is the youngest ever winner of the Male Athlete of the Year
Award after twice breaking the absolute world record (6.17m and 6.18m) in Feb 2020.
12. Dr. Samir Damare, Principal Scientist and Head Analytical Services Division, at CSIR-NIO,
Goa has been selected for the Senior Scientist Award for 2020, by the Microbiologists
Society, India.
13. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been selected as a superbrand in the United Kingdom
for the sixth consecutive year. The prestigious annual survey recognised TCS as one of the
strongest brands based on its excellent brand reputation, notable business performance, etc.
Women make up 28 per cent of employees in TCS, much higher than the 17 per cent average
in the UK IT sector.
14. International Anti-corruption Day is celebrated every year on December 9. The day focuses
on the ill effects of corruption, which is one of the most notorious socio-political phenomena
that affects all countries. The Day is observed to create awareness about the socio-economic
issues and how one can fight against it. The theme for the year 2020 is to be United Against
Corruption.
15. Kotak Mahindra Asset Management launched Kotak International REIT funds, which is
India's first diversified REIT mutual fund (MF). It is an open ended mutual fund scheme that
will invest in units of SMAM Asia REIT sub Trust Fund. Kotak International REIT Fund of
Funds Will Invest in units of Japan Based SMAM Asia REIT Sub Trust Fund.
16. Writer and chief editor of The Indian Express, Raj Kamal Jha, has won the Rabindranath
Tagore Literary Prize 2020 for his book, The City and the Sea. Due to this Covid pandemic
The winner will receive USD 5,000 along with a Rabindranath Tagore statuette announced
online, Copenhagen, Denmark.
10th December:
1. Indian Navy has finalised the contract for procurement of a batch of Israeli ‘SMASH 2000
Plus fire Control Systems’ Anti-Drone Systems which is capable of destroying high-speed
enemy drones. It is manufactured by Israel Firm ‘Smart Shooter’. The Smash Fire Control
Systems Are Electro-optical rifle sights which will be mounted on Assault rifles such as AK-
47/103 rifles.
2. The 2020 Goldman Environmental Prize ceremony was held virtually on November 30, 2020
which recognizes six grassroots environmental activists annually from each of the world’s six
continents viz. Africa, Asia, Europe, Islands & Island Nations, North America, and South &
Central America. The prize is also known as the “Green Nobel Prize”.Paul Sein Twa of
Myanmar won the award in Asian Continent.
3. Ram Nath Kovind, President of India appointed Justice Rajesh Bindal as the Chief Justice of
the Common High Court(HC) for the Union Territory(UT) of Jammu and Kashmir(J&K) and
Union Territory of Ladakh. He will take charge on December 9, 2020. He succeeds Justice
Gita Mittal, the 1st female Chief Justice of this court.
4. PM Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention on 9 Jan'21. The
Convention will be held in a virtual format. President Ram Nath Kovind will deliver the
valedictory address to the diaspora. The winners of 'Bharat ko Janiye' Quiz will be
announced in the inaugural Session. The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards will also be
announced to honour eminent overseas Indians.
5. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the International Bharati Festival, 2020 on 11
December 2020 via video conferencing. The festival for 2020 is being organised in virtual
mode and will see the participation of several national and international poets and artists. It
is being organised by Vanavil Cultural Centre to celebrate the 138th birth anniversary of
Mahakavi Subramanya Bharati.
6. Anindya Banerjee has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Democratic
Peoples Republic of Korea. Anindya is presently the Assistant High Commissioner in the
Assistant High Commission of India, Chittagong.
7. Human Rights Day 2020 falls on December 10 every year. The day is being observed ever
since the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human
 Rights (UDHR) in 1948. UDHR is a document that states all the rights that humans are
entitled to which is regardless of any race, colour, etc. The theme for the year 2020 is
"Recover Better - Stand Up for Human Rights".
8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of the New Parliament Building
at Sansad Marg in Parliament Complex. The new building is an intrinsic part of the vision of
Atmanirbhar Bharat. It will be a landmark opportunity to build peoples’ Parliament for the
first time after independence. The new Parliament building will match the needs and
aspirations of New India in the 75th anniversary of independence in 2022.
9. Nomura has turned positive on India's cyclical outlook for 2021, and believes the country is
on the cusp of a cyclical recovery. India could well be the fastest-growing Asian economy in
calendar year 2021 (CY21) the research and brokerage house Nomura estimated. The
foreign research and brokerage house expects the Indian economy as measured by gross
domestic product GDP growth to average 9.9% in 2021 versus -7.1% in 2020.

11th December:
1. The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) released the Urban Quality of Life
(UQoL) Index 2020 which ranked 14 Indian cities in India using 29 indicators grouped into 7
categories. In accordance to this, Mumbai (Maharashtra) tops the index followed by Delhi,
Kolkata (West Bengal) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu) by providing Highest Quality of Life
while Bihar’s capital city Patna provides poorest quality of life to its people. Notably, this is
for the first time the index has considered the factor of gender parity under which Chennai
named as the most women-friendly city while Patna stood last.
2. Kuwait’s Emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah reappointed Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-
Sabah as the Prime Minister of Kuwait. Earlier Sabah took over the Country’s Prime
Ministership in September, 2020 after the death of his brother, Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Hamad
Al-Sabah.
3. India’s renowned journalist & Hindi Poet, Manglesh Dabral died at the age of 72 in New
Delhi due to Covid-19. As a critic of government policies, he returned his Sahitya Akademi
award in 2015 in protest against the growing climate of intolerance in the country, which he
won in 2000 for his anthology “Ham Jo Dekhte Hain”, Literary work in Hindi.
4. Padma Shri Astad Deboo, a renowned Indian Dancer passed away at the age of 73 at his
residence in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He was born on 13th July 1947 in Navsari town, Gujarat.
5. UNICEF Foundation Day is celebrated every year on December 11 ever since the United
Nations General Assembly created UNICEF on the same day back in 1946. The programme
was initiated to provide supplies, assistance and to improve health, to children after World
War II. In October 1953, the UNGA extended UNICEFs mandate indefinitely to assist
vulnerable children.
6. Joseph Safra, the Lebanese-Brazilian financier, who was Brazil's richest man and for many
years the world's wealthiest banker, passed away in Dec 2020. Safra ranks as the world's
wealthiest banker, with an estimated fortune of $19.9 billion, according to Forbes Magazine.
7. PM Modi will deliver the inaugural address at FICCI’s 93rd Annual General Meeting and
Annual Convention on 12 Dec 2020. He will also inaugurate the virtual FICCI Annual Expo
2020. FICCI's Annual Convention is being held virtually on 11, 12 and 14 Dec 2020. The
theme for 2020 is Annual Convention is “Inspired India”.
8. Odisha has topped all Indian states in Urban Governance Index 2020. Nagaland ranked at
the bottom. Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh followed Odisha to
round up the top five. Jharkhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Manipur scored the
lowest to rank just above Nagaland. The National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi ranked
13th.
9. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made it to the list of the world's 100 most powerful
women by Forbes, for the second year in a row. Sitharaman is ranked 41st on the list this
year. In 2019, she was ranked at 34. US Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, Biocon Founder
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and HCL Enterprise CEO Roshni Nadar Malhotra have also been
named in the list which has been topped by German Chancellor Angela Merke l for the 10th
year in a row.
10. Zena Wooldridge has been elected as the new World Squash Federation (WSF) President
following the WSF‟s 2020 Annual General Meeting. She replaces outgoing President
Jacques Fontaine, from France, who was elected President in 2016.
11. Annika Sorenstam was elected president of the International Golf Federation replacing the
outgoing Peter Dawson.
12th December:
1. International Universal Health Coverage Day is a United Nations’ recognized international
day celebrated every year on December 12. Aim: To raise awareness of the need for strong
and resilient health systems and universal health coverage with multistakeholder partners.
2020 Theme - Health For All: PROTECT EVERYONE.
2. It was officially declared by a UN General Assembly resolution adopted in February 2017
and first observed on December 12, 2017. International Day of Neutrality is a United
Nations recognized day held on December 12. Aim : To raise public awareness of the value
of neutrality in international relations.
3. The Ministry of Agriculture has declared Lakshadweep as India’s first Union Territory to
become 100% organic. Earlier in 2016, Sikkim was declared as the first organic farming
state in India. The success of acquiring a certification of being 100% organic was achieved
with the help of the central government’s Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana and the
financial assistance earmarked for the UT under the scheme.
4. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver the inaugural address at FICCI’s 93rd Annual
General Meeting and Annual Convention via video conferencing and also inaugurate the
virtual FICCI Annual Expo 2020. FICCI's Annual Convention is being held virtually on
11th, 12th and 14th December. The virtual expo will provide an opportunity to exhibitors
from across the globe to showcase their products and advance their business prospects. The
theme of this year’s Annual Convention is “Inspired India”.
5. The Federation of Indian Commerce and Industry (FICCI) presented the India Sports Awards
2020 on the back of the 10th Global Sports Summit. , virtually due to the coronavirus
pandemic. Tokyo Olympics-bound athletes wrestler Bajrang Punia and shooter Elavenil
Valarivan have won the 2020 Male and Female Sportsperson of the Year award .
6. The union government will merge all the higher education regulators including the
University Grants Commission (UGC) and All Indian Council for Technical Education
(AICTE) to create a single education commission in 2021.
7. Ola has appointed Julien Geffard to lead Ola's electric vehicle (EV) business in Europe.
Geffard has been appointed as the Director of the go-to-market strategy for its electric
business in Europe to leverage the company's plans to enter new markets with its soon-to-be-
launched twowheeler EVs.
8. Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari inaugurated the 30th Annual Global Conclave
of the International Institute of Security and Safety Management (IISSM) on 11 December
2020. The theme of the 2-day Conclave is ‘Covid -19 – From Survival to Revival: Emerging
Paradigms in Security and Safety Services.’
9. CEO of Zoom, video conferencing platform, Eric Yuan has been named 'Businessperson of
the Year' by TIME for the growth of Zoom in a pandemic. He began at WebEx as a coder
and soon became integral to the creation of his video-conferencing platform.
10. Indian-American Rahul Dubey, on 1 June, had opened the doors of his home in Washington,
DC, to over 70 protesters who were demonstrating against the killing of George Floyd. His
action made him a local hero, and he has now been hailed among the "Heroes of 2020" by the
TIME Magazine, honouring those who "went above and beyond the call of duty".
11. Time magazine has named US President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala
Harris its “Person of the Year.” Also, Time named the Korean boy band BTS its Entertainer
of the Year and named Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James its Athlete of the Year.
12. Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju virtually addressed the 10th Global Sports Summit,
TRUF 2020, organised by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI).
On that Occasion Minister made the announcement on the establishment of 1000 Khelo India
Small Centres in the country.
13. Raj Kamal Jha, Indian Author and the Chief Editor of The Indian Express wins 3rd Edition
of Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize 2020 for his literary fiction novel ‘The City and the
Sea’. This is Raj Kamal Jha’s 5th novel. His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, late
Sultan of Oman and The People of Oman and Sandip Soparrkar a renowned dancer
choreographer from India named as the winner of TagorePrize for Social Achievement 2020.

