Feb 2022 SIDBI Magazine Lyst7993

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Contents
1 GA in News: ...................................................................................................................................................................... 14
Banking ................................................................................................................................................................................ 14
1.1 Sona Company acquires equity share capital of Sajjan India Limited ..................................................................... 14
1.2 Bharti Airtel to buy 25% stake in Lavelle ................................................................................................................. 14
1.3 SEBI approves three new IPOs ................................................................................................................................. 14
1.4 Edelweiss General Insurance partners with Ashv Finance for MSME loan protection plans .................................. 14
1.5 GAIL (India) Limited begins India's maiden project of mixing hydrogen into the natural gas system .................... 14
1.6 Paytm introduces “India’s first” intelligent messenger called ‘Pops’ ...................................................................... 14
1.7 Direct to Home (DTH) platform, Tata Sky has rebranded itself ............................................................................... 14
1.8 State Bank of India launches a dedicated centralized processing cell..................................................................... 14
1.9 NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd acquires 5% equity stake in Power Exchange of India Ltd (PXIL) .......................... 14
1.10 Hindustan Petroleum Corporation has marked its foray into non-fuel retailing sector ......................................... 14
1.11 Government of India sets up a National Land Monetisation Corporation .............................................................. 15
1.12 Phase I of National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL).................................................................................. 15
1.13 Vedanta Ltd ties up a facility of ₹8000 crore with Union Bank of India .................................................................. 15
1.14 Union Government has approved the continuation of the Scheme of Assistance to National Sports Federations
(NSFs) with an outlay of Rs. 1875 crore. .............................................................................................................................. 15
1.15 Punjab National Bank and Patanjali Ayurved Limited (PAL) launch co-branded credit cards ................................. 15
1.16 Online platform ‘Dukaan’ partners with Simpl ........................................................................................................ 15
1.17 7.8 per cent will be the real GDP growth in FY 2022-23 .......................................................................................... 15
1.18 Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is ranked as 10th most valued insurance brand globally........................ 15
1.19 Reserve Bank of India has cancels the licence of Independence Co-operative Bank Ltd. ....................................... 15
1.20 SBI signs a tripartite MoU with the Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts and National Culture Fund ........................ 16
1.21 Top most valuable insurance company globally as per the latest Brand Finance report of 2022 .......................... 16
1.22 USD 4.6 billion of sovereign loan has been provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to India in 2021
including USD 1.8 billion towards coronavirus response. ................................................................................................... 16
1.23 Airtel Payments Bank partners ICICI Lombard General Insurance .......................................................................... 16
1.24 As per the recently presented Economic Survey 2021-22, Maharashtra tops the list of newly recognised startups
and unicorns. ....................................................................................................................................................................... 16
1.25 Ministry of Finance has released the monthly Post Devolution Revenue Deficit (PDRD) Grant of Rs. 9,871 crore to
17 States. ............................................................................................................................................................................. 16
1.26 Financial Literacy week 2022 observed by the RBI from 14th to 18th February 2022. .......................................... 16
1.27 RBI observed Financial Literacy week 2022 from 14th to 18th February................................................................ 16
1.28 10,990.17 crore was the total corpus under the PM CARES Funds in 2020-21....................................................... 17
1.29 According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry USD 339.55 billion of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
inflows, India has received in the last five years. ................................................................................................................ 17
1.30 RBI ranks 2nd in terms of buying Gold among the world’s Central Banks in 2021 ................................................. 17
1.31 Razorpay has bought a majority stake in a Malaysian payments start-up named “Curlec” ................................... 17
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1.32 Social media platform, Instagram has launched the campaign named ‘Take a Break’. .......................................... 17
1.33 The increased limit on the e-RUPI digital voucher from current cap of ₹10,000 to ₹100,000................................ 17
1.34 RBI has projected a conservative real GDP growth of 7.8 per cent in FY23. ........................................................... 17
1.35 As per the latest Monetary Policy released by the RBI, ₹3 crore would be the NACH mandate limit for TReDS
settlements that will fulfill the growing liquidity requirements of MSMEs. ....................................................................... 17
1.36 State Bank of India’s Strategic Training Unit has entered into a partnership with NSE Academy .......................... 18
1.37 Paisabazaar.com partners with RBL Bank to offer ‘Paisa on Demand’ (PoD), a credit card.................................... 18
1.38 Aditya Birla Health Insurance Company Ltd has signed a bancassurance agreement with Utkarsh Small Finance
Bank 18
1.39 The Reserve Bank of India has increased the investment limit in Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) ..................... 18
1.40 TomTom Traffic Index's global top 25 list ................................................................................................................ 18
1.41 RailTel wins the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) award for excellence...................................... 18
1.42 Axis Bank is set to buy Citigroup Inc.’s India retail banking business ...................................................................... 18
1.43 RBL Bank has partnered with Creditas Solutions for its ‘Neo Collections’ platform ............................................... 18
1.44 Yes Bank has announced the launch of an annual startup enabler Agri Infinity program ...................................... 19
1.45 NABARD has launched ‘JIVA’ programme ............................................................................................................... 19
1.46 Reliance Jio has formed a joint venture with SES, Luxembourg .............................................................................. 19
1.47 IndusInd Bank has been empanelled by the Small Farmers Agri–Business Consortium (SFAC) ............................. 19
1.48 Karur Vysya Bank has joined hands with the Chennai-based UNANU Technologies .............................................. 19
1.49 Ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI) projected India’s gross domestic product (GDP)
deflator for FY23 at 3 to 3.5 percent. .................................................................................................................................. 19
1.50 Dabur India Limited becomes India’s 1st 100% Plastic Waste Neutral company. .................................................. 19
1.51 Vedanta signs an MoU with Taiwanese electronics manufacturing company, Hon Hai Technology Group
(Foxconn) to form a joint venture for manufacturing semiconductors in India.................................................................. 20
1.52 IndiGo airlines partners with Indian Oil for its 6E Rewards Ka-ching credit cardholders ........................................ 20
1.53 Renault India partners with Common Services Center e-Governance Services ...................................................... 20
1.54 DMI Finance Private Limited has launched a digital personal loan product on Google Pay ................................... 20
1.55 LKP Securities Ltd has signed an agreement with HDFC Bank ................................................................................. 20
1.56 NITI Aayog will be hosting the first-ever open-to-all hackathon ............................................................................. 20
1.57 As per the Second Advance Estimates of production of major crops 316.06 million tonnes is the estimated food
grains production in the year 2021-22. ............................................................................................................................... 20
1.58 Wealth tech company, Fisdom has partnered with Bank of Maharshtra ............................................................... 20
1.59 Kotak Mahindra Bank partners with Ezetap to provide integrated Point of Sale (PoS) solutions........................... 20
1.60 Twitter Inc partners with Paytm’s payment gateway to improve the support for its ‘Tips’ feature ...................... 20
1.61 Edelweiss Asset Management has launched ‘eInvest’ ............................................................................................ 21
1.62 TransUnion CIBIL launches MSME consumer education program. ......................................................................... 21
1.63 The NHPC Ltd has set a wholly owned subsidiary named NHPC Renewable Energy Ltd ........................................ 21
1.64 Bank of Baroda and the IRCTC launch a co-branded contactless credit card .......................................................... 21
1.65 Bank of Baroda has signed MoU with Assam Rifles to provide 'Central Forces Salary Package'. ........................... 21

1.66 Tata Power Renewable Energy has collaborated with Germany-based RWE Renewable GmbH ........................... 21
1.67 Telecom company, Bharti Airtel has joined the SEA-ME-WE-6 undersea cable consortium .................................. 21
1.68 According to India Ratings, 8.6 percent is the estimated GDP growth rate of India for FY 2021-22. ..................... 21
1.69 HDFC Bank has collaborated with the Indore Clean Energy Private Ltd.................................................................. 21
1.70 Edelweiss General Insurance has joined hands with Ashv Finance ......................................................................... 21
1.71 TripMoney, the fintech arm of MakeMyTrip has partnered with SBM Bank .......................................................... 22
1.72 RBI ask certain class of NBFCs to mandatorily implement 'Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS)'...................... 22
1.73 9% is the estimated GDP growth forecast for India in the calendar year 2022. ..................................................... 22
1.74 RBI approves the re-appointment of Rakesh Sharma as MD and CEO of IDBI Bank. .............................................. 22
1.75 Union Bank of India launches ‘MSME RuPay Credit Card’ ....................................................................................... 22
1.76 Standard Chartered has partnered with International Air Transport Association (IATA) ....................................... 22
1.77 New Development Bank will become first multilateral agency to open an office in Gujarat International Finance
Tech City (Gift). .................................................................................................................................................................... 22
1.78 NAFED signed an MoU with Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). ...................................................................................... 22
1.79 Paytm Payments Bank becomes an official acquiring partner for e-RUPI vouchers ............................................... 22
1.80 RBI cancels the certificate of registration issued to PC Financial Services Pvt Ltd. ................................................. 22
1.81 RBI warns against prepaid payment instruments issued by unauthorized entities ............................................. 23
1.82 BOB Financial and IRCTC launch RuPay contactless credit card ............................................................................ 23
1.83 Kotak Mahindra Bank partners Ezetap for PoS solutions ...................................................................................... 23
1.84 Union Bank MSME RuPay Credit Card launched ..................................................................................................... 23
1.85 First Foreign Country to adopt India's UPI system ................................................................................................. 23
1.86 Centre to recapitalise weak PSBs as part of Rs 15,000 cr capital infusion .............................................................. 23
1.87 Implementation strategy to ensure 100% core banking system for post offices discussed at Post-Budget
webinar ................................................................................................................................................................................ 24
Economy & Finance ............................................................................................................................................................. 24
1.88 $3 trillion vanishes from negative-yielding bond universe ................................................................................... 24
1.89 RBI to enter into sell-buy swaps worth $5 billion .................................................................................................. 24
1.90 SEBI proposes rules on pricing of IPOs ................................................................................................................... 25
1.91 India to move to T+1 settlement cycle ................................................................................................................... 25
1.92 Telangana to raise Rs. 1k crore through sale of securities .................................................................................... 25
1.93 NITI Aayog’s Fintech Open Summit ......................................................................................................................... 25
1.94 Fintech Open Hackathon......................................................................................................................................... 25
1.95 What are NFTs?........................................................................................................................................................ 25
1.96 Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS) for NBFCs................................................................................................... 26
1.97 SEBI update for listed companies to separate roles of CMD ................................................................................... 26
1.98 RBI’s Regulations Review Authority (RRA) recommendations on regulated entities .............................................. 26
1.99 SEBI advisory committee on alternative investment policy .................................................................................... 26
1.100 Centre rejects Finance Commission’s recommendations.................................................................................... 27