13th December:
1. The Organisers of the World Economic Forum (WEF) have announced that Singapore will
host the Special Annual Meeting 2021 of WEF from May 13-16, 2021. This will be the first
time that the WEF Special Annual meeting is taking place in Asia and the second time that
meeting is being held outside Davos, Switzerland.
2. Dr. Carolina Araujo, Brazilian Mathematician from the Institute for Pure and Applied
Mathematics (IMPA), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was named as the winner of Ramanujan Prize
 for Young Mathematicians 2020 from developing countries in a virtual ceremony. She is the
1st non-Indian women mathematician to receive this prize. The Prize carries a cash award of
USD 15,000. She won the prize for her outstanding work in algebraic geometry, especially in
bilateral geometry, and in the theory of extremal rays.
3. China’s Chang’e-5 probe planted the Chinese National Flag on the Moon’s Surface. The
United States was the first country to plant its National Flag on the Lunar surface during the
manned Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Chang’e-5 planted the flag before starting on its return
journey from the moon. It is carrying China’s first Lunar Samples.
4. Bill Gates was conferred with the Life-time Achievement Award at the TiE Global Summit
2020 held virtually. For this award, Bill was selected by a jury which comprised of founder
NR Narayana Murthy, President and Chairman, Sparta Group Gururaj ‘Desh’ Deshpande.
5. NGO HelpAge India received the "2020 UN Population Award" in the institutional category
for its contribution towards serving disadvantaged elderly people and raising awareness on
their cause. The UN Population Award, established by the United Nations General
Assembly (UNGA) in 1981, recognises contributions in the fields of population and
reproductive health.
6. India has dropped to the 2nd position in Bloomberg New Energy Finance’s (BNEF) 2020
Climatescope survey ranking from first in 2019. This is a result of a decline in clean energy
investment, which fell 12 per cent in 2018-19 to $8.5 billion and has plummeted 32 per cent
since 2017. Chile has bagged the top spot in the survey while Brazil remained at the third
position.

14th December:
1. The United People's Party Liberal, UPPL President Pramod Boro will be the new Chief
Executive Member of the Bodoland Territorial Council, BTC. BJP along with Gana
Suraksha Parishad will support the UPPL in the formation of the next council. Since the
formation of BTC in 2003, it has been governed by the Bodoland People's Front.
2. The ‘Swadhinata Sarak’ between Bangladesh and India will be opened on 26 March 2021.
The road is functional on the Indian side and it will be connected through Mujibnagar,
Meherpur district in Bangladesh. The Chilahati-Haldirbari rail link which was active till
 1965 will also be inaugurated during the summit meeting between the two Prime Ministers
on December 17, 2020.
3. Energy Conservation Day is observed every year on December 14. The day focuses on
making people aware of global warming and climate change and promotes efforts towards
saving energy resources. In India, the Energy Conservation Act was implemented by the
Energy Efficiency Bureau (BEE) in 2001. Energy Efficiency Bureau (BEE) is a
constitutional body which works under the Government of India.
4. Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo has been re-elected after contesting in a tightly
contested election in December 2020. He has defeated long time opponent John Mahama.
5. Paolo Rossi, Italy’s goalscoring hero from their victorious 1982 World Cup campaign, has
died at the age of 64. Rossi won two Serie A titles, a European Cup and a Coppa Italia with
Juventus but will be most fondly remembered for lighting up the 1982 World Cup in Spain
with six goals.
6. Renowned Sanskrit scholar Vidyavachaspati Bannanje Govindacharya died at his residence
at Ambalpady in Udupi. He was 85.
7. Chuck Yeager, the first person to travel at a speed faster than the speed of sound, has passed
away at the age of 97 Yeager made history on October 14, 1947, when he became the first
man to fly faster than the speed of sound during his nine-year assignment as the nation's
leading test pilot. He also became the first man to fly more than twice the speed of sound in
level flight, flying the Bell X-lA on December 12, 1953, the US Air Force stated. He also
been associated with World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War and his three war active-duty
flying career spanned more than 30 years.

15th December:
1. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to set up an Automated Banknote Processing
Centre (ABPC) in Jaipur for receipt, storage and dispatch of currency notes. The functions
of the ABPC will also include processing of banknotes received from currency chests (CCs)
and bank branches, and destruction of soiled banknotes in an automated manner.
2. IFSCA has notified International Financial Services Centres Authority Regulations 2020. In
the Union Budget 2020, Union Minister of Finance Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala
 Sitharaman had made an announcement for setting up an International Bullion Exchange at
the International Financial Services Centre in GIFT City, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
3. The SoftBank-backed firm Ola Electric has announced a Rs 2,400-crore ($320 million)
investment plan to set up, what it calls, the ‘world’s largest’ electric scooter (e-scooter)
manufacturing plant in Hosur, Tamil Nadu (TN). It aims to make India a manufacturing hub
for electric vehicles (EVs). Ola has signed a memorandum of understanding with the TN
government for this facility.
4. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch communication satellite CMS-
01 aboard Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C50) on December 17, 2020. This would be
India's 42nd Communication Satellite. The mission would be the 52nd mission of PSLV and
22nd flight of PSLV in 'XL' configuration (with 6 strap-on motors). The launch vehicle will
take off from the second launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota,
Andhra Pradesh.
5. The ninth edition of the Sustainable Mountain Development Summit (SMDS) in Dehradun
has begun from December 11 to 14. The theme for this year is Emerging Pathways for
Building a Resilient Post COVID-19 Mountain Economy, Adaptation, Innovation and
Acceleration. The four-day-long summit was organised by Indian Mountain Initiative (IMI)
and hosted by Sustainable Development Forum Uttaranchal (SDFU), Dehradun.
6. Prime Minister Narendra Modi address the Climate Ambition Summit 2020, United Nations,
United Kingdom and France Virtually Co-hosted. The Climate Ambition Summit, held
virtually, marked the five years of the adoption of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
The Summit heard from about 70 world leaders highlighting new announcements and steps
they are taking to reach the goal of net-zero emissions. Next UN Climate Change
Conference of the Parties (COP26), which will be hosted by the UK next November in
Glasgow.
7. The first Trilateral Working Group Meeting between India, Iran and Uzbekistan on the joint
use of Chabahar Port was held virtually On Dec 14. The Meeting was jointly chaired by
Secretary (Shipping), Sanjeev Ranjan, Government of India, Deputy Minister of Transport,
Uzbekistan D. Dehkanov and Deputy Transport Minister of Iran, Shahram Adamnejad.
8. The FIH, International Hockey Federation had announced that the 2023 FIH Men’s Hockey
World Cup Will be hosted in Odisha for a second Consecutive Time. This time it will be
 held in Two venues, namely Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. The 2023 tournament will be 15th
edition of the Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup. It will be held at the Kalinga Stadium in
Bhubaneswar and at the Biju Patnaik Hockey Stadium in Rourkela. The Men’s Hockey
World Cup 2018 was also hosted by Odisha.
9. The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the schedule for the 2022 Women's
World Cup in New Zealand with 31 matches to be played acoss 31 days from March 4 to
April 3, 2022.
10. Veteran politician and five-time MP Radhika Ranjan Pramanik died. He was 88. He was
elected to Lok Sabha five times from Mathurapur on a CPI(M) ticket, beginning 1989.
11. Eminent aerospace scientist and Padma Vibhushan awardee Roddam Narasimha passed away
on December 14, He was 87. Narasimha made a mark in the field of aerospace engineering
and as a fluid dynamicist. He taught aerospace engineering at n Institthe Indiaute of Science
(IISc) from 1962 to 1999. He also served as the director of the National Aerospace
Laboratories from 1984 to 1993. He was the chairperson of the Engineering Mechanics unit
at the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bengaluru
from 2000 to 2014. He was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 2003.
12. People in the Ladakh region are celebrating Ladakhi New Year, Losar on 15 Dec 2020.
Symbolic Losar celebrations and special prayers are held at Chokanga Vihara in Leh. A
traditional flag, Tarchen is hoisted to mark the beginning of the New Year.
13. Eminent writer U A Khader, who enriched Malayalam language and literature with his
unique style, passed away in December 2020. He was a recipient of various honours,
including the Sahitya Akademi award. His novel "Thrikkottur Peruma" won him the Kerala
Sahitya Akademi Award in 1983. He received the Kendriya Sahitya Akademi Award in
2009 for his novel "Thrikkotlur Novellukar".
14. nternet major Google has begun talks with India’s top two telecom operators Reliance Jio,
and Bharti Airtel to pilot high-speed internet using light beams. The initiative is a part of
Google’s ‘Project Taara’ which aims to provide internet connectivity through light beams.
The initiative was started by Google X, a company within Google that is known to work on
so-called ‘moonshots’.
15. Ankita Raina won her third doubles title of the 2020 season, clinching the Al Habtoor
challenge with Ekaterine Gorgodze.
16. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO) in its 210th
Executive Board has unanimously adopted the proposal to launch a USD 50,000 ‘UNESCO-
Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman International Prize’ for the Creative
Economy. It is UNESCO’s 1st award in the field of the creative economy. The prize is
named after Bangabandhu(Friend of Bengal) Sheikh Mujibur Rahman(Sheikh Mujib or
Mujib), the ‘Father of the Nation of Bangladesh’. The award will be given from November
2021.The Prize will be established for an initial period of six years (2021-2027).
17. Ashraf Patel of Pravah & ComMutiny Youth Collective (CYC) named as the winner of the
11th edition of Social Entrepreneur of the Year (SEOY) Award – India 2020 at a virtual
ceremony.
18. The Dutchman Max Verstappen won the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2020 in a crucial race,
making his second win of the year 2020. He made his first win of the year at the special 70th
Anniversary Grand Prix held at the Silverstone Circuit in the United Kingdom.
19. Gujarat became the first state in the country that has approved a system to modernize fire
safety certification process. In this regard, the approval and renewal of fire safety
certification will be done entirely on the portal called Fire Safety COP, or Fire Safety
Compliance Portal covering facilitation and empanelment of fire safety officers (FSOs) and
approval and renewal of fire safety certificate (FSC) along with provision of online payment.

16th December:
1. The First Trilateral Working Group (TWG) meeting was held virtually between India,
Iran & Uzbekistan to discuss the joint use of Chabahar port in Iran to increase regional
connectivity within the 3 countries. The meeting was jointly chaired by Sanjeev Ranjan,
Secretary (Shipping), Government of India, D. Dehkanov, Deputy Minister of Transport
of the Republic of Uzbekistan and Shahram Adamnejad, Deputy Transport Minister of
Islamic Republic of Iran. Uzbekistan & Iran supported India’s proposal of holding
“Chabahar Day” on the sidelines of the International Maritime Summit, which will be
hosted by India in January 2021.
2. According to the 1st Ever ‘Electricity Market Report’ 2020 produced by International
Energy Agency (IEA), the Global electricity demand is expected to fall by 2% due to
Pandemic. The decline is the biggest annual decline since the mid-20th century. The 2%
drop is larger than the drop in electricity demand of 0.6% due to the 2009 Global
Financial Crisis. The report has also stated that the global electricity demand will grow
by 3 % in 2021 and it will be driven by China and India.
3. Edelweiss General Insurance Company Limited launched a first of its kind, Open
Application Programming Interface (API) Gateway to enable full digital collaboration
with its business partners. The authorised partners of Edelweiss General Insurance, with
this gateway can integrate their systems with the technology platform of the company. It
is India’s first cloud-native insurer.
4. Rating agency CRISIL (Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited) projected a
slower contraction of 7.7% (-7.7%) for India’s real gross domestic product (GDP) in
FY21 as compared to the -9% forecast in September 2020. The key reason behind this
upward revision is faster-than-expected recovery in the Q2FY21 (July-September 2020).
Standard & Poors(S&P) Global Ratings has revised India’s real Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) FY21 rate upwards to -7.7%(contract by 7%) from -9% projected earlier on rising
demand and falling COVID infection rates.
5. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved the reappointment of Uday Kotak as Managing
Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of Kotak Mahindra Bank(KMB) for a
period of 3 years effective from 1st January 2021.
6. 2nd ship of Project 17A class of stealth frigates, namely, Indian Naval Ship (INS)
Himgiri, built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) was launched at its
facility in Kolkata (West Bengal). The chief guest of the launch ceremony was General
Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) while the INS was launched by spouse of
CDS, Smt Madhulika Rawat as a part of the naval traditions. It should be noted that it is
the 1st ship built by GRSE as a part of Rs 19,294 crore contract for construction of the
three stealth frigates by August 2023 under Project 17A. Also, the P17A ships are the
first gas turbine propulsion and largest combat platforms ever built at GRSE. The name
“Himgiri” is taken from second the Frigate of the Leander Class of ships “INS Himgiri
(F34)”, which was launched 50 years ago in 1970 and decommissioned in 2005.
7. Russia Successfully test launched ‘Angara A5’ – Heavy Lift Space Rocket from Plesetsk
Cosmodrome in Northwest Russia. This is the 2nd successful test flight of the vehicle
after 1st successful test flight in 2014. Angara is a new series of space launchers being
built by Russia after the collapse of Soviet Union. i.Angara A5 will replace Proton M
Rocket to carry Russia’s heaviest payloads into orbit. The Angara Rocket series is
developed & manufactured by Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Centre.
8. Indian Coast Guard’s (ICG) Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) ‘Sujeet’, which is second in
the series of 5 OPVs was commissioned at the Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) in Vasco
Town, Goa by Raj Kumar, Secretary (Defence Production). The vessel has been designed
and built indigenously by GSL. The 1st ship in series – ICGS (ICG Ship) Sachet was
commissioned by Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in May, 2020. OPV Sujeet was
commissioned in the presence of K Natarajan, Director General of Indian Coast Guard
and others
9. SpaceX’s first super heavy-lift Starship Prototype “SN8 rocket” explodes during a return-
landing attempt after it was launched from the company’s rocket facility in Boca Chica,
Texas. Elon Musk’s private space company plans to carry humans and 100 tons of cargo
 on future missions to the moon and Mars through SN8 rockets. Propelled by three of
SpaceX’s newly developed Raptor engines the flight reached an altitude of 41,000 feet,
but the self-guided rocket blew up as it touched down on a landing pad.
10. Indian tennis player Ankita Raina and Georgia’s Ekaterine Gorgodze clinched the ITF
(International Tennis Federation) Doubles title at the 23rd Al Habtoor Challenge 2020
held in Dubai by defeating Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov (Spain) and Kaja Juvan (Slovakia).
This is Ankita Raina’s 3rd Doubles Title of the 2020 season. The al Habtoor Challenge is
a hard court event. Ankita Ravinderkrishan Raina hails from Ahmedabad, Gujarat. She is
the current Indian No.1 in both women’s singles (WTA Ranking – 180) and Doubles
(WTA Ranking – 117).
11. International tea day was annually celebrated by the tea growing countries like
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia, Kenya, Malawi, Malaysia, Uganda,
India and Tanzania on 15th December since 2005 to highlight the benefits and
importance of tea in everyday life. The United Nations General assembly (UNGA)
adopted the resolution A/RES/74/241 on 19th December 2019 and proclaimed the 21st
May of every year as the International Tea Day. The first UN’s International Tea Day
was observed on 21st May 2020.
12. Vijay Diwas also called Victory Day is celebrated in India every year on December 16.
The day is also observed in Bangladesh as Bijoy Dibos that marks the country’s formal
independence from Pakistan. Victory Day is celebrated to commemorate the victory of
the Indian armed forces over Pakistan in the 1971 Indo-Pak War, also known as the
Bangladesh Liberation War.
13. The United Kingdom has confirmed that Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be
the chief guest at Republic Day Parade in January 2021. This was confirmed by British
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, on 14 December 2020. And also Prime Minister Boris
Johnson has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to join the UK-hosted G7 summit
next yearIndia will be observing 72nd Republic Day on 26 January 2021.
14. The government of Maharashtra’s Unified Development Control and Promotion
Regulations (UDCPR) are expected to bolster real estate development. This Uniform set
of Regulations will specify height of buildings to the width of roads and the size of
amenity spaces. The new regulation will also help developers manage their finances
better.
15. The UN Environment Program (UNEP) on announced six winners of the 2020
Champions of the Earth Award for their pioneering initiatives aimed at healing the planet
amid natural and man-made threats. According to UNEP, the six individuals bagged the
prestigious award for demonstrating commitment to restore the health of ecosystems and
advance sustainable development. This year's Champions of the Earth Award paid tribute
to trailblazers in a range of categories including Lifetime Achievement, Inspiration and
Action, Policy Leadership, Entrepreneur Vision, Science and Innovation.
1. Policy leadership - Frank Bainimarama (Prime Minister of Fiji)
2. Inspiration and action - Yacouba Sawadogo (a farmer from Burkina Faso
 3. Inspiration and action - Nemonte Nenquimo (Ecuadorian female green campaign)
4. Science and innovation - Fabian Leendertz (German scientist)
5. Social entrepreneur - Mindy Lubber (an American social entrepreneur)
6. Earth Lifetime Achievement Award - Robert D. Bullard (American scholar for
promoting environmental justice)
The Champions of the Earth award is the United Nation's highest environmental honour.
It recognizes outstanding leaders from government, civil society and the private sector
whose actions have a transformative impact on the environment
16. IUCN Asia Regional Office congratulates Paul Sein Twa, recipient of the Goldman
Environmental Prize 2020 for Asia. For recognition of his efforts in promoting the self-
determination of the Karen people in managing their natural resources. This year marks
the 31st anniversary of the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, which honors one
grassroot activist from each of the six inhabited continents. It is a Dubbed the Green
Nobel Prize, this award is given annually to environmental heroes
17. Indian-American US Air Force Colonel Raja Chari has been selected as the Commander
of the SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) by NASA and the
European Space Agency. Raja Chari, 43, will serve as the commander while NASA's
Tom Marshburn will be pilot and ESA's Matthias Maurer will serve as a mission
specialist for the SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the ISS, which is expected to launched next
year. He is a colonel in the US Air Force and joins the mission with extensive experience
as a test pilot. He has accumulated more than 2,500 hours of flight time in his career.
18. Veteran wrestler and first Hind Kesari Shripati Khanchanale passed away on December
14. He was 86. Khanchnale defeated Punjab Kesari Banta Singh in 1959 to lift the title of
Hind Kesari. He also won India Wrestling Championship in the year 1958,1962 and
1965. He was also a recipient of the Shiv Chhatrapati award, presented by the
Maharashtra government.
19. Vijay Diwas is annually celebrated across India on 16th December which marks India’s
victory over Pakistan in 1971 which resulted in the liberation of Bangladesh from
Pakistan. The 16th December 2020 marks the 49th Vijay Diwas and also marks the
beginning of the celebration of “Swarnim Vijay Varsh” – 50th anniversary of India’s
victory over Pakistan. The day is observed to pay tribute to the martyrs of both India and
Bangladesh who died in the line of duty during the 1971 Liberation War.