1.101 25th Meeting of Financial Stability and Development Council ........................................................................... 27
1.102 Post-Budget meeting with heads of Banks, NBFCs and Financial Institutions .................................................... 27
1.103 SEBI comes out with terms of usage of market data ......................................................................................... 27
1.104 Investments through P-notes decline to Rs 87,989 crore in January ................................................................ 28
1.105 SEBI high powered advisory committee on settlement orders ......................................................................... 28
1.106 SEBI gives approval to three more IPOs ............................................................................................................. 28
1.107 BSE get SEBI node for trading electronic gold receipts ...................................................................................... 28
1.108 SEBI orders forensic audit of Brightcom Group ................................................................................................. 28
1.109 SEBI directs AMCs to set up audit committee .................................................................................................... 28
1.110 SEBI restructured Advisory Committee on Investor Protection and Education Fund ...................................... 29
1.111 SEBI proposes to allow FPIs to participate in commodity derivatives market ................................................. 29
1.112 SEBI guidelines for MFs with respect to Indian Accounting Standards ............................................................. 29
1.113 Cabinet nod for changes in FDI policy ahead of LIC IPO .................................................................................... 30
1.114 US, European Union cut few Russian banks from SWIFT................................................................................... 30
1.115 Minimum Assured Return Scheme: PFRDA appoints EY Actuarial Services as design consultant ...................... 30
1.116 Japan and India renews Bilateral Swap Arrangement of up to USD 75 billion ................................................. 30
1.117 India to grow at 8.4% in FY23: Moody’s .............................................................................................................. 30
1.118 India Ratings pegs India’s FY22 GDP growth at 8.6%........................................................................................... 31
1.119 NSO 2nd advance estimates of national income ................................................................................................. 31
National News ...................................................................................................................................................................... 31
1.120 “Statue of Equality” ............................................................................................................................................. 31
1.121 CCI approves acquisition of additional equity of Escorts Ltd. by Kubota Corporation ........................................ 31
1.122 KVIC bans Khadi Emporium at DN Road in Mumbai ............................................................................................ 31
1.123 Odisha Light House Tourism plan ........................................................................................................................ 31
1.124 Kanchoth festival celebrated ............................................................................................................................... 32
1.125 World’s Largest Igloo Café opened at Jammu and Kashmir ................................................................................ 32
1.126 Atal Tunnel in the World Book of Records ......................................................................................................... 32
1.127 Mumbai International Film Festival ................................................................................................................... 32
1.128 India raises incorrect depiction of country’s map with WHO ........................................................................... 32
1.129 Maiden steel shipment flags off from Haldia to Pandu through Bangladesh ................................................... 32
1.130 Vehicle Tracking System Device for goods vehicles ........................................................................................... 32
1.131 India's longest railway tunnel connected........................................................................................................... 32
1.132 Foundation Stone of 51 National Highway Projects laid in Andhra Pradesh .................................................... 33
1.133 Harvard India Conference 2022 .......................................................................................................................... 33
1.134 A 1000-year-old Vishnu sculpture restored in Madhya Pradesh....................................................................... 33
1.135 India and UAE sign trade pact ............................................................................................................................. 33
1.136 India’s first water taxi service inaugurated in Maharashtra ............................................................................. 33
1.137 Medharam Jathara Festival 2022 ....................................................................................................................... 33

1.138 India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant ....................................................................................................... 33
1.139 Western Railways’ Mumbai Division runs 100th Textile Express ...................................................................... 34
1.140 India and Bangladesh virtual dialogue on Waste Management ....................................................................... 34
1.141 Vigyan Sarvatra Pujyate ...................................................................................................................................... 34
1.142 NHPC sets up a new subsidiary “NREL” .............................................................................................................. 34
1.143 Webinar on blockchain technology .................................................................................................................... 34
1.144 Wego to acquire Cleartrip’s West Asia business ................................................................................................ 34
1.145 OCEANS 2022 conference ................................................................................................................................... 35
1.146 Apps, website and social media accounts linked to ‘Sikhs for Justice’ blocked ............................................... 35
1.147 5th Global Bhagavad Gita Convention ............................................................................................................... 35
1.148 Smartphone users in India to reach 1 billion by 2026 ....................................................................................... 35
1.149 Cairn Vedanta discovers oil in Barmer ............................................................................................................... 35
1.150 Khajuraho Dance Festival.................................................................................................................................... 35
1.151 Conference on Indian Temple Architecture ....................................................................................................... 35
1.152 AIGF launches intelligence services portal ......................................................................................................... 35
1.153 Taj Mahotsav to begin from March 20 in Agra .................................................................................................. 36
1.154 PM inaugurates 2 new railway lines between Thane and Diva in Maharashtra .............................................. 36
1.155 The 2021 Notorious Markets List released......................................................................................................... 36
1.156 Workshop on Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace ........................................................................ 36
1.157 Painting by VS Gaitonde sets new record for Indian art .................................................................................... 36
1.158 New Satavahana era site discovered in Telangana ............................................................................................ 36
1.159 Indian Railways to reintroduce Uday Express double-decker train .................................................................. 37
1.160 Operation Ganga ................................................................................................................................................. 37
1.161 International Monsoons Project Office launched .............................................................................................. 37
1.162 Inauguration of Multiple National Highway Projects ........................................................................................ 37
1.163 Industry Connect 2022 ........................................................................................................................................ 38
1.164 Coal India launches ERP system .......................................................................................................................... 38
1.165 CII Manufacturing Conclave 2022 ....................................................................................................................... 38
1.166 TEC organizes webinar ........................................................................................................................................ 38
1.167 ‘Meet the Champions’ initiative ......................................................................................................................... 38
1.168 Kirloskar Ferrous Industries Ltd. acquires stakes in ISMT Ltd. .......................................................................... 38
1.169 91st Srimanta Sankardev Sangha Annual Conference ....................................................................................... 39
1.170 Delhi police launches multiple digital initiatives ............................................................................................... 39
1.171 75 years of Indo-Belgian diplomatic ties ............................................................................................................ 39
1.172 Delhi government to develop Science Innovation Hub in a local school .......................................................... 39
1.173 India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant ....................................................................................................... 39
1.174 Western Railways’ Mumbai Division runs 100th Textile Express ...................................................................... 39
1.175 India and Bangladesh virtual dialogue on Waste Management ....................................................................... 39