17th December:
1. Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi undertook a visit to Dhordo in Kutch, Gujarat where
he virtually laid the Foundation Stone of several development projects in the State viz.
world’s largest hybrid renewable energy (RE) park, a desalination plant and a fully
automated milk processing and packing plant. PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation
stone of the first-of-its-kind world’s largest hybrid RE park, spanning over 72,600
 hectares (ha) of waste land with 30,000 megawatt (MW) capacity, during the foundation-
stone-laying ceremony held at Dhordo near the India-Pakistan border in Kutch, Gujarat.
This park will use both wind and solar energy. Notably, every year, it will save 5 crore
tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
2. Bihar’s 1st Migratory Birds Festival was organized for 3 days from 11th to 13th
December, 2020 in Bhagalpur, Bihar. The event will showcase hundreds of Migratory
birds yearly visiting the Bhagalpur region during the winter season. Bhagalpur, Bihar
becomes North India’s first “bird ringing station” for observation, monitoring & research
on migratory birds and 4th state in the country after Tamil Nadu (Chennai), Rajasthan
(Jaipur) and Orissa (Bhubaneshwar)
3. According to the “Human Development Report 2020 – The next frontier: Human
Development and the Anthropocene” released by the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP), India (score of 0.645) was ranked 131 in the list of 189 countries
based on Human Development Index (HDI). Norway topped the list with a score of
0.957, the second place was grabbed by 2 countries – Ireland (0.955) and Switzerland
(0.955). The report provides HDI ranks for the year 2019.HDI is measured based on 3
criterias which are – Life Expectancy, Education and Per Capita Income, in the 2020
report ‘Planetary pressures’ a new experimental Index has been introduced. 2020 marks
the 30th Anniversary of the 1st Human Development report.
4. SBI Cards and Payment Services Limited (SBI Card) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation
Ltd. (BPCL) jointly launched ‘BPCL SBI Card OCTANE’, a premium co-branded credit
card. The card is designed to offer maximum savings to the affluent customer segment
that spends a significant amount on fuel.
5. Famous American Media Personality and founder of Kylie Cosmetics, Kylie Jenner
topped the Forbes 2020’s highest paid celebrity list with an earning of USD 590 million
in 2020. She was followed by popular American singer Kanye West in the second spot
with 170 million
6. Incumbent President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo(76 year old) from center-right New
Patriotic Party (NPP) won the presidential election with 51.302%(6730587 votes) of the
vote. In accordance with the constitution of Ghana, this will be his 2nd and final term as
the president of Ghana. This is Ghana’s 8th presidential election since the constitution of
Ghana was redrawn in 1992.
7. Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) together with United States Missile Defense
Agency (MDA) successfully test fired a series of Israel’s 3 multi-range missile defence
systems namely – “Arrow”, “David’s Sling” & “Iron Dome” over the Mediterranean Sea.
The tests are being conducted amidst heightening tensions between Israel & Iran. The
tests showcased the interoperability of the multilayered air-defense mechanisms (Arrow
Missile, David’s Sling and Iron Dome).
8. Indian Coast Guard (ICG) launched the 5th & Final Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV)
‘Saksham’ into water at Vasco da Gama, Goa. The OPV is being built by Goa Shipyard
Limited (GSL) and is expected to be delivered to the ICG by October 2021. The ship was
 launched by Jayanthi Natarajan, wife of K Natarajan, Director General (DG) of Indian
Coast Guard. The OPVs are part of the second batch of vessels of Samarth class ordered
by the ICG.
9. Ambrose Mandvulo (M.) Dlamini, Prime Minister (PM) of Eswatini passed away at the
age of 52 at South African Hospital.He was the 1st World Leader who died of Covid-19
while serving as Prime Minister.He was the youngest PM in the country’s history. He
was born on 5th March 1968 in Mbekelweni, Manzini Region, Eswatini.
10. Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has been awarded the Golden Peacock
Environment Management Award for the year 2020 in the steel sector by the Institute of
Directors. It has been the winner of this award for successive two years. The award
encourages corporates to enhance their environmental performance and to compete with
peers to set benchmarks.
11. India and Bangladesh will reopen the Chilahati-Haldibari rail link after nearly 55 years. It
was cut off during the 1965 India-Pakistan war. The inauguration of the rail link took
place during the virtual summit of the PMs of India and Bangladesh on 17 Dec 2020. The
Haldibari-Chilahati rail link was part of the Broad Gauge main route from Kolkata to
Siliguri.
12. The US Congress has officially passed the $740 billion defence policy bill, which among
other things include calling out Chinese aggression against India along the Line of Actual
Control. The US House of Representatives and the Senate passed the National Defense
Authorization Act. The House and Senate versions of the bill were reconciled by a
bipartisan Congressional conference committee.
13. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed senior UN official Siddharth
Chatterjee of India as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in China. Chatterjee also
served in the Intl Federation of the Red Cross & Red Crescent as the Chief Diplomat and
Head of Resource Mobilisation in Switzerland. Before joining the United Nations in
1997, he was a commissioned officer in India’s Army.
14. The JEE-Mains exam for admission to engineering colleges will be held four times a year
starting 2021 to offer flexibility to students and a chance to improve their scores. The first
edition of the exam will be held from February 23 to 26, followed by rounds in March,
April and May. The exams are being conducted in 13 languages for the first time.
15. Maharashtra is set to be the first state in India to have a dedicated action plan for the
conservation of pangolins – the world’s most trafficked animal. Pangolins are listed in
Schedule I of India’s Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, implying the highest degree of
protection. A proposal to form a study group to prepare a five-year conservation action
plan for pangolins has been approved.

18th December:
1. Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs, G Kishan Reddy inaugurated 1st of its kind
Establishment National Centre for Divyang Empowerment (NCDE) at CRPF (Central
Reserve Police Force) Group Centre in Hakimpet, Hyderabad. The Centre has been set up
for re-skilling and rehabilitation of Divyang Warriors of the CAPF (Central Armed Police
Forces) who sustained life threatening injuries in the line of duty.
2. As per a plan prepared by a group headed by Navy Vice-Chief Vice Admiral G Ashok
Kumar, India’s 1st Maritime Theatre Command (MTC) will get its final shape in 2021. It
will be the first new “Geographical” Theatre command to be created as part of military
restructuring plans. The Headquarters of the MTC will be set up at Karwar Naval Base,
Karnataka and will be headed by a Vice Admiral (3-Star Naval Officer).
3. During the bilateral meeting between Union Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’,
Ministry of Education (MoE) and Foreign Secretary of United Kingdom (UK) Dominic
Raab, in New Delhi stated that India and the UK agreed to set up a joint task force
consisting of designated higher education organisations from both the countries to work
towards mutual recognition of academic qualifications over the next year. The
composition of the Task Force is yet to be decided.
4. The Nehru Zoological Park (NZP) in Hyderabad, Telangana has become the first in India
to acquire ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 9001:2015 Quality
Management Standards Certification from Accreditation Service for Certifying Bodies
(ASCB) United Kingdom (UK) as the zoo passed the extensive documentation of every
activity. The certificate for the same was presented to State Minister of Forests and
Environment, Allola Indrakaran Reddy by Managing Director (MD), Life Time
Membership QCI (Quality Council of India), Sivaiah Alapati. The ISO certificate helps to
ensure maintaining the quality of standards.
5. Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) & Automotive Skills
Development Council (ASDC) announced partnership with Google India to reduce the
digital skill gap in India’s auto dealership sector. The Training programme will be
conducted under Google India’s ‘Grow with Google’ initiative. The main focus of the
partnership is to empower Indian dealerships through adoption of digital tools and
platforms to engage with customers in post-COVID era. This is Google India’s first-of-
its-kind initiative to help the dealer fraternity and support them in this necessary
transition.
6. Sweden based networking and communication company Ericsson released a report “The
Ericsson Mobility Report 2020” which estimated India’s 5G connection to surpass 350
million, accounting 27% of all mobile subscriptions by 2026. The report also notified
India’s first 5G connection to be rolled out by 2021.
7. Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar announced that the
51st edition of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will be held in Goa from
January 16 to January 24, 2021. The event will be held in hybrid format i.e., in both
Physical and Virtual format featuring a total of 224 films. The festival will showcase 47
 films in the Indian panorama section, 26 in feature & 21 in Non feature section. A total of
224 films will be screened under different sections.
8. Indian Embassy in Beijing, China has launched “cinemaSCOpe” exclusively for the
members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), more than a 2 dozen Indian
films will be dubbed in Russian. Screenings will continue till India’s Chairmanship of the
SCO ‘Council of Heads of State’ meeting in 2023. The movie series will coincide with
“SCO Year of Culture” in 2021.
9. Shashi Shekhar Vempati, CEO of Prasar Bharati was elected as the Vice President of
AsiaPacific Broadcasting Union(ABU), one of the World’s largest broadcasting
associations. He will be serving for a threeyear term, which starts on 1st January 2021.
The election was conducted during the 57th ABU General Assembly and Associated
Meeting which was conducted as a virtual event due to the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic.
10. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has set up ‘NETRA’ (NEtwork for space
object TRacking and Analysis) – an dedicated Space Situational Awareness (SSA)
Control Centre at ISTRAC (ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network) Campus
at Peenya, Bengaluru, Karnataka. The main objective of NETRA is to protect Indian
Space Assets from Space debris close approaches and collisions. NETRA will act as the
hub for all SSA activities in India and has been set up as a ‘Directorate of Space
Situational Awareness and Management (DSSAM)’. Only America, Russia and Europe
have similar SSA capabilities to track space objects and share collision warnings.
11. India successfully fired two Nuclear Capable Prithvi-2 Ballistic Missiles from Balasore,
Odisha. Prithvi-2 is a Surface-to-Surface Short-Range Ballistic Missile (SRBM). The
Missile is developed by DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation) under
the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP) and is deployed by SFC
(Strategic Forces Command). Range – 350 Kilometres and can carry upto 500-1, 000
Kilograms of Nuclear Warheads.
12. China’s Chang’e-5 spacecraft successfully landed in Siziwang Banner, China bringing
home the first samples of the moon in 40 years. It was China’s 1st attempt to get
materials from an extraterrestrial body. The mission marks the successful conclusion of
China’s 3 step lunar exploration programme which began in 2004.
13. Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) general assembly selected the countries to host 2030
and 2034 editions of Asian Games through virtual voting. Qatar’s Doha city will be host
of 2030’s edition, while the runner-up in voting, Saudi Arabia will host 2034 edition of
Asian games at Riyadh city. The OCA General Assembly meeting held in Muscat, Oman.
14. Narinder Singh Kapany, known as the “Father of Fiber Optics”, who coined the term
Fiber optics in 1956, passed away at the age of 94 in California, United States. He was an
India born American physicist who was named as one of the seven “Unsung Heroes” in
Fortune’s “Businessmen of the Century” issue of November 1999. He was born in 1927
in Moga, Punjab. He has more than 100 patents to his name for his research in the field of
 fiber optic communication, lasers, biomedical instrumentation, solar energy and pollution
monitoring.
15. Alphabet's Google won EU antitrust approval on December 17 for its $2.1 billion bid for
Fitbit. Fitbit, once the leader in the wearable devices market, has lost market share to
Apple, Xiaomi, Samsung and Huawei. Google has agreed not to use Fitbit health data to
target ads to EU users.
16. The Sports Ministry formally recognised yogasana as a competitive sport, which will
enable the ancient practice to avail government funding. Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju and
Minister of AYUSH Shripad Yesso Naik formally promoted yogasana as a competitive
sport during an event. An International Yogasana Sports Federation was formed under
the presidentship of yoga guru Baba Ramdev.
17. Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad, with its standard working procedures, has acquired
ISO 9001:201 Quality Management Standards Certification from ASCB, UK. The
Hyderabad Zoo has become the first zoo in the country to receive ISO 9001:2015 Quality
Management Standards Certificate. This has been presented to Telangana Forests
Minister A. Indra Karan Reddy.
18. An Indian entrepreneur Vidyut Mohan is among the seven winners of the “Young
Champions of the Earth” 2020 prize. The prize is given by the UN environment agency to
global change-makers using innovative ideas and ambitious actions. Vidyut Mohan is the
co-founder of “Takachar”, a social enterprise enabling farmers to prevent open burning of
their waste farm residues.
19. International Migrants Day is observed every year on 18 December globally. The day
was selected to mark the anniversary of the 1990 adoption by UNGA of the International
Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of
Their Families. The day was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly on 4 December
2000.

19th December:
1. 12th Meeting of India-Australia Joint Working Group (JWG) on Counter-Terrorism was
held virtually. Mahaveer Singhvi, Joint Secretary for Counter Terrorism in the Ministry
of External Affairs of India led the Indian side & Tony Sheehan, Deputy Secretary
International Security, Humanitarian and Consular Group, Department of Foreign Affairs
& Trade of Australia led the Australian side. Both countries called for immediate action
to ensure territories under their control are not being used for terrorist attacks. India,
Australia strongly opposed the use of terrorist proxies for cross-border terrorism.
2. Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) awarded Robert Lewandowski,
captain of Poland National Team as the Best FIFA Men’s player for 2020 in its annual
award ceremony. The event also saw the distribution of 9 awards related to football.Lucy
Bronze of England won the Best FIFA Women’s player for 2020.
 3. India’s communication satellite CMS-01 was successfully launched by Indian Space
Research Organization’s (ISRO) PSLV-C50 (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) from the
Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.CMS-01 is
India’s 42nd communication satellite. CMS-01 is the first communication satellite that
ISRO has orbited under its new satellite naming scheme.
4. Pakistan’s Fast Bowler Mohammad Amir announced retirement from International
Cricket at the age of 28. Amir had already announced his retirement from Test Cricket in
July, 2019.
5. Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, approved the name, design and logo of
the international airport to be constructed in Jewar, Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
6. In order to reduce air and noise pollution, all existing diesel engine boats in the Ganga
river in Varanasi will be replaced by CNG engines. The Gas Authority of India is
bringing a project of around Rs 37 crore, under which the existing diesel engines of the
boats operating in the Ganga, will be replaced by new CNG engines. GAIL will also
establish its CNG station near Khidkiyaghat.
7. The first satellite by a start-up called Pixxel India called Anand which is an Earth
Observation Satellite will be launched on PSLV C51 in February 2021. Along with
Anand, two more satellites under the space reform are going to be launched - one by
Space Kidz India and another by a university consortium called UnitySat.
8. Sonu Sood and Shradha Kapoor bagged the top spot to be named the People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India’s hottest star. While Sood has been named as
the hottest vegetarian celebrity in the male category, actor Shraddha Kapoor has been
given the same title in the female category. Past winners of the award include Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, Amitabh Bachchan etc.
9. Gastrodia agnicellus, one of 156 plants and fungal species named by Kew scientists and
their partners around the world in 2020, has been crowned “the ugliest orchid in the
world”. The 11 mm flowers of this orchid are small, brown and rather ugly. The orchid
depends on fungi for nutrition and has no leaves or any other photosynthetic tissue.
10. The US Treasury Department (USDT) has put India back on its currency manipulation
watchlist USDT's semi-annual report on the macroeconomic and foreign exchange
policies list countries that may be intervening excessively in their foreign exchange
markets to gain an unfair trade advantage. India was included in this list in 2018 but
removed in 2019, now India is again back in 2020.

20th December:
1. 35th edition of India-Indonesia Coordinated Patrol (IND-INDO CORPAT) 2020 between
the Indian Navy and the Indonesian Navy was held to strengthen inter-operability and to
build strong bonds of friendship across the Indo Pacific. The Indian side was represented
by Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kulish, an indigenously built missile corvette along with P8I
 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) while Indonesian side was led by Indonesian Naval Ship
KRI Cut Nyak Dien, a Kapitan Pattimura (Parchim I) class corvette and a MPA of the
Indonesian Navy.
2. Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), RK Singh virtually
launched India’s 1st Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Skill Development in Power Sector
at the campus of National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Gwal Pahari, Gurugram,
Haryana. The CoE was established as a result of a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) between MSDE, Government of India & the Ministry of National Education &
Youth, Government of the French Republic & Schneider Electric. The CoE was launched
in the presence of Guest of Honour, Mr. Daniel Maitre, Minister-Counsellor for
Economic & Financial Affairs, Head of the Regional Economic Department for India &
South Asia.
3. 20th Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Council of Ministers (COM) Meeting 2020
hosted virtually by United Arab Emirates (UAE) where Indian side was represented by
Vellamvelly Muraleedharan, Minister of State (MoS) Ministry of External Affairs
(MEA). France became 23rd member of the IORA. The COM was inaugurated by Sheikh
Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International
Cooperation of UAE while it was chaired by Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh, UAE Minister of
State.
4. According to the ‘Human Freedom Index 2020: A Global Measurement of Personal,
Civil, and Economic Freedom’ – 6th Annual Report released by Cato Institute of United
States & Fraser Institute in Canada, India (overall score of 6.43) ranked 111 in the list of
162 countries. New Zealand (score – 8.87) topped the index followed by Switzerland
(score – 8.82) & Hong Kong (score – 8.74). The Human Freedom Index (HFI) 2020 is a
global ranking of civil, economic & personal freedom, it uses data from 2008 to 2018.It
was prepared by Ian Vásquez and Fred McMahon.
5. Appointment committee of the cabinet approved the 2nd 6 month extension of Sukhbir
Singh Sandhu’s Central deputation as the Chairman of National Highways Authority of
India (NHAI), Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways. His term as the chairman has
been extended beyond 21st January 2021 to 21st July 2021.
6. India’s Women wrestler Anshu Malik won the Silver medal in the 57 Kg category at the
Individual World Cup 2020 held at Belgrade, Serbia organized by United World
Wrestling(UWW). She won the first and only medal winner in the event where Indian
side was represented by 24 wrestlers
7. Gérard Paul Francis Houllier, former liverpool manager & Football Coach, Manager of
French National Team passed away at the age of 73 after having a heart operation in
Paris, France. He was the head of global football for Red Bull. He was born on 3rd
September 1947 in Thérouanne, France.
8. Justice S Muralidhar, Judge of Punjab & Haryana High Court has been elevated as the
Chief Justice (CJ) of Orissa High Court(HC). Prior to his transfer to Punjab & Haryana
HC he served as the judge in his parent high court in Delhi. The elevation was
 recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium chaired by Chief Justice of India (CJI)
SA Bobde Mohammad Rafiq, the current CJ of Orissa has been transferred to Madhya
Pradesh HC.
9. The Trump administration celebrated the first birthday of the U.S. Space Force on
December 18 by announcing that its members will be known as “guardians.” Vice
President Mike Pence made the announcement at a celebratory event tracing the
development of the newest branch of the military over the past year.
10. World Championships silver-medal winning boxer Amit Panghal clinched the gold medal
without having to fight his final bout at the Cologne World Cup in Germany. Panghal
was given a walkover by Germany’s Argishti Terteryan in the final of the 52kg category.
Veteran boxer Satish Kumar won the silver medal in 91+ kg category.
11. The second airport in the NCR will be officially known as Noida International Airport.
The upcoming airport will be located at Jewar in Greater Noida. Zurich Airport
International and the Uttar Pradesh government have also revealed the official logo of
Noida International Airport — a symbol that shows a Sarus Crane - the state bird of the
state - in flight.
12. Indian Railways' South Central Railway zone has commissioned the first longer loop line
at Bikkavolu Railway Station of Vijayawada Division. These will accommodate Long
haul trains like Jai Kisan specials where 2 freight trains are combined. In Railways, loop
lines are constructed in the station area to accommodate more number of trains and to
ease out the train operations.
13. International Human Solidarity Day is observed annually on December 20 by the UN
General Assembly. The General Assembly, on December 22, 2005, by resolution 60/209
recognized solidarity as one of the fundamental and universal values in the twenty-first
century. The General Assembly, on 20 December 2002, established the World Solidarity
Fund.

21st December:
1. Amar Singh College, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir received the ‘Award of Merit’ in the
2020 UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Asia-
Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. It is one of the 7 award winners of
the 2020 awards. It is the first international award given to cultural heritage in Kashmir.
Award of Merit was also received by Pingyao Diesel Engine Factory, Shanxi, China and
Malabari Hall Building, Seva Sadan Society Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. The award
winners were announced by a jury, comprising nine international conservation experts.
2. Russian space agency Roscosmos Space Agency launched a Soyuz rocket carrying 36
UK telecommunications and internet satellites into space from Vostochny launch site.
The satellites were made by British company OneWeb. This was the first launch of
OneWeb satellites from the Vostochny spaceport.
3. PayU collaborated with Google Pay to introduce tokenised payments flow for merchants
in India. This collaboration enables the merchants of PayU to offer Google Pay users the
option to use their debit cards, credit cards, or Google Pay UPI to make repeated
payments without the need to physically share their card details. Google Pay users can
make repeat payments seamlessly and securely as the information of the card is tokenised
and the digital token is linked to the phone. Tokenisation is the process of protecting
sensitive data by replacing it with an algorithmically generated number called a token.
Tokenised payments offer a highly convenient, safe, and friction-free payment experience
to the customers.
4. As per the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data released by the Government of India, India’s
retail inflation based on the CPI declined to 6.93% in November 2020 from 7.61% in
October 2020. The inflation rate for rural area was 7.20% and urban area 6.73% in
November 2020 against 7.75% and 7.33% in October 2020.
5. Hyundai Motor India Ltd flagged-off the 2020 chapter of the ‘Great India Drive’ on 20
Dec 2020. The new campaign is centered around Hyundai’s global vision of ‘Progress for
Humanity’. This 4th Edition of ‘Great India Drive’ will focus on the importance of social
values in the new world and new normal. It will encapsulate humanity’s progress in the
face of adversities.
6. In Gujarat, the Ahmedabad division of Western Railway has created a record by loading
10.06 crore liters of milk and running the highest milk special trains in Indian Railways
during the current year. A record 132 milk special trains were run from Palanpur to Hind
Terminal at Palwal even during the Covid19 pandemic.
7. The govt of Bangladesh will be buying ultramodern and high-performance fighter planes.
The Bangladesh Air Force is also soon going to acquire air defense system integration,
unmanned aerial vehicle system, mobile gap- filler radar, and ultra-modern air defense
radar.  The govt has signed an agreement to buy 5 ultra-modern C-130J transport aircraft
out of which 3 have already arrived.
8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed India-Japan Samvad Conference on 21
December 2020. This Samvad Conference revolves around the need to build the future of
Asia on the positive influence of traditions of non-violence and democracy in Asia. The
first conference, Samvad-I, was held in Bodh Gaya in 2015.
9. Indian women boxers Simranjeet Kaur (60kg) and Manisha (57kg) notched up gold
medals with contrasting final wins in the Cologne World Cup in Germany. Manisha
defeated compatriot Sakshi 3-2, while Simranjeet got the better of German Maya
Kleinhans 4-1 to finish on top in their respective categories. India came second overall
after claiming three gold, two silver and four bronze medals.
10. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the advanced Hypersonic Wind Tunnel
(HWT) test facility. India is the third country after the US and Russia to have such a
facility. The HWT test facility is 'pressure vacuumdriven enclosed free jet facility having
nozzle exit diameter of 1 metre and will simulate Mach No 5 to 12.
 11. The first-ever Filmfare Awards for OTT platforms were given out on 19 December 2020.
'Paatal Lok' won the Best Series Award while the Best Series (Critics) trophy went to
team 'The Family Man's kitty. Jaideep Ahlawat won the award for 'Paatal Lok' and Manoj
Bajpayee took home the Best Actor in a Drama Series (Critics) award for 'The Family
Man'.