1.176 Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 4.0 launched.......................................................................................................... 40
1.177 Data on Leprosy in India ..................................................................................................................................... 40
1.178 Health Minister chairs meeting exploring possibilities of mutual cooperation in R&D ................................... 40
1.179 Grant released to States for Urban Local Bodies ............................................................................................... 40
1.180 DCGI grants EUA to Covid vaccine Corbevax for children between 12-18 years of age ................................... 41
1.181 Central govt, Panacea Biotec to jointly develop new Covid-19 vaccines .......................................................... 41
1.182 Four police stations declared ‘Eat Right campus’ by FSSAI ............................................................................... 41
1.183 Reports of Institute for Competitiveness highlighting India’s COVID-19 Vaccination Programme ................. 41
1.184 India’s first Biosafety Level 3 Mobile Laboratory inaugurated in Nashik ......................................................... 41
1.185 Union Health Minister inaugurates two new departments and Centres at the IIPS Mumbai ......................... 41
1.186 FSSAI to introduce 'Health Star' rating system for packaged foods .................................................................. 42
1.187 ICMR/ DHR Policy on Biomedical Innovation & Entrepreneurship for Medical Professionals ........................ 42
1.188 Union Health Minister launches the National Polio Immunization Drive, 2022 ............................................... 42
1.189 National Higher Education Qualification Framework ........................................................................................ 42
1.190 Career counseling workshop 'Pramarsh 2022' ................................................................................................... 42
1.191 Parliamentary Standing Committee recommendations on art education ........................................................ 43
1.192 Supreme Court rejects plea to include religious schools under RTE, 2009 ....................................................... 43
1.193 Admission to 100 new Sainik Schools through e-Counselling ........................................................................... 43
1.194 J&K delimitation commission Interim Report .................................................................................................... 43
1.195 Tamil Nadu re-adopts Bill against NEET ............................................................................................................. 43
1.196 Delhi govt. adds 11 new Schools of Specialized Excellence ............................................................................... 43
1.197 ‘Heal in India’ campaign ...................................................................................................................................... 44
1.198 NAAC New Guidelines on College Accreditations .............................................................................................. 44
1.199 “DHARA: An ode to Indian Knowledge System” lecture series ......................................................................... 44
1.200 UGC reforms: Edtech firms can tie up with universities to develop online courses ......................................... 44
1.201 Parvatmala Scheme............................................................................................................................................. 44
1.202 J&K on boarded National Single Window System ............................................................................................. 44
1.203 Women MSMEs Entrepreneurs .......................................................................................................................... 45
1.204 Snow Sculpture & Leh Berry ............................................................................................................................... 45
1.205 Tourism Ministry & Alliance Air Aviation Limited signs MoU to promote domestic tourism ......... 45
1.206 Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission ......................................................................................................... 45
1.207 North East MSME Conclave: Building Competitiveness for Leveraging Opportunities’ ................................... 46
1.208 Assam government to launch 'Project Arohan' to hone students' skills ........................................................... 46
1.209 Delhi Cabinet approves Delhi Film Policy 2022 .................................................................................................. 46
1.210 MSME Minister inaugurates two day MSME Conclave in Sindhudurg ............................................................. 46
1.211 Union Commerce Minister chairs SCALE Committee meeting .......................................................................... 46
1.212 Prime Minister's 15 Point Programme for Minorities........................................................................................ 47
1.213 Railway Protection Force Rescued 1,045 Kids .................................................................................................... 47
1.214 Safety measures for children below four years of age ...................................................................................... 47
1.215 DGCA Child Restraint System .............................................................................................................................. 47
1.216 Gems & Jewellery sector is expected to achieve export target of $40 Billion this year: Piyush Goyal ........... 48
1.217 India urea import deal with Iran......................................................................................................................... 48
1.218 Exports of Electronic Goods sees a jump of 88% since 2013-14 ........................................................................ 48
1.219 MoHUA Secretary chairs ‘Labharthiyon Se Rubaroo’ initiative ............................................ 48

1.220 Telangana’s State Festival of Medaram Jathara ................................................................................................ 48
1.221 Union Culture Minister inaugurates 2-Day Global Summit on ‘Reimagining Museums In India’ .................... 48
1.222 MoU signed between NTRI and BAJSS to establish BAJSS as resource center of NTRI .................................... 48
1.223 Ministry of Education launches Bhasha Certifiate Selfie campaign .................................................................. 49
1.224 Maharashtra CM stresses on demand to accord classical language status for Marathi .................................. 49
1.225 Cabinet approves setting up of G20 Secretariat ahead of India's Presidency .................... 49
1.226 Pilot movement of food grains on vessel from Patna (Bihar) to Pandu (Guwahati) ........................................ 49
1.227 Upper Bhadra gets national project status ........................................................................................................ 50
1.228 Prime Minister flags off 100 ‘kisan drones’ ........................................................................................................ 50
1.229 ‘Lavender Cultivation’ under Aroma Mission to be started in Ramban............................................................ 50
1.230 Draft Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Bill 2022 ................................................................................... 50
1.231 Doubling of Domestic Steel Making Capacity .................................................................................................... 50
1.232 SAMADHAN Portal .............................................................................................................................................. 50
1.233 IFLDP continuation with an outlay of Rs. 1700 Crore ........................................................................................ 51
1.234 Powerthon-2022 for Enabling Advanced Technology in Power Distribution ................................................... 51
1.235 National Strategy on Additive Manufacturing ................................................................................................... 51
1.236 ‘Council for Leather Exports’ data on Leather, footwear exports from India ................................................... 51
1.237 ICCR Indian Crafts Fair ......................................................................................................................................... 52
1.238 Guidelines and Standards for EV charging infrastructure ................................................................................. 52
1.239 Applications for Semiconductor and Display Fabs ............................................................................................. 52
1.240 EGI seeks withdrawal of new Central Media Accreditation Guidelines ............................................................ 52
1.241 Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) .............................................................................................. 53
1.242 Common e-auction window for coal .................................................................................................................. 53
1.243 Centre of Excellence in Maritime and Shipbuilding (CEMS) .............................................................................. 53
1.244 SBI-NCF-IGNCA sign MoU for Development of Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design ................................... 53
1.245 Sustainable Cities India Program ........................................................................................................................ 54
1.246 ECI appoints 15 Special Observers for the Poll Going States ............................................................................. 54
1.247 Kerala’s proposal to limit Lokayukta’s powers .................................................................................................. 55
1.248 Draft India Data Accessibility and Use Policy 2022 ............................................................................................ 55
1.249 Revamping of the Department of Commerce .................................................................................................... 55
1.250 Grant of Rs. 1348.10 crore released to Six States for Urban Local Bodies ........................................................ 56
International News .............................................................................................................................................................. 56
1.251 Portugal Parliamentary elections......................................................................................................................... 56
1.252 UAE to introduce federal corporate tax on business profits ............................................................................... 56
1.253 AU suspends Burkina Faso ................................................................................................................................... 56
1.254 Sri Lanka ‘Unitary Digital Identity framework’..................................................................................................... 56
1.255 “Cope South 22” joint air exercise ....................................................................................................................... 56
1.256 Russia ends Crimea military drills ........................................................................................................................ 56
1.257 US names Qatar as a major non-NATO ally ......................................................................................................... 56
1.258 Australia to list Hamas as terrorists ..................................................................................................................... 57
1.259 France to withdraw troops from Mali ................................................................................................................. 57
1.260 Israel becomes first country to allow large, high-flying drones in civilian airspace ............................................ 57
1.261 Truth Social tops the chart of most downloaded apps ........................................................................................ 57
1.262 Japan unveils first hydrogen-powered train ........................................................................................................ 57
1.263 Pakistan President signs ordinance amending Electronic Crimes Act ................................................................. 57
1.264 Germany halts Nord Stream 2 approval .............................................................................................................. 58
1.265 Malawi finds wild polio case; first in Africa in five years ..................................................................................... 58
1.266 58th Munich Security Conference held in Germany............................................................................................ 58
1.267 UK closes 'golden visa' route for investors over security concerns ..................................................................... 58
1.268 6th European Union - African Union Summit ...................................................................................................... 58
1.269 U.S. fines Pakistan’s National Bank ...................................................................................................................... 59
1.270 Nepal's Parliament passes contentious U.S grant agreement ............................................................................. 59
1.271 North Korea undertakes ballistic missile test ...................................................................................................... 59
1.272 Russia’s Invasion on Ukraine................................................................................................................................ 59
1.273 Israel becomes first country to allow large, high-flying drones in civilian airspace ............................................ 59
1.274 Canada clears world's first plant-based vaccine against Covid-19 ...................................................................... 59
1.275 NDB first multilateral agency to open office in Gift City ................................................................................... 59
1.276 ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight at, EXPO2020 Dubai ...................................................................... 60
1.277 Work Plan 2022 signed between India and Germany ...................................................................... 60
1.278 Japanese Industrial Townships (JITs) ................................................................................................................... 60
1.279 India and Russia agree to deepen cooperation at the UNSC ............................................................................... 60
1.280 4th Quad ministerial meeting .............................................................................................................................. 61
1.281 UNCTAD on Global Trade in 2021 ....................................................................................................................... 61
1.282 World Bank fund to fight future pandemics ...................................................................................................... 61
1.283 India, France Adopt Blue Economy Plan............................................................................................................. 61
1.284 India – UAE Economic Partnership Agreement .................................................................................................. 62
1.285 DST-CII India-Singapore Technology Summit ..................................................................................................... 63
1.286 India sends first shipment of wheat to Afghanistan via Pakistan ..................................................................... 63
1.287 World Oil Outlook Data........................................................................................................................................ 63
1.288 Seminar organized as a part of ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight at EXPO2020 ................................ 64
Science and Technology....................................................................................................................................................... 64
1.289 NASA’s study suggests presence of liquid water in Mars .................................................................................... 64
1.290 Two New Bird Species Discovered on Borneo ..................................................................................................... 65
1.291 NASA HERMES Mission ........................................................................................................................................ 65
1.292 IIT Madras team finds gene linked to higher diabetes risk .................................................................................. 65
1.293 New Ultra Strong 2-D polymer ............................................................................................................................ 65
1.294 Parker Solar probe captures first images of Venus.............................................................................................. 66
1.295 NASA introduces two new Solar Missions ........................................................................................................... 66
1.296 New HIV strain discovered in the Netherlands .................................................................................................... 66
1.297 NASA's ATLAS Observatory .................................................................................................................................. 66
1.298 ISRO successfully launches PSLV-C52 .................................................................................................................. 67
1.299 Study derives accurate value of Pluto’s atmospheric pressure ........................................................................... 67
1.300 First woman cured of HIV after stem cell transplant........................................................................................... 67
1.301 CMFRI identifies new fish in Indian coast ............................................................................................................ 67
1.302 Astronomers find new asteroid sharing Earth's orbit .......................................................................................... 67
1.303 NASA raises concern over Starlink’s 30,000 satellites ......................................................................................... 68
1.304 Nanna Shale Nanna Koduge app launched .......................................................................................................... 68
1.305 New Nuclear Fusion Energy Generation Record.................................................................................................. 68
1.306 Research finds efficient way of detecting food contamination using Gold Nano rods ....................................... 68
1.307 Indian Scientist develops technology for the repair and restoration of high-value components ....................... 68
1.308 Indian researchers trace tectonic evolution of Indian Ocean basin .................................................................... 69
1.309 New plant variety spotted in Arunachal .............................................................................................................. 69
1.310 Scientists from DRDO and IIT Delhi demonstrate Quantum Key Distribution ..................................................... 69
1.311 Venera D Mission ................................................................................................................................................. 69
1.312 NASA raises concern over Starlink’s 30,000 satellites ......................................................................................... 70
1.313 Nanna Shale Nanna Koduge app launched .......................................................................................................... 70
1.314 New Nuclear Fusion Energy Generation Record.................................................................................................. 70
1.315 The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C52) mission ....................................................................................... 70
Defence in News .................................................................................................................................................................. 70
1.316 India- Oman Joint Military Cooperation Committee Meeting ............................................................................. 70
1.317 Boys Sports Company, RVC Centre and College to conduct an induction rally ................................................... 70
1.318 IAC Vikrant ........................................................................................................................................................... 71
1.319 Singapore Air Show-2022 .................................................................................................................................... 71
1.320 Oman Navy chief visits India............................................................................................................................... 71
1.321 Maiden visit of the Commander of Royal Saudi Land Forces to India............................................................... 71
1.322 Joint Security Exercise at Port Blair Airfield ....................................................................................................... 71
1.323 President’s Naval Fleet review 2022 .................................................................................................................. 71
1.324 Eastern Bridge-VI exercise .................................................................................................................................. 72
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1.325 DefExpo 2022....................................................................................................................................................... 72
1.326 Navy gets 12th P-8I aircraft ................................................................................................................................ 72
1.327 ‘EX DHARMA GUARDIAN-2022’ military exercise .............................................................................................. 72
1.328 Indian Navy and HAL sign a 'Mutual Expression of Interest' ............................................................................. 72
1.329 Ministry of Defence organizes a webinar on the announcements made in Union budget .............................. 72
1.330 Indian Navy to get first batch of 3 MH-60R Multi-Role Helicopters in July 2022 ............................................. 73
1.331 Indian Air Force to participate in ‘Ex Cobra Warrior 22' in the UK .................................................................... 73
1.332 MILAN 2022 multilateral exercise ...................................................................................................................... 73
1.333 BEL to undertake retro-modification for T-90 tank ........................................................................................... 73
1.334 DRDO and Safran to develop Engine for AMCA ................................................................................................. 73
Environment ........................................................................................................................................................................ 74
1.335 New Species added to the mammal list of India ................................................................................................. 74
1.336 New gecko species discovered in Western Ghats ............................................................................................... 74
1.337 Cyclone Batsirai makes landfall ........................................................................................................................... 74
1.338 New species of spider and millipede discovered ................................................................................................. 74
1.339 Kaziranga National Park: A net carbon emitter ................................................................................................. 74
1.340 Mount Everest’s highest glacier melting at an alarming rate............................................................................ 74
1.341 Tiger population at the Sariska Tiger Reserve increases ................................................................................... 75
1.342 Storm Eunice hits England .................................................................................................................................. 75
1.343 Army’s Bent Toed Gecko: A New Lizard Species from Meghalaya Named in Honor of Indian army ............... 75
1.344 Great Backyard Bird Count 2022......................................................................................................................... 75
1.345 Indian Neutrino Observatory (INO) .................................................................................................................... 75
1.346 Australia hit by Rain Bomb ................................................................................................................................. 76
1.347 ASEAN-India High Level Conference on Renewable Energy ................................................................................ 76
1.348 Data On Water Bodies In The Country................................................................................................................. 76
1.349 GT Suggests National River Rejuvenation Mechanism ........................................................................................ 77
1.350 GAIL starts India’s maiden project of Blending Hydrogen ................................................................................... 77
1.351 Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to host “New Frontiers” program ....................................................... 77
1.352 Power and NRE Minister chairs 4th India - Australia Energy Dialogue ................................................................ 77
1.353 India, Australia, Singapore come together to address marine pollution............................................................. 77
1.354 Aravalli Biodiversity Park in Gurugram declared as India’s first OECM site ........................................................ 78
1.355 Guidelines on Extended Producers Responsibility on plastic packaging ............................................................. 78
1.356 Andhra Pradesh’s CLAP campaign ....................................................................................................................... 78
1.357 World Sustainable Development Summit 2022................................................................................................... 78
1.358 Udhampur's River Devika project ........................................................................................................................ 79
1.359 National Centre of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization (NCoE-CCU) ................................................... 79
1.360 One Ocean Summit .............................................................................................................................................. 79
1.361 Govt. of India, World Bank sign loan agreement of $115 million........................................................................ 79

1.362 PM inaugurates Asia's biggest Bio-CNG plant 'Gobar-Dhan' in Indore................................................................ 80
1.363 MNRE and FICCI organize Chintan Baithak on “Roadmap to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2070” as a
part of “New Frontiers: A Programme on Renewable Energy” ........................................................................................... 80
1.364 Consultation Workshop on ‘Financing for Decarbonization of Transport’ .......................................................... 80
1.365 Vice President inaugurates National WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Conclave-2022 ............. 80
1.366 NHPC sets up subsidiary for development of RE, Small Hydro and Green Hydrogen Projects ........................... 81
1.367 Delhi cabinet approves India's first e-waste eco-park ......................................................................................... 81
1.368 Bhakra Beas Management Amendment Rules .................................................................................................... 81
1.369 MoEFCC’s new notification on brick kilns ............................................................................................................ 81
1.370 Bihar’s first floating power plant in Darbhanga to be commissioned soon ........................................................ 82
1.371 HPCL signs MoU with SECI for renewable energy, electric mobility, alternative fuels ....................................... 82
1.372 House panel seeks frequent consultations from coal companies on environmental protection ....................... 82
Awards ................................................................................................................................................................................. 82
1.373 Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards 2021....................................................................................................... 82
1.374 94th Academy Awards .......................................................................................................................................... 83
1.375 Coal India gets 'India's Most Trusted Public Sector Company' award .............................................................. 83
1.376 Annual Banking Technology Awards 2021 ......................................................................................................... 83
1.377 Dadasaheb Phalke Awards 2022......................................................................................................................... 84
1.378 Assam CM confers state’s highest civilian award to Ratan Tata in Mumbai .................................................... 84
1.379 Bill Gates conferred Hilal-e-Pakistan honour on first-ever visit to Pakistan..................................................... 84
1.380 URJA Awards 2022 .............................................................................................................................................. 84
1.381 National Science Communication Awards and AWSAR Awards ....................................................................... 85
1.382 Geetha Varma wins Thodayam Women’s Day Award ....................................................................................... 85
1.383 CSIR Jigyasa Vigyan Mahotsav 2022 ................................................................................................................... 85
1.384 National ICT Awards ............................................................................................................................................ 86
1.385 C-DOT wins Aegis Graham Bell Awards in 3 categories ..................................................................................... 86
1.386 India First Tech Start-up Conclave & Awards....................................................................................................... 86
Sports ................................................................................................................................................................................... 87
1.387 Magnus Carlsen wins 2022 Tata Steel Chess tournament ................................................................................... 87
1.388 Odisha Open 2022 ............................................................................................................................................... 87
1.389 PR Sreejesh wins World Games Athlete of the Year Award ................................................................................ 87
1.390 ICC Under- 19 World Cup ..................................................................................................................................... 87
1.391 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup................................................................................................................. 87
1.392 India’s 1000th ODI match .................................................................................................................................... 87
1.393 FIFA Club World Cup ............................................................................................................................................ 87
1.394 2022 Bengaluru Open II....................................................................................................................................... 88
1.395 Yash Dhull makes record..................................................................................................................................... 88
1.396 Mumbai to host the 2023 International Olympic Committee Session .............................................................. 88

1.397 Tamil Nadu teenager shines in Airthings Masters rapid tournament ............................................................... 88
1.398 Malayali cricket team to play in Ottawa ............................................................................................................ 88
1.399 Ireland and UAE qualify for T20 World Cup ....................................................................................................... 88
1.400 Djokovic loses world No 1 ranking to Medvedev............................................................................................... 88
1.401 42nd National Cycle Polo Championship............................................................................................................ 88
1.402 Mumbai to host International Olympic Committee session in 2023 after 40 years ......................................... 88
1.403 Norway tops Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Medal Table ................................................................................. 89
1.404 Bihar's Sakibul Gani Creates World Record With Triple Century On First-Class Debut .................................... 89
1.405 Sadia Tariq wins Gold at Wushu Stars Championship ....................................................................................... 89
Appointments ...................................................................................................................................................................... 89
Persons in News ................................................................................................................................................................... 90
Books and Authors ............................................................................................................................................................... 92
Days in News ........................................................................................................................................................................ 92
1.406 World Wetlands Day celebrated at Sultanpur National Park .............................................................................. 94
1.407 World Day of Social Justice 2022 ........................................................................................................................ 94
1.408 MoWCD to Celebrate International Women’s Day Week from 1st to 8th March .............................................. 94
1.409 APEDA’s 36th Foundation Day ............................................................................................................................ 94
1.410 Janaushadhi Diwas week to be observed from 1st March to 7th March 2022 ................................................. 95
1.411 Ministry of MSME Celebrates “Iconic Week” from 28.02.2022 - 6.03.2022 under AKAM.................................. 95
2 Important Reports in February 2022 ............................................................................................................................... 96
3 Important Schemes in News February 2022.................................................................................................................... 98
4 Static .............................................................................................................................................................................. 107
4.1 List of Important Organizations with Headquarters .............................................................................................. 107
4.2 Countries in News .................................................................................................................................................. 108
4.3 Banks in News ........................................................................................................................................................ 108