22nd December:
1. The Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) Foundation
Day 2020 was commemorated on December 12, 2020. To mark this occasion, the
chamber organized a 5-day virtual event “ASSOCHAM Foundation Week 2020” from
15th to 19th December 2020 on the theme “India’s resilience: Aatmanirbhar roadmap
towards a US$5 trillion economy”. During the occasion, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra
Modi delivered the keynote address via video conferencing and also presented
“ASSOCHAM Enterprise of the Century Award” to Ratan Tata, who received the award
on behalf of the TATA Group. The award recognized the role played by Tata Group in
India’s development. It should be noted that Ratan Tata will also be conferred with
“Global Visionary of Sustainable Business and Peace” by The Indo-Israel Chambers Of
Commerce during a virtual ceremony between the United Arab Emirates (UAE), India
and Israel.
2. Uttar Pradesh (UP) launched India, South Asia’s 1st blockchain-enabled Peer to Peer
(P2P) Trading Platform for Rooftop Solar Power Producers in Lucknow, UP. The Pilot
project will be implemented by India Smart Grid Forum (ISGF), Power Ledger (Australia
based Blockchain technology partner) & Abajyon Consulting. The project will be hosted
by Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL), Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran
Nigam Limited (MVVNL) & Uttar Pradesh New & Renewable Energy Development
Agency (UPNEDA).
3. The World Bank (WB) has released the updated the Ease of Doing Business(EODB)
2018 & EODB 2020 reports after correcting the data irregularities submitted by 4
countries – China, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia & Azerbaijan. India
Ranked 63 in the 17th edition of WB report ‘Ease of Doing Business 2020- Comparing
Business Regulation in 190 Economies’ report remains unchanged. In August, 2020, WB
decided to pause the publication of the EODB report due to a number of irregularities,
and changes to data in previous reports.
4. According to ‘Asian Water Development Outlook 2020: Advancing Water Security
across Asia and the Pacific’ released by Asian Development Bank (ADB), 2.1 Billion
People (1.5 Billion People in rural areas & 600 Million in urban areas) lack adequate
water supply, sanitation in the Asia-Pacific region. The Asian Water Development
Outlook (AWDO) 2020 has been jointly prepared by ADB & Asia-Pacific Water Forum
and supported by the Government of Australia. AWDO 2020 is the 4th report in the
 series. The authors of the report are Tom Panella (ADB), Coral Fernandez Illescas
(ADB), Silvia Cardascia (ADB), and Eelco van Beek (ADB consultant).
5. Union Minister Rajnath Singh, Ministry of Defence (MoD) visited Defence Research and
Development Organisation’s (DRDO’s) Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex in
Hyderabad, Telangana. He was accompanied by Union Minister of State (MoS)
Gangapuram Kishan Reddy, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and G Satheesh Reddy,
DRDO Chairman. It is an enclosed free jet facility with pressure vacuum and having
nozzle exit diameter of 1 meter which will simulate Mach No 5 to 12. Mach number is
the ratio of an object’s speed in a given medium to the speed of sound in that medium.
6. Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has approved the inclusion of 4 Indigenous Games –
Gatka, Kalaripayattu, Thang-Ta and Mallakhamba as part of 4th Edition Khelo India
Youth Games (KIYG) in 2021 set to take place at Panchkula, Haryana. The inclusion will
help in preservation, promotion and popularization of these games. Along with the 4
games, Yogasana will also be a part of the Khelo India Youth Games 2021.
7. A rare cosmic occurrence happened on 21 Dec'20 where two of the biggest planets in our
solar system, Jupiter and Saturn, appeared to merge in the night sky. This occurrence
happened for the 2nd time since Galileo discovered Jupiter’s moons and Saturn’s
characteristic rings. Both were just about one-fifth the width of a full moon. This was the
closest Jupiter-Saturn pairing since July 1623.
8. US President Donald Trump has presented the Legion of Merit award to PM Narendra
Modi. He has been awarded for his leadership in elevating the strategic partnership of the
two countries and the emergence of India as a global power. India’s Ambassador to the
US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu, accepted the award on behalf of him from the US National
Security Advisor Robert O’Brien at the White House.
9. Karima Baloch, an activist, who had been vocal about Pakistan Army and government
atrocities in Balochistan, was found dead in Toronto, Canada, in Dec 2020. She is
believed to be the pioneer of women activism in Pakistan. She had also raised the issue of
Balochistan in the UN sessions in Switzerland. She was named as one of the world’s 100
most “inspirational and influential” women in 2016.
10. Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar released the Status of Leopard in India 2018
report on 21 December 2020. More than 60 percent increase has been recorded in the
leopard population over the previous estimate which was conducted in 2014. There were
at least 12,852 leopards in the country in 2018 compared to 7,910 leopards estimated in
2014 according to the report.
11. Veteran Congress leader Motilal Vora passed away in December 2020. He was a former
two-time chief minister of undivided Madhya Pradesh. A former governor of Uttar
Pradesh in the post-1992 Babri Masjid demolition era and a union minister, Motilal Vora
also served as a Rajya Sabha member four times and was a Lok Sabha MP for one term.
12. Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has been voted BBC Sports Personality of
the Year 2020. One of F1s all-time great drivers, he equalled Michael Schumachers
record of seven world titles with his fourth consecutive championship in 2020. It is the
 second time Hamilton has been crowned Sports Personality of the Year, he first won the
award in 2014.

23rd December:
1. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), BP (formerly known as The British Petroleum
Company plc) have commenced Gas production from Asia’s Deepest Gas Field ‘R-
cluster’ situated in the KG-D6 block, Krishna-Godavari basin of the Bay of Bengal
(eastern coast of India). The gas reserve is located at a water depth of greater than 2, 000
metres, making it the deepest offshore gas field in Asia. It is India's first ultra-deepwater
gas project. R-cluster’ is the 1st operational project of the 3 deepwater gas projects that
RIL & BP are developing together in the KG-D6 block. The other two projects are
Satellites Cluster & MJ Field
2. Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has launched India’s 1st Call
Centre for Aquafarmers at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh. The call centre will handle calls
in English & Hindi. Through the Call Centre, MPEDA will address the technical issues,
and impart knowledge about efficient farming methods. The call centre will primarily
cater to the needs of aqua farmers in Andhra Pradesh, as it is responsible for 60% of
India’s marine products export basket. The headquarters of MPEDA is situated in Kochi,
Kerala.
3. The International Gita Mahotsav 2020(17 to 25 December) commenced in Kurukshetra,
haryana. Jai Ram Thakur, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister, Haryana Tourism and
Education Minister Kanwar Pal, Kurukshetra MP Nayab Singh Saini among the others
inaugurated the festival. The highlight of the day is when 55,000 school students will
collectively recite 19 verses from the Bhagavad Gita on the concluding day.The
international festival is held every year, where about 9,000 students will be from
Kurukshetra and the remain will be from the rest of 21 districts in the state.
4. Mid-Year Review of the Indian Economy’ of National Council of Applied Economic
Research (NCAER) has forecasted that India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in FY21
will contract by 7.3%(-7.3%) from -12.6% estimated in September 2020 with anticipation
that the economy will register marginal growth in the December quarter.
5. Singapore’s tradition of communal dining at hawker centres has been included in the
UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization)
“Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” for its cultural
significance. Singapore hawker culture got this recognition two years after Singapore
submitted a bid to be included in the list. Singapore must submit a report every six years
to UNESCO, showing the efforts made to safeguarding and promoting its hawker culture.
6. Dubai started a free vaccination campaign from 23 Dec 2020 using the coronavirus
vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE. Pfizer and BioNTech have said their
 vaccine is 95% effective in preventing the illness. The country has a case-fatality rate of
0.3%, among the lowest globally, according to data from Johns Hopkins.
7. Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Frances Tiafoe were among the
winners of the ATP’s top awards for 2020. Djokovic was the year-end No. 1 for a
recordequaling sixth time after winning four titles including a record eighth Australian
Open. Federer was the singles fans' favourite for a record-extending 18th straight year.
Nadal received the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award.
8. The National Farmers Day or Kisan Diwas is annually observed across India on 23rd
December to honour the contributions of the Indian farmers and to mark the birth
anniversary of Chaudhary Charan Singh, 5th Prime Minister of India.

24th December:
1. The 1st of its kind Farmer Registration and Unified Beneficiary Information
System(FRUITS)Portal, a project of e-Governance, Government of Karnataka is
integrated with BHOOMI Package of the Karnataka State to fetch and validate land
details. Canara Bank becomes the 1st Financial Institution (FI) to take the project on a
pilot basis. It is the first of its kind technology adoption from the Karnataka govt. to
combine all 70 lakh farmers in the state with land and other details under a single
platform. The launch was done at the NABARD office, Karnataka at an event organized
by NABARD.
2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a special postal stamp to mark the centenary
celebration of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU). He participated in the event organised
at the AMU through video conferencing. Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) was
founded by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, one of the architects of modern India. He was born on
17th October 1817 in Delhi.
3. ICICI Bank Ltd launched ‘Infinite India’, an online platform for foreign companies who
set up or expand business in India. The portal unifies different banking and value-added
services on one platform for foreign companies throughout their business lifecycle. With
this launch, ICICI bank becomes the 1st bank in India to offer such facilities. This
initiative is an industry first initiative.
4. In India, the National Consumer Day is observed every year on December 24 to spread
awareness about consumer importance, their rights, and responsibilities. On December
24, 1986, the Consumer Protection Act 1986 received the approval of the President and
came into force. The main objective of the Act is to provide consumers with effective
safeguards against different types of exploitation.
5. The US Congress has passed a bill that reaffirms the right of Tibetans to choose a
successor to their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. The Tibetan Policy and Support Act of
2020, which was passed by the US Senate, calls for the establishment of a US consulate
 in Tibet’s main city of Lhasa and underlines the absolute right of Tibetans to choose a
successor to the Dalai Lama.
6. The Tamil Nadu government has granted permission to hold Jallikattu event with certain
restrictions amid the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. According to the guidelines issued
by the Tamil government, the number of players cannot be more than 150 at an event and
COVID-19 negative certificate has been made mandatory for all players. The festival is
celebrated on Mattu Pongal.
7. India's first digital asset management platform DigiBoxx was launched on 23 Dec 2020.
The platform provides an easy and secure way to store all the files in one centralised
location. DigiBoxx has free 2GB storage space and the file shared stays for 45 days. The
platform was launched by CEO of NITI Aayog Amitabh Kant, who also signed up for an
account, thus becoming the first user.