1 GA in News:
Banking
1.1 Sona Company acquires equity share capital of Sajjan India Limited
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of equity share capital of
Sajjan India Limited by Sona Company Pvt. Ltd.
1.2 Bharti Airtel to buy 25% stake in Lavelle

• Bharti Airtel is going to acquire 25% equity stake in Bengaluru based technology start-up Lavelle
Networks, which specializes in Software-Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) solutions.
1.3 SEBI approves three new IPOs

• Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved the initial public offering (IPO) of
Wellness Forever Medicare, metal recycling firm CMR Green Technologies and API Holdings
(parent of PharmEasy).
1.4 Edelweiss General Insurance partners with Ashv Finance for MSME loan protection plans
• Edelweiss General Insurance (EGI) has partnered with Ashv Finance, to provide financial protection
to small businesses and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) loan borrowers by offering
health insurance cover.
1.5 GAIL (India) Limited begins India's maiden project of mixing hydrogen into the natural gas system
• This is a first-of-its-kind project in the country.
• The hydrogen blended natural gas will be supplied to Avantika Gas Limited, one of GAIL's Joint
Venture (JV) company with HPCL, operating in Indore.
1.6 Paytm introduces “India’s first” intelligent messenger called ‘Pops’

• ‘Pops’ Messenger will allow its user to receive specific information related to their stocks, analysis
about their portfolio, market news, and important market movements, all in one place.
1.7 Direct to Home (DTH) platform, Tata Sky has rebranded itself
• It will now be called as Tata Play.
1.8 State Bank of India launches a dedicated centralized processing cell

• Surya Shakti Cell in collaboration with Tata Power Solar Systems will process all the loan
applications for Solar Projects (capacity up to 1 MW) sourced from across India, for installation by
business entities as well as households.
1.9 NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd acquires 5% equity stake in Power Exchange of India Ltd (PXIL)
• NVVN has purchased the shares of PXIL from NSE Investment, a co-promoter shareholder of PXIL.
1.10 Hindustan Petroleum Corporation has marked its foray into non-fuel retailing sector
• It has inaugurated its Retail Store under brand name HaPpyShop.
• Located at the company-owned retail outlet at the upmarket Nepean Sea Road near Malabar Hills,
this is the company’s latest offering at its “Club HP” retail outlet.

• The store will provide home utility products including food, toiletries, healthcare products, bakery
products, groceries, medicines and more.
1.11 Government of India sets up a National Land Monetisation Corporation

• Initial authorized share capital of ₹5000 crore and paid-up share capital of ₹150 crore.
• NLMC will undertake monetization of surplus land and building assets of Central Public Sector
Enterprises (CPSEs) and other Government agencies.
1.12 Phase I of National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL)

• A total of 38 NPA accounts worth Rs 82,845 crore have been identified to be transferred to NARCL
initially.
• In the Phase I 15 accounts worth Rs 50,000 crore will be transferred to NARCL in the current
financial year.
1.13 Vedanta Ltd ties up a facility of ₹8000 crore with Union Bank of India
• Aim: To take over majority of the syndicated facility after discussions with lenders.
• During 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Vedanta Ltd had tied up a syndicated facility of ₹10Kcr
with State Bank of India as the lead bank at a running cost of 10.5 per cent.
1.14 Union Government has approved the continuation of the Scheme of Assistance to National Sports
Federations (NSFs) with an outlay of Rs. 1875 crore.
• It is the main source of funding for the preparation of national teams for all major national,
international competitions. Funding will be used by National Sports Federations to conduct national
coaching camps and provide training of international standards to athletes.
1.15 Punjab National Bank and Patanjali Ayurved Limited (PAL) launch co-branded credit cards
• The co-branded credit cards are offered on NCPI's RuPay Platform and is available in two variants –
PNB RuPay Platinum and PNB RuPay Select.
• Both the co-branded cards offer a hassle-free credit service to purchase day-to-day Patanjali
products, along with cash backs, loyalty points, insurance cover and more.
1.16 Online platform ‘Dukaan’ partners with Simpl

• Simpl is a marquee buy-now-pay-later platform. Dukaan is a Bangalore-based startup that enables
D2C and SMB merchants to set up online stores and sell products digitally.
1.17 7.8 per cent will be the real GDP growth in FY 2022-23
• Estimate by: Crisil.
1.18 Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is ranked as 10th most valued insurance brand globally.
• London-based Brand Finance has ranked LIC as 10th most valued insurance brand globally
• LIC is ranked third in brand strength globally after Poste Italiane of Italy and Mapfre of Spain and is
also the 10th most valued insurance brand globally.
1.19 Reserve Bank of India has cancels the licence of Independence Co-operative Bank Ltd.
• The Bank has ceased to carry on banking business, with effect from the close of business on
February 03, 2022. The bank does not have adequate capital and earning prospects.

1.20 SBI signs a tripartite MoU with the Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts and National Culture Fund
• Aim: To highlight, promote and celebrate the products that have the Geographical Indication sign to
give a boost to Economic Value Addition to GI products from India.
• The MoU is for development of Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design (ABCD) at Red Fort, in Delhi.
• The ABCD project will be implemented by IGNCA, an autonomous organization under Ministry of
Culture through ministry’s NCF fund.
1.21 Top most valuable insurance company globally as per the latest Brand Finance report of 2022
• Ping An Insurance is an insurance company of China has been designated the Top Spot.
• Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) became the only domestic insurer to rank in the top 10 list
strongest brands and top 10 most valuable insurance brands.
1.22 USD 4.6 billion of sovereign loan has been provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to
India in 2021 including USD 1.8 billion towards coronavirus response.
• This included USD 1.8 billion towards coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic response. The
agency extended a USD 2.2-billion support for 12 state projects, committed to its geographically
balanced programming. The ADB's India portfolio comprised 69 projects worth USD 15.5 billion as of
31st December 2021.
1.23 Airtel Payments Bank partners ICICI Lombard General Insurance