25th December:
1. India became the 6th Country to manufacture High Power Electric Locomotives
indigenously, in 2015 Ministry of Railways & Alstom (France) signed a contract worth
€3.5 billion (INR 25,000 crore) to produce High Power Electric Locomotives at
Madhepura Electric Loco Factory in Bihar. It was the largest ever Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) project of Indian Railways. 2020 marks the 5th year of signing of the
contract. The other countries which manufacture High Power Electric Locomotives are
Russia, China, Germany & Sweden. Target – By the year 2030, Indian Railways expects
to be the first 100 per cent green railway in the world with netzero emission
2. Ministry of Corporate Affairs extended the suspension of Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code
(IBC) by another 3 months to March 25, 2021. The Previous suspension was about to
expire on December 25, 2020. The Government of India had suspended IBC to help
businesses cope with the financial difficulties created by COVID-19.This was announced
by Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. As part of the ‘Atma
Nirbhar Bharat’ package, the Government of India raised the minimum limit to initiate
insolvency proceedings to INR 1 Crore from INR 1 Lakh to protect micro, small &
medium enterprises (MSMEs) from bankruptcy
3. Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting addressed the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Big Picture Summit 2020. During the event
mentioned that India will host Global Media and Film Summit in 2021.
4. “Firefly Bird Diverter” a unique initiative of the Ministry of Environment Forest and
Climate Change (MoEFCC) and Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), India to reduce
the mortality of the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) from the overhead power lines in areas
with high population of GIB in the wild. Under this initiative, around 1813 diverter flaps,
called “fireflies”, were installed on the lines, which can be spotted by the birds from a
distance of 50 meters and change their course. The selected stretch is opposite to the
 Pokhran Field Firing Range, which provides a safe habitat for the breeding population of
GIB the Desert National Park in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
5. Padma Shri awardee Sugathakumari renowned Malayalam poet and environmental
activist passed away at the age of 86 in the Medical College Hospital,
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. She died due to COVID-19 complications. She was born on
22nd January 1934 in Kingdom of Travancore, British India (present day Kerala, India).
6. FIFA has cancelled Under-17 and Under-20 World Cups that were scheduled to be
played in 2021, due to a coronavirus pandemic. These World Cups will now be played in
2023, with Indonesia still hosting the Under-20s and Peru the Under-17s. FIFA has
decided to expand the teams participating slot for the Women's World Cup to 32 teams.
7. European Union and the United Kingdom have struck a post-Brexit trade deal, after
months of negotiations over future business rules. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson
declared that they have completed the biggest deal yet worth 668 billion pounds a year. It
will protect jobs across this country and enable UK goods to be sold without tariffs,
without quotas in the EU market.
8. Former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birth anniversary on December 25 is observed as
Good Governance Day. The year 2020 marks his 96th birth anniversary. He was a poet
and a compassionate leader. He served three terms as the PM of India - first for a term of
13 days in 1996, then for 13 months from 1998 to 1999 and after that a full term from
1999 to 2004.
9. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to flag off the country's first-ever fully-
automated driverless train service which will be on the Magenta Line of Delhi Metro on
December 28. The 37-km Magenta Line connects Janakpuri West and Botanical Garden
metro stations. He will also be launching the fully operational National Common
Mobility Card for travel on the 23-km Airport Express Line.
10. Late Justice Rajindar Sachar’s autobiography “In Pursuit of Justice: An Autobiography”
was launched posthumously on 22 December 2020. It was launched by The Indian
Society of International Law and The Indian Law Institute in a virtual event. He is most
remembered for the Sachar Committee report of 2006 which documented the social and
economic condition of Muslims in India.
11. MD of Transport Corporation of India Limited Vineet Agarwal has taken over as the new
President of The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).
He replaces Niranjan Hiranandani, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Hiranandani
Group of Companies. Sumant Sinha, Chairman and Managing Director of ReNew Power,
is the new Senior Vice-President of Assocham.

26th December:
1. Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the Ministry of Steel, Government of
India & Ministry of Economy, Trade & Industry, Government of Japan in the Field of
 Steel Industry. The agreement will help in boosting India’s steel manufacturing sector,
and also in improving the quality & quantity of steel produced in India. The two sides
agreed to establish “India-Japan steel dialogue” at the joint secretary-level for boosting
mutual cooperation in the sector.
2. Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC), Prakash
Javadekar announced that Tso Kar Wetland complex in Changthang region, Ladakh has
been added to the list of Ramsar Sites (Wetlands of International Importance). It will be
India’s 42nd site & UT Ladakh’s 2nd Ramsar Site. Tso Kar Wetland Complex consists of
2 principal waterbodies – Startsapuk Tso, a freshwater lake & Tso Kar, a hypersaline
lake. India has the highest number (42 Sites) Ramsar Sites in South Asia.
3. East Coast Railway (ECoR) has become the 1st railway zone in India to commission the
use of End of Train Telemetry (EoTT) system. With the installation of EoTT trains can
now run without employing guards & brake vans. Electric Loco Shed, Angul in Odisha
commissioned and tested the EoTT.
4. The 51st round of the 5-day Director General (DG) Level Border Coordination meeting
between India’s Border Security Force (BSF) & Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is
taking place at Guwahati, Assam for the 1st time from December 22-26, 2020. This is the
1st time in 4 decades that the Biannual conference is being held outside Delhi. The 12-
member BSF delegation was led by Director General Rakesh Asthana & the 11-member
BGB delegation was led by Major General Md Shafeenul Islam
5. Union Ministry of Power for the 1st time promulgated rules to empower consumers of
electricity by issuing “Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, 2020”. On the occasion,
Union Minister of State Power R.K. Singh assured that the issued rules will provide
consumers with reliable service and quality electricity.
6. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced the plan for India’s largest Hockey
stadium to be built in Rourkela city, Odisha with a seating capacity of 20,000. The
stadium will also be a part of hosting International Hockey Federations’ (FIH) 2023
Men’s Hockey World Cup that is planned to be held at Odisha.
7. Prasanth Prabhakaran, joint MD and CEO of YES Securities (India) Limited, wholly
owned subsidiary of YES Bank, was elevated as its MD and CEO with immediate effect.
Prasanth Prabhakaran will oversee the investment banking and merchant banking
verticals.
8. Parliament of Romania approved the new liberal government which was voted by the 260
lawmakers out of 465 seats in the two chamber assembly of Romania. Florin City,
Former investment banker and Finance Minister, of the ruling National Liberal Party
(NLP) became the new Prime Minister (PM) of Romania.
9. The first batch of training at the Tata-Indian Institute of Skills, Mumbai was launched at a
virtual event on 25 Dec'20 by Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union Minister of Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship. The institute is a joint initiative between Ministry of
Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India and Tata Indian
Institute of Skills.
 10. Japan aims to eliminate gasoline-powered vehicles in about 15 years. Japan govt has
announced a plan to go carbon free by 2050 and generate nearly USD 2 trillion growth in
green business and investment. The “green growth strategy" urges utilities to bolster
renewables and hydrogen while calling for auto industries to go carbon-free by the mid
2030’s.
11. 21-year-old Arya Rajendran hailing from Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram will become the
country’s youngest mayor. A second-year BSc Mathematics student of the All Saints’
College, she was elected from the Thiruvananthapuram municipal corporation on a CPM
ticket. She is a state committee member of the Student Federation of India. She is also the
state president of the Balasangham.
12. India’s first hot air balloon wildlife safari in a tiger reserve was launched in the world-
famous Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh. The State was planning to
introduce this service in Pench, Kanha and Panna tiger reserves as well. The service is
being operated by Jaipur-based Sky Waltz and company.
13. Tesla has planned to build its first Supercharger in Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison's
island of Lanai, Hawaii. The electric-vehicle maker recently applied for a permit in Maui
county to construct a new Supercharger in Lanai City. Larry Ellison, a Tesla board
member, bought most of the island of Lanai, a small island with around 3,200 residents,
for $300 million in 2012.

27th December:
1. The Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) is set to establish India’s First Mega Leather Park
in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. This project is expected to generate more than 50000 job
opportunities and indirectly provide livelihood to more than 1.5 lakh individuals. The
Union Ministry of Commerce has given approval to the project. After laying the
foundation Mega Leather Cluster Development UP Ltd will develop the area.
2. The 1st Lithium refinery of India is to be set up in Gujarat. It will process Lithium ore to
produce battery-grade material. More than Rs 1,000 crore will be invested by Manikaran
Power Limited(MPL) to set up this refinery. MPL will import Lithium ore from Australia
and process it in Gujarat.
3. According to the ‘Nature Index 2020 Artificial Intelligence’ released by Nature Research,
International Scientific publishing company, India ranked 3rd (with 91,563 publications)
in the list of 25 Countries with most publications on Artificial Intelligence (AI) during the
period 2015-2019. China topped the List, followed by the United States. The whole Index
is based on the time period between 2015-19. India ranked 20th among 25 countries in
artificial intelligence ranked by total article share in the field from 2015 to 2019.
4. NTPC Limited (formerly- National Thermal Power Corporation Limited won
‘Excellence’ award in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Domain in 15th CII-ITC
 Sustainability Awards 2020. Excellence in CSR is the highest award conferred by CII-
ITC in the CSR domain.
5. Padma Shri Shamsur Rahman Faruqi India’s renowned Urdu Poet, writer, critic and
theorist, passed away at the age of 85 in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. He was born on 30th
September 1935 in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh.
6. Jairam Ramesh and Amit Ahuja were jointly awarded the Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay-
New India Foundation (NIF) Book Prize for 2020 out of a shortlist of six writers. The
2020 winners will share the prize money of ₹15 lakhs for their respective books and will
each receive the trophy. The award was established in 2018, the first winner of the prize
was the political scientist Milan Vaishnav.
7. Indian Space Research Organisation is developing 'green propulsion' for its ambitious
human space flight mission, 'Gaganyaan'. ISRO Chairman K Sivan announced this while
addressing the 16th convocation of SRM Institute of Science and Technology on 26 Dec
2020. ISRO had planned to launch 'Gaganyaan' by December 2021 but now is likely to be
delayed by one year due to the impact of COVID.
8. The Bihar Cabinet has approved the creation of 103 new Nagar Panchayats and eight new
Nagar Parishads. The aim was to boost urbanisation and increase the states share in
central resources. The five municipal councils which have been upgraded to municipal
corporations are Sasaram (Rohtas), Motihari (East Champaran), Bettiah (West
Champaran), Madhubani and Samastipur.
9. The United Nations (UN)’s observed the first ever International Day of Epidemic
Preparedness across the globe on 27th December 2020. The day recognises the role of
government and other stakeholders like healthcare workers in controlling and managing
the outbreak of epidemic