• The cyber insurance solution from ICICI Lombard provides financial protection to customers
against potential financial fraud relating to banking, credit or debit card; identity theft; phishing or
email spoofing, and more. Airtel Payments Bank customers can purchase this cyber insurance policy
using the Airtel Thanks app.
1.24 As per the recently presented Economic Survey 2021-22, Maharashtra tops the list of newly
recognised startups and unicorns.
• Maharashtra alone recognised 11,308 of the fourteen thousand startups that began operations in
the current financial year. Out of the 44 companies that achieved the unicorn status, 11 are based in
the state
1.25 Ministry of Finance has released the monthly Post Devolution Revenue Deficit (PDRD) Grant of
Rs. 9,871 crore to 17 States.
• The Fifteenth Finance Commission has recommended a total Post Devolution Revenue Deficit
Grant of one lakh 18 thousand 452 crore rupees to 17 States in the financial year 2021-22. An
amount of over one lakh 8 thousand crore rupees has been released to the eligible States so far.
1.26 Financial Literacy week 2022 observed by the RBI from 14th to 18th February 2022.
• Theme 2022: Go Digital, Go Secure
• The theme is aligned with one of the strategic objectives of the National Strategy for Financial
Education: 2020-2025. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been conducting Financial Literacy Week
(FLW) every year since 2016 to propagate financial education messages on a particular theme across
the country.
1.27 RBI observed Financial Literacy week 2022 from 14th to 18th February.
• The theme is aligned with one of the strategic objectives of the National Strategy for Financial
Education: 2020-2025.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been conducting Financial Literacy Week (FLW) every year since
2016 to propagate financial education messages on a particular theme across the country.
1.28 10,990.17 crore was the total corpus under the PM CARES Funds in 2020-21.
• The disbursal included Rs 1,000 crore for migrant welfare and over Rs 1,392 crore for procurement
of Covid vaccine doses. The fund recorded nearly Rs 494.91 crore as foreign contributions and over
Rs 7,183 crore as voluntary contributions during the fiscal.
1.29 According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry USD 339.55 billion of Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) inflows, India has received in the last five years.
• It increased from USD 45.15 billion in 2014-15 to USD 81.97 billion in 2020-21. During the year 2019-
20, the FDI inflows to India stood at USD 74.39 billion. In 2018-19, it stood at USD 62 billion.
• In 2017-18, it was USD 60.97 billion and in 2016-17, the FDI inflow to India stood at USD 60.22
billion.
1.30 RBI ranks 2nd in terms of buying Gold among the world’s Central Banks in 2021
• Central Bank of Thailand (Bank of Thailand) was the highest buyer of Gold in 2021 and bought 90
metric tonnes of gold.
• As per Goldhub, India’s official gold reserves is ninth-largest in the world. Goldhub is the official
website of World Gold Council that maintains all the data regarding precious metal.
1.31 Razorpay has bought a majority stake in a Malaysian payments start-up named “Curlec”
• At a valuation of more than $19 million.
• This is Razorpay's fourth acquisition overall and comes just over a month after raising $375 million in
funding. Prior to this, Razorpay acquired TERA Finlabs, Opfin and Thirdwatch. The Kuala Lumpur-
based, Curlec builds solutions for recurring payments for businesses.
1.32 Social media platform, Instagram has launched the campaign named ‘Take a Break’.
• Take a Break will alert users scrolling on Instagram to periodically take breaks from the platform and
focus on other things. The platform will also alert users of the new inclusion with a notification.
1.33 The increased limit on the e-RUPI digital voucher from current cap of ₹10,000 to ₹100,000.
• This was announced by Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das. The move will further
facilitate the delivery of various government schemes to the beneficiaries more efficiently, he
added. The e-RUPI prepaid digital voucher, developed by the National Payments Corporation of
India (NPCI), was launched in August 2021 and runs on the UPI platform.
1.34 RBI has projected a conservative real GDP growth of 7.8 per cent in FY23.
• While announcing the review of the monetary policy on Friday, the six-member monetary policy
committee of the RBI retained the growth forecast for FY22 at 9.5 per cent, while CPI inflation
projection was revised downward, from 5.7 per cent to 5.3 per cent.
1.35 As per the latest Monetary Policy released by the RBI, ₹3 crore would be the NACH mandate limit
for TReDS settlements that will fulfill the growing liquidity requirements of MSMEs.
• It will increase National Automated Clearing House (NACH) mandate limit for Trade Receivables
Discounting System (TReDS) settlements from Rs 1 crore at present to Rs 3 crore.
• Transactions in TReDS are settled through the NACH system.
• This was proposed keeping in view the requests received from stakeholders and to further enhance
the ease of financing and the growing liquidity requirements of MSMEs.
1.36 State Bank of India’s Strategic Training Unit has entered into a partnership with NSE Academy
• Aim: To promote financial literacy as a necessary life skill.
• Learners can start to enroll from February 9 for the five inaugural Massive Online Open Courses
(MOOCs) of SBI on the NSE Knowledge Hub platform. The five MOOCs that the Bank is offering are:
“Banking Fundamentals”, MSME Lending in a Nutshell”. “Electronic Payment System in India”,
”Priority Sector Lending Norms” and “NRI Business & Compliance” .
1.37 Paisabazaar.com partners with RBL Bank to offer ‘Paisa on Demand’ (PoD), a credit card.
• The credit card will be exclusively available on the Paisabazaar platform.
1.38 Aditya Birla Health Insurance Company Ltd has signed a bancassurance agreement with Utkarsh
Small Finance Bank
• Aim: For the distribution of health insurance products across India through the Bank’s network.
• This bancassurance partnership will help further strengthen our distribution and unlock growth
opportunities through the Bank’s wide network.
• This tie-up will help us reach the tier II and tier III markets with insurance solutions thereby
increasing insurance penetration in the country.
• Through the current partnership, ABHICL has 12 bancassurance partners with over 51,120 direct
distributors across India.
1.39 The Reserve Bank of India has increased the investment limit in Voluntary Retention Route (VRR)
• The Reserve Bank of India introduced the Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) for investments by
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) in debts in 2019.
• It has now been increased from from Rs. 1,50,000 crores to Rs. 2,50,000 crores.
1.40 TomTom Traffic Index's global top 25 list

• 5th is the rank of Mumbai as most congested cities in the world in 2021.
• Delhi and Pune ranked 11th and 21st among 404 cities across 58 countries, according to TomTom
Traffic Index's global top 25 list.
• The congestion level in Delhi during 2021 was 14% less than 2019 while in Mumbai, Bengaluru and
Pune, the level dropped by 18%, 32% and 29% respectively, according the report.
1.41 RailTel wins the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) award for excellence
• The company was adjudged as winner in in financial reporting for the year 2020-21 in Public Sector
Entities Category.
1.42 Axis Bank is set to buy Citigroup Inc.’s India retail banking business
• The transaction could be valued at about $2.5 billion.
• An agreement for the consumer unit may be announced as soon as the next few weeks and is
contingent on approval from the Reserve Bank of India.
1.43 RBL Bank has partnered with Creditas Solutions for its ‘Neo Collections’ platform
• The private sector lender will utilise the SaaS-based platform to accelerate efficiency in collections
across the loan cycle.
• Powered by AI and ML technology, the platform is built to automate strategies for reaching out to
customers individually in an empathetic manner and motivate them to repay loan.
1.44 Yes Bank has announced the launch of an annual startup enabler Agri Infinity program
• It seeks to co-develop digital financial solutions for the food and agriculture ecosystem by mentoring
entrepreneurial ventures in the field.
1.45 NABARD has launched ‘JIVA’ programme

• To promote natural farming, under which it will invest Rs 50,000 per hectare.
• It will be implemented on the existing completed (or near completed) projects of watersheds and
wadis programme in around 11 states covering 5 agroecological zones, which are in ecologically
fragile and rain-fed areas.
1.46 Reliance Jio has formed a joint venture with SES, Luxembourg
• Aim: To provide affordable broadband services in India leveraging satellite technology.
• Jio Platforms will own 51% stake in the joint venture while SES, a leading global satellite-based
content connectivity solutions provider will own 49% stake.
• The total value of the contract is around $100 million.
1.47 IndusInd Bank has been empanelled by the Small Farmers Agri–Business Consortium (SFAC)
• Aim: To facilitate digital collection and settlement services on e-NAM portal for the transactions
between farmers and traders across India
• IndusInd Bank has been directly integrated with e-NAM platform to provide safe and hassle free
payments, clearing and settlement services to the farmers and traders.
1.48 Karur Vysya Bank has joined hands with the Chennai-based UNANU Technologies
• Aim: For digital freight finance to fund transport contractors. using the end-to-end logistics
technology platform.
• UNANU has built the Freight Financing System module “U-Turbo – a marketplace”, one can on-
board logistics companies and shippers to Freight Financing programme.
1.49 Ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI) projected India’s gross domestic
product (GDP) deflator for FY23 at 3 to 3.5 percent.
• The Government’s own projection on real GDP growth for FY23 is at 7.6-8.1 percent and the union
budget projected nominal GDP growth rate to be 11.1 percent for FY23.
• Economic Survey 2021-22 projected a real GDP growth rate of 8-8.5 percent in FY23. GDP Projection
in the Budget is based on advance estimates of ‘National Statistical Office’ (NSO).
1.50 Dabur India Limited becomes India’s 1st 100% Plastic Waste Neutral company.
• It claimed to be the first Indian consumer goods company to achieve this landmark.
• It has collected, processed and recycled around 27,000 MT of post-consumer plastic waste from all
over India in the 2021-22 financial year.
• Its plastic waste management initiative was rolled out in the year 2017-18.

1.51 Vedanta signs an MoU with Taiwanese electronics manufacturing company, Hon Hai Technology
Group (Foxconn) to form a joint venture for manufacturing semiconductors in India.
• According to the MOU signed between the two companies, Vedanta will hold the majority of the
equity in the joint venture, while Foxconn will be the minority shareholder.
• This first-of-its-kind joint venture between the two companies will support Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s vision to create an ecosystem for semiconductor manufacturing in India.
1.52 IndiGo airlines partners with Indian Oil for its 6E Rewards Ka-ching credit cardholders
• Under the partnership, Ka-ching cardholders will earn accelerated reward points of up to 4 per cent
on fuel spends at more than 35,000 IndianOil outlets across the country.
1.53 Renault India partners with Common Services Center e-Governance Services
• Aim: To support the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyaan to digitally empower citizens
in rural areas by training them to operate computers, laptops, browse the internet, access
government websites, banking service and undertake digital payments.
• The aim of the program is to empower rural citizens in the age group of 14 to 60 years.
1.54 DMI Finance Private Limited has launched a digital personal loan product on Google Pay
• Aim: To provide reliable credit access to pre-qualified users of wallet.
• Through the partnership, DMI Finance intends to disburse up to Rs 1 lakh per loan, which would be
repayable over a maximum of 36 months.
1.55 LKP Securities Ltd has signed an agreement with HDFC Bank
• Aim: To offer a special 3-in-1 online account.
• The 3-in1 account facilitates swift fund transfer between the bank account and trading account by
offering ease of opening trading, demat and bank account in a seamless manner.
1.56 NITI Aayog will be hosting the first-ever open-to-all hackathon

• The initiative is in association with PhonePe.
• It aims to showcase path-breaking solutions for the Fintech Ecosystem.
1.57 As per the Second Advance Estimates of production of major crops 316.06 million tonnes is the
estimated food grains production in the year 2021-22.
• Further, the production during 2021-22 is higher by 25.35 million tonnes than the previous five
years' (2016-17 to 2020-21) average production of foodgrains. Total production of Rice during 2021-
22is estimated at record 127.93 million tonnes.
1.58 Wealth tech company, Fisdom has partnered with Bank of Maharshtra
• Aim: To offer wealth management products and services to over 29 million customers of the bank.
1.59 Kotak Mahindra Bank partners with Ezetap to provide integrated Point of Sale (PoS) solutions
• The initiative will strengthen the bank’s presence in the digital payments market space.
1.60 Twitter Inc partners with Paytm’s payment gateway to improve the support for its ‘Tips’ feature
• Using the Tips feature, users can send payments to their favourite content creators on twitter.
• Tips is available since November to all Twitter users above 18 years of age in India.
• It is available in Indian languages including Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi and Tamil.

1.61 Edelweiss Asset Management has launched ‘eInvest’
• ‘eInvest’ is an easy-to-use app for investors to give them a smooth investing experience.
1.62 TransUnion CIBIL launches MSME consumer education program.

• Aim: To teach small businesses how to build good credit history and CIBIL Rank to avail easier and
faster loans. It will kick off with MSME clusters in Maharashtra, Assam and Tripura.
1.63 The NHPC Ltd has set a wholly owned subsidiary named NHPC Renewable Energy Ltd
• NHPC Renewable Energy Ltd has been set for development of renewable energy, small hydro and
green hydrogen-based businesses.
1.64 Bank of Baroda and the IRCTC launch a co-branded contactless credit card
• The card provides 1% transaction fee waiver for the customers on all train ticket bookings and 1%
offer as fuel surcharge waiver across all petrol pumps in India.
1.65 Bank of Baroda has signed MoU with Assam Rifles to provide 'Central Forces Salary Package'.
• Bank of Baroda will offer the Baroda Central Forces Salary Package, Personal Accident Insurance and
a co-branded credit card to all personnel of the Assam Rifles, both serving and retired.
• Assam Rifles is country's oldest paramilitary force.
1.66 Tata Power Renewable Energy has collaborated with Germany-based RWE Renewable GmbH
• Aim: To explore potential for a joint development of offshore wind projects in India.
• The MoU between Tata Power Renewable Energy and RWE becomes significant in the light of the
Central govt’s announcement of achieving 30GW of offshore wind installations by 2030.
1.67 Telecom company, Bharti Airtel has joined the SEA-ME-WE-6 undersea cable consortium
• Aim: To scale up its high-speed global network capacity to serve India.
• The 19,200 Rkm SEA-ME-WE-6 will connect Singapore and France, and will be amongst the largest
undersea cable systems globally.
• Through SEA-ME-WE-6, Airtel will add 100 TBps capacity to its global network. Airtel will land the
SEA-ME-WE-6 cable system in India at new landing stations in Mumbai and Chennai.
1.68 According to India Ratings, 8.6 percent is the estimated GDP growth rate of India for FY 2021-22.
• The National Statistical Organisation (NSO), has forecast 9.2 per cent real GDP growth for the year.
1.69 HDFC Bank has collaborated with the Indore Clean Energy Private Ltd
• They have collaborated for the development of 550 tonnes/day of Municipal Solid Waste to
Compressed Biogas plant - the largest Bio-CNG plant in Asia.
• Indore Clean Energy Pvt Ltd (ICEPL) is promoted by Green Growth Equity Fund (GGEF), which is the
largest climate impact fund in India with anchor investors like NIIF & Government of UK.
1.70 Edelweiss General Insurance has joined hands with Ashv Finance
• Aim: Tto offer financial protection to latter's business loan borrowers
• Under this, EGI will utilize Ashv Finance reach of small business owners across India and offer them
easy and friendly, tech powered solutions, coupled with superior customer experience. Ashv will
offer timely credit to small businesses and MSMEs (Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises) while EGI

will provide health insurance cover to all the customers of Ashv Finance in all major cities across the
country.
1.71 TripMoney, the fintech arm of MakeMyTrip has partnered with SBM Bank
• Aim: To launch a rupee-denominated secure credit card.
• “The TripMoney Global card offers multiple value-added benefits including zero forex mark-up,
lifetime free validity and 100 per cent digital in-app card management. The card is powered by Visa
and can be used across over 150 countries.
1.72 RBI ask certain class of NBFCs to mandatorily implement 'Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS)'
• The RBI has decided that NBFCs – Middle Layer and NBFCs – Upper Layer with 10 and more 'fixed
point service delivery units' as on October 1, 2022 shall be mandatorily required to implement CFSS.
CFSS is akin to the Core Banking Solution (CBS) adopted by banks by Sep 2025.
1.73 9% is the estimated GDP growth forecast for India in the calendar year 2022.
• Estimate by: Moody’s Investor Services. It maintained a forecast for 5.5 per cent growth in CY2023.
1.74 RBI approves the re-appointment of Rakesh Sharma as MD and CEO of IDBI Bank.
• He was previously appointed as the MD & CEO of the bank in October 2018.
1.75 Union Bank of India launches ‘MSME RuPay Credit Card’

• It is a first of its kind initiative to provide simplified and digital delivery of Finance to Micro, Small &
Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), to meet their business-related operational expenses.
1.76 Standard Chartered has partnered with International Air Transport Association (IATA)
• Aim: To launch payment platform ‘IATA Pay’ for airline industry in India.
• IATA Pay’s rollout will enable participating airlines to offer instant payment options like UPI Scan
and Pay.
1.77 New Development Bank will become first multilateral agency to open an office in Gujarat
International Finance Tech City (Gift).
1.78 NAFED signed an MoU with Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).

• Aim: To boost the production of biofuel in the country to curb carbon emissions, among others, agri
co-op giant.
• The MoU was signed to set-up Bio-fuel projects, Plants for post-processing of products viz Cattle
feed & Marketing of end products of CBG.
1.79 Paytm Payments Bank becomes an official acquiring partner for e-RUPI vouchers
• e-RUPI, which is a government initiative, is a cashless prepaid voucher that beneficiaries can present
via SMS or QR Code.
1.80 RBI cancels the certificate of registration issued to PC Financial Services Pvt Ltd.
• PC Financial Services will not be able to transact the business of a NBFI (Non-Banking Financial
Institution).
• It was primarily engaged in mobile app-based lending operations through an app called ‘Cashbean’.

1.81 RBI warns against prepaid payment instruments issued by unauthorized entities
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cautioned the public against a pre-paid instrument (wallet)
operated by car-pooling app ‘sRide’ over failure to obtain the required permissions.
• sRide is owned by Gurugram based Ride Tech Private Ltd.
1.82 BOB Financial and IRCTC launch RuPay contactless credit card
• BOB Financial Solutions Limited (BFSL), and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation
(IRCTC) have launched the IRCTC BoB RuPay contactless credit card.
• BFSL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of Baroda (BoB).
1.83 Kotak Mahindra Bank partners Ezetap for PoS solutions
• Recently, Kotak Mahindra Bank has partnered with Ezetap to provide integrated point of sale (PoS)
solutions across 4,000 locations in India.
1.84 Union Bank MSME RuPay Credit Card launched

• Union Minister for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) has launched the Union MSME
RuPay Credit Card in Sindhudurg (Maharashtra).
• The card has been launched by Union Bank of India (UBI) in collaboration with National Payments
Corporation of India (NPCI).
1.85 First Foreign Country to adopt India's UPI system

• Recently, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced that the Nepal will be
the first foreign country to adopt India's Unified Payment Interface (UPI) system.
o NPCI International Payments Ltd (NIPL) has joined hands with Gateway Payments Service
(GPS) and Manam Infotech to provide the services in Nepal.
• This collaboration will help in financial inclusion, modernizing Nepal's digital payment
infrastructure, convenience of digital payments, and digitalization of cash transactions in Nepal.
About UPI
• It is an advanced version of Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), round–the-clock funds transfer
service to make cashless payments faster, easier and smoother.
• It is a system that powers multiple bank accounts into a single mobile application.
o Therefore it merges several banking features, seamless fund routing & merchant payments
under a single platform.
• Currently, it is the biggest among the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) operated
systems.
o The top UPI apps today include PhonePe, Paytm, Google Pay, Amazon Pay and BHIM.
About NPCI
• It is the specialized division of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), under the jurisdiction of Ministry of
Finance.
• It founded in 2008 as not-for-profit organization by the RBI and Indian Banks' Association for
operating retail payments and settlement systems in India.
1.86 Centre to recapitalise weak PSBs as part of Rs 15,000 cr capital infusion

• Recently, the Government of India has earmarked Rs 15,000 crore for capital infusion in public
sector banks for the fiscal 2021-22 in March 2022.
• It will help the public sector banks to meet regulatory requirements.