28th December:
1. “In Pursuit of Justice: An Autobiography” the autobiography of the Justice Rajindar
Sachar was launched posthumously by his family in association with the Indian Society
of International Law(ISIL) and The Indian Law Institute(ILI) over a virtual event
organised to mark his birth anniversary. The book has been published by Rupa
Publications.
2. Assam Cabinet headed by Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal approved the ‘Assam
Official Language Amendment Bill’ for making Bodo (Devanagari script) also known as
Boro as an associate official language of the state. The Bill will now be tabled in the
Assam Legislative Assembly. Declaration of ‘Bodo’ as associate official language was
one of the demands made by 4 Bodo rebel groups & 2 Bodo organizations during the
signing of 3rd Bodo peace accord in January, 2020.
3. German luxury carmaker BMW is planning to step up its production of electric vehicles.
Between 2021 and 2023, it will build a quarter of a million more electric cars than
 originally planned. BMW wants roughly every fifth car it sells to be powered by an
electric engine by 2023, compared to about 8% in 2020.
4. The Bihar govt has won the Digital India Awards, instituted by the central govt, for
innovative steps in e-governance. It has been awarded for its initiative to transfer
financial assistance directly to the accounts of beneficiaries during the COVID-19
pandemic. More than 21 lakh stranded workers outside Bihar were provided financial
assistance through the "Bihar Sahayata Mobile App".
5. Facebook has signed a global music licensing deal with Bollywood music label Tips.
With the move, Facebook and Instagram users will be able to add Tips’ music catalog for
videos and other social experiences to their posts and stories. The library including
yesteryear hits of artists such as Alka Yagnik will be available for social experiences such
as videos, stories via music stickers.
6. For the first time after independence, tap water came to Mhaismal village of Nashik
district in Maharashtra a few days ago. Mhaismal village in Surgana taluka of Nashik
district had been severely affected by water scarcity for decades. It was part of a regular
routine for the women from this village to roam for miles to fetch water for household
use.
7. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the men's and women's ODI and
T20I teams of the decade. Former India captain MS Dhoni has been named the captain of
both the men's ODI and T20I Team of the Decade which also features the Virat Kohli
and Rohit Sharma. The ICC also announced the Test team of the decade and named Virat
Kohli as the skipper.
8. Myanmar formally commissioned erstwhile INS Sindhuvir as UMS Minye Theinkhathu
into its navy. It was commissioned by the Myanmar Navy on the occasion of its 73rd
anniversary on December 26, 2020. It is the first submarine to be acquired by the
Myanmar Navy. It was handed over by India to the country in October 2020.
9. The much-awaited Tansen Music Festival began in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh on Dec 26,
2020. The inaugural day events started with crosscultural offerings of Harikatha, Milad
and Shehnai vadan at Tansen’s samadhi sthal in Hazira. The festival would conclude on
December 30 at Behat village, the birthplace of the music maestro Tansen. This event is
the 96th edition of the Tansen music festival.

29th December:
1. Indian Navy & Vietnam People’s Navy undertook a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) 2020 in
the South China Sea from December 26-27, 2020 to boost maritime cooperation between
the two countries. Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kiltan carrying 15 tonnes of Humanitarian
Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR) reached NhaRong Port, Ho Chi Minh City as part
of Mission Sagar-III. The relief materials are for the flood-affected people of Central
Vietnam.
2. The Centralised ‘Investment Clearance Cell’ announced by Government of India as part
of the Single Window System is set to become operational by April 15, 2021. The Main
objective of the Cell is to act as a one-stop digital platform to obtain central and state
clearances/approvals required to start business operations in India.The System will work
under Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
3. According to the 12th edition of World Economic League Table 2021 (WELT) an
Annual report released by Centre for Economics & Business Research Ltd (CEBR), India
slumped 1 spot to 6th Largest Economy (out of 195 countries) in the world in 2020 from
5th in 2019 due to the impact of COVID19. The United States (US) topped the 2020
rankings followed by China & Japan.
4. Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli wins the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for ICC Male Cricketer
of the Decade. He also won ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Decade award. He became
the only men’s player to be named in ICC’s Test, ODI, and T20I Teams of the Decade.
MS Dhoni(India) won the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award of the Decade for calling back
former England batter Ian Bell after a disputable runout at Trent Bridge Cricket ground,
Nottinghamshire, England in 2011. Ellyse Perry(Australia) wins the Rachael Heyhoe-
Flint Award for ICC Female Cricketer of the Decade. She also won ICC Women’s ODI
Cricketer of the Decade award and ICC Women’s T20I Cricketer of the Decade award.
Ellyse Perry is the first and only cricketer in history to complete the double of 1,000 runs
and 100 wickets in T20I cricket.
5. Dr Hemant Kumar Pandey has been conferred with ‘Scientist of the Year Award-2018’
by Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) for his contributions
towards developing herbal medicines which includes ‘Lukoskin’ a drug for treatment of
leucoderma. Pandey has been undertaking research at DRDO’s Defence Institute of Bio-
Energy Research (DIBER) at Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand for 25 years.
6. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) released the initial data from Chandrayaan-
2, India’s second Moon Mission to the general public through PRADAN portal hosted by
ISSDC (Indian Space Science Data Centre). .At present, ISRO Science Data Archive
(ISDA) has datasets acquired by Chandrayaan-2 payloads from 7 instruments. Data sets
from Imaging Infra-Red Spectrometer (IIRS) payload will be added in the future.
7. Kadambur M. R. Janardhanan, former union minister and senior All India Anna Dravida
Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) leader passed away at the age of 91 in a private hospital
in Thoothukudi(formerly Tuticorin), TamilNadu due to age-related ailments. He was born
in Kadambur, Thoothukudi district on October 22, 1929.
8. India unfurled the 8 Blue Flags on its beaches on 28 Dec 2020. India, which has become
the first country in the world to receive the Blue Flag Certification for 8 beaches in a
single attempt, hosted the Blue flags in all its beaches. Blue Flag certification is a
globally recognized eco-label accorded by Foundation for Environment Education in
Denmark based on 33 stringent criteria.
9. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has confirmed that
American electric vehicle company Tesla will begin its operations in India in 2021. Tesla
 will initially begin with sales and perhaps venture towards assembly, sales, and
manufacturing. Tesla will launch Model 3 in India in June 2021 and the bookings for the
same will begin from January 2021.
10. Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami has inaugurated the newly-formed Mayiladuthurai
district through video conferencing on December 28, 2020. The 38th district in the state
has been carved out of Nagapattinam district. The new district comprises four taluks -
Mayiladuthurai, Sirkazhi, Tarangambadi, and Kuthalam. It has a total population of 9.01
lakh.
11. Karnataka’s first rice dispensing machine or ‘rice ATM’ will come up in one of the slum
areas in Bengaluru. The initiative is part of the Centre’s pilot project ‘Annapurti’,that is
being implemented in close partnership with the UN’s World Food Programme. These
machines will also be set up at five locations across five states Karnataka, Uttarakhand,
Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
12. Harsh Vardhan, Union health minister, has launched Pneumosil, India's first
Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV), developed by Serum Institute of India in
collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Pneumosil was found to be
safe and effective in preventing Pneumonia disease during the clinical trials. The vaccine
has been licensed by the Drugs Controller General in July 2020.
13. Johnny Mullagh has become the first indigenous player inducted into the Australian
Cricket Hall of Fame. He was the star player of the 1868 Aboriginal side that was the first
sporting team from Australia to tour internationally. Mullagh took 245 wickets at an
average of 10 and scored 1,698 runs during his team’s tour of the United Kingdom,
playing in 45 of the 47 matches.
14. A new book on Mahatma Gandhi is scheduled to be launched on January 1, 2021, by RSS
Chief Mohan Bhagwat. The book “Making of a Hindu Patriot: Background of Gandhiji’s
Hind Swaraj” is authored by J K Bajaj and M D Srinivas. It is an authentic edition of
“Hind Swaraj” based on Gandhi’s handwritten manuscript of 1909 in Gujarati and his
English translation of the text published in 1910.

30th December:
1. According to the report ‘Foreign Direct Investment Trends and Outlook in Asia and the
Pacific 2020/21’ released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) stated that inward FDI flows to South and South-West
Asia slightly decreased by 2% in 2019, from $67 billion in 2018 to $66 billion in 2019.
India has accounted for 77% of total Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to South &
SouthWest Asian subregion.
2. ICICI Bank collaborated with Google Pay to issue FASTag through Unified Payments
Interface (UPI) on the payments app. This allows Google Pay users to order, track and
recharge ICICI Bank FASTag digitally on the payments platform. With this partnership,
 ICICI Bank FASTag is now available on Google Pay. It is to be noted that ICICI bank
was the first to launch FASTags service around the country on Mumbai- Vadodara
corridor in 2013.
3. ‘Unicas’, world’s first crypto bank was launched in India as a Joint Venture (JV) by
Cashaa of UK and United Multistate Credit co-operative society Ltd of India. This bank
allows users to transact in cryptocurrency and fiat from one account to another. It will
provide banking services for both fiat and crypto assets. This JV allows Cashaa to access
regulatory licenses, physical branches, and overall banking Infrastructure of United
Multistate Co-Op Society. It is to be noted that for the 1st time in the world a financial
institution has enabled cryptocurrency trade through physical branches. World’s first
‘crypto-friendly’ branch was initiated in Jaipur, India.
4. Madhya Pradesh (MP) cabinet headed by Shivraj Singh Chouhan approved the Dharma
Swatantrya (Religious Freedom) Bill, 2020. The aim of the bill is to outlaw marriages
which take place with a sole motive of religious conversions. It will now be placed in the
MP state assembly for discussion & passage.
5. Researchers from the Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), in collaboration with their
counterparts from the University of Goa, have discovered a species of Indian
Muraingrass along the Western Ghats. Besides being of economic significance as it is
commonly used as fodder, this species, named Ischaemum janarthanamii, has fought
harsh conditions to survive in this ecologically-sensitive region.
6. Ajinkya Rahane became the first recipient of the prestigious Mullagh Medal after India
beat Australia in the 2nd Test match in Melbourne on Dec 29, 2020. Johnny Mullagh
Medal is a tribute to honour the captain of Australia’s first sporting team to tour
internationally. Cricket Australia had earlier announced that the Player of the match of
the Boxing Day Test will be awarded, Mullagh Medal.
7. Sprawling across 4 acres, India’s first pollinator park was inaugurated on 29 Dec'20 at
Haldwani in Nainital district of Uttarakhand. It has around 50 different pollinator species,
which include various species of butterflies, honeybees, and birds. The objective is to
conserve various pollinator species and to create awareness among the public about the
importance of pollination.

31st December:
1. Union Minister of Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan virtually inaugurated India’s
Highest Meteorological (Met) Centre at Leh, Ladakh (UT). It is situated at a height of
3500 metres from the mean sea level. Radha Krishna Mathur, Lieutenant Governor (LG)
of Ladakh & Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, MP from Ladakh were the Guest of Honour at
the event. This is India’s Second Met Centre located in the Himalayas, the first one is
located at Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh.
2. Bhoramdeo Sahakari Sakhar Utpadak Karkhana Maryadit (BSSUKM), a sugar mill
signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with NKJ Biofuel Ltd, a subsidiary of
Chhattisgarh Distillery Limited CDL) to set up India’s 1st ethanol plant under Public-
Private Partnership (PPP) model at BSSUKM in Kabirdham(Kawardha), Chhattisgarh.
The agreement is valid for 30 years.
3. Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India to
co-create India’s 1st Social Impact Bond (SIB).
4. Eye cancer therapy namely “Ruthenium plaque therapy” developed by Bhabha Atomic
Research Centre (BARC) has been successfully used for the first time for the treatment of
patients with ocular tumours in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)-Delhi.
5. Harmony Foundation hosted the Mother Teresa Memorial Awards for Social Justice on
December 27, 2020. The Awards, in its 16th year, is the only award endorsed by Sister
Prema, the Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity, the organization started by
Mother Teresa. The theme for 2020's awards was ‘Celebrating Compassion in Times Of
Covid ’. The awardees include Dr Anthony Fauci, etc.