• Punjab and Sind Bank and Central Bank of India (the only lender that still faces lending curbs) are
likely to be the biggest beneficiaries of the latest capital infusion plan.
• Also, the funds will be also provided to banks which had got money through non-interest-bearing
bonds in 2020-21.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has raised concerns on the fair valuation of non-interest-bearing bonds.
o Non-interest-bearing bonds are special securities with tenure of 10-15 years.
o They are valued at par.
o Such bonds usually are non-interest bearing and issued at a deep discount to the face value.
o So, the effective Tier 1 capital levels for the banks could be lower than the regulatory
requirement.
About Recapitalization of Banks
• Bank recapitalization, means infusing more capital in Public Sector Banks so that they meet the
capital adequacy norms.
What is Tier-1 Capital?
• It is the core capital of a bank which includes disclosed reserves & equity capital
• It is a bank’s highest quality capital as it is fully available to cover losses.
1.87 Implementation strategy to ensure 100% core banking system for post offices discussed at Post-
Budget webinar
• Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) has coordinated a webinar series on the implementation of
Union Budget 2022 announcements under the theme “Leaving no citizen behind”.
• As a part of the webinar, a session on “Anytime Anywhere Banking Services and Interoperable
Services through India Post” under “Assuring all rural poor especially women access to livelihood
options and access to financial services” was organized.
What is a core banking system (CBS)?
• It is a centralized back-end system designed to process and support transactions across branches of
banks.
• It ensures seamless workflow by automating the frontend and backend processes within a bank
Economy & Finance

1.88 $3 trillion vanishes from negative-yielding bond universe
• Recently, according to Bloomberg index data, the global stockpile of negative-yielding bonds has
dropped to the lowest level in more than six years with almost $3 trillion.
o Now it stands at about $4.9 trillion, the lowest since December, 2015.
Negative Yielding Bonds
• These are bonds in which an investor receives less money at the bond's maturity than the original
purchase price for the bond.
1.89 RBI to enter into sell-buy swaps worth $5 billion

• Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced that it will enter into sell-buy swaps worth
$5 billion.
o The 2-year USD/INR sell-buy swap auction will be held on March 8, 2022 and the RBI will
make a forward purchase from the banks in two years on March 11, 2024.
What is Sell-Buy Swap Auction?
• Under the swap, a bank shall buy U.S. dollars from the RBI and simultaneously agree to sell the
same amount of dollars at the end of the swap period.
• In swap transaction only authorized dealers are allowed to deposit US dollars in exchange for
rupees.
1.90 SEBI proposes rules on pricing of IPOs

• Recently, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed a discussion paper.
o This paper is focused on seeking more justification and transparency from new-age
technology companies when it comes to pricing their share in initial public offerings (IPOs).
1.91 India to move to T+1 settlement cycle
• Recently, the new T+1 Stock Settlement Rules will be implemented in a phased manner starting
from, 25th February, 2022.
o Currently, Indian stock exchanges follow T+2 days settlement. Settlement of funds &
securities happens on two business days after the day the order executes, or T+2 (trade date
plus two days).
What are T+1 Stock Settlement Rule?
• T+1 means that trade-related settlements must be done within one day of the transaction's
completion. For example, if you buy shares on Wednesday, they will be credited to your Demat
account by the next day.
1.92 Telangana to raise Rs. 1k crore through sale of securities

• Recently, the Government of Telangana has decided to raise another Rs. 1,000 crore open market
borrowings through sale of securities.
• The auction will be conducted on the Reserve Bank of India Core Banking Solution (E-Kuber) system.
1.93 NITI Aayog’s Fintech Open Summit

• Recently, the Union Minister for Railways, Communications, and Electronics and IT has
inaugurated ‘Fintech Open’, from 7–28 February.
o This virtual summit has been organized by the NITI Aayog, in collaboration with PhonePe,
AWS and EY.
• It aims to bring together regulators, fintech professionals and enthusiasts, industry leaders, the
start-up community, and developers to collaborate, exchange ideas and innovate.
1.94 Fintech Open Hackathon

• Recently, as a part of the Fintech Open Month, NITI Aayog in association with PhonePe launches
the Fintech Open Hackathon.
o It is first-ever open-to-all Hackathon event for ideating and coming up with the most
creative solutions for the FinTech space.
About Hackathon
• It will provide an opportunity for innovators, digital creators and developers from all over India to
think, ideate and code.
1.95 What are NFTs?

• According to data released by market data tracker Dapp Radar data analytics, the sale of Non
fungible tokens (NFTs) increased USD 25 billion in 2021.
What are NFTs?
• A NFT is a unit of data stored on a blockchain (digital ledger) that certifies a digital asset to be
unique.
• NFTs are one-of-a-kind digital assets that represent real-world items viz, photos, videos, drawings,
audio, artworks, tweets, animated GIFs, songs, games and other types of digital files.
• It provides users complete ownership of a digital asset.
1.96 Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS) for NBFCs

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked certain class of Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFC) to
mandatorily implement 'Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS)' by September 30, 2025.
• This mandatory implementation circular is for NBFCs - Middle Layer and NBFCs - Upper Layer which
has 10 and more 'fixed point service delivery units' as on October 1.
o CFSS is similar to the Core Banking Solution (CBS) adopted by banks.
• NBFC-Upper Layer shall ensure that the CFSS is implemented at least in 70% of 'Fixed point service
delivery units' on or before September 30, 2024.
What is Fixed Point Service Delivery Unit?
• It is a place of operation from where the business activity of non-banking financial intermediation is
carried out by a NBFC.
1.97 SEBI update for listed companies to separate roles of CMD

• Recently, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has changed the requirement for top
500 listed companies to separate roles of chairperson and MD & CEO from mandatory to
voluntary.
o The decision has been taken after considering rather unsatisfactory level of compliance
achieved so far.
1.98 RBI’s Regulations Review Authority (RRA) recommendations on regulated entities

• Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Regulations Review Authority (RRA) has released various
recommendations to reduce compliance burden on Regulated Entities (REs).
• RRA has recommended withdrawal of additional 100 circulars in the second tranche of
recommendations.
• Elimination of paper-based returns and has identified 65 regulatory returns which would either be
discontinued/ merged with other returns or would be converted into online returns.
o Regulated entities would be notified of the discontinuation/ merger and online filing of
returns, separately.
About RRA
• The RBI has set up a RRA 2.0 with an objective to reduce the compliance burden on Regulated
Entities (REs).
1.99 SEBI advisory committee on alternative investment policy

• Recently, the Security & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has reconstituted its alternative investment
policy advisory committee.
o This 20 members committee advises SEBI on a range of issues that impact further
development of the Alternative Investment Fund space.
• The committee is chaired by Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy.
What is an Alternate Investment Fund ("AIF")?

• These are privately pooled investment vehicle which collects funds from sophisticated investors,
whether Indian or foreign, for investing it in accordance with a defined investment policy for the
benefit of its investors.
1.100 Centre rejects Finance Commission’s recommendations

• Recently, the Central Government has pushed back on the 15th Finance Commission’s
recommendation to give special grants worth ₹6,764 crore to States in 2020-21
o This grant has been recommended to ensure that no State receives less than the previous
year (2019-20).
th
About 15 Finance Commission
• The 15th Finance Commission is an Indian Finance Commission constituted in November 2017.
o It has been tasked to give recommendations for devolution of taxes and other fiscal matters
for five fiscal years, commencing 1st April, 2020.
• The commission's chairman is Nand Kishore Singh with three full time and two part time members.
1.101 25th Meeting of Financial Stability and Development Council

• 25th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was held in Mumbai.
• Meeting chaired by: Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Finance.
• FSDC discussed operational issues relating to currency management.
• FSDC noted the activities undertaken by the FSDC Sub-Committee.
o Chair of FSDC Sub-Committee: Governor of the Reserve Bank of India.
About Financial Stability and Development Council
• Set up by: the Government of India in consultation with financial regulators
• Constituted in: 30th December, 2010; Chairperson: Union Minister for Finance
1.102 Post-Budget meeting with heads of Banks, NBFCs and Financial Institutions
• Recently, Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister for Finance chaired a post-budget meeting with
heads of Banks, Non-Banking Financial Institutions (NBFCs) and Financial Institutions in Mumbai.
Key information shared
• Banks in India reaped a record profit of Rs. 1.22 lakh crore in FY 20-21 and Rs. 0.79 lakh crore in HY
21-22.
• Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) declined to 6.90% (as on September 2021) from all-time high
of 11.20% (as on March 2018).
• Capital to Risk Weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) of banks stood at an all-time high of 16.5% (as of
September 2021) against the regulatory mandate of 11.5%.
1.103 SEBI comes out with terms of usage of market data

• Recently, the SEBI has come out with a framework for market intermediaries including the other
data sources in securities markets. This framework is in regard to terms of usage of data provided
by data sources in Indian securities markets.
• The decision has been taken keeping in view the deliberations and recommendations of Market
Data Advisory Committee (MDAC) on these issues.
• It is aimed to enhance the ease of accessibility and usability of data disseminated in public by
various data sources in securities market.

o SEBI has asked market intermediaries to make available such data to users, 'free of charge'
both for 'viewing' and for download.
1.104 Investments through P-notes decline to Rs 87,989 crore in January

• Recently, as per the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) data, investments in the Indian
capital market through Participatory notes (P-notes) dropped to Rs 87,989 crore at the end of
January.
What are P-notes?
• A participatory note, or a P-note, is an instrument issued by a registered foreign institutional
investor (FII) to an overseas investor who wishes to invest in Indian stock markets without
registering themselves with the SEBI.
1.105 SEBI high powered advisory committee on settlement orders

• Recently, the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has constituted a four-member high
powered advisory committee on settlement orders and compounding of offences.
o The Chairman of the committee will be Vijay C Daga.
• The panel will work as per the Settlement Proceedings Regulations, 2018 specified by the regulator.
What is SEBI Settlement Proceedings Regulations?
• Under the settlement regulations, an alleged wrong doer can settle a pending case with the
regulator without admission or denial of guilt by paying a settlement fee.
1.106 SEBI gives approval to three more IPOs

• Recently, the SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has approved the initial share sales of
API Holdings (operates PharmEasy), Wellness Forever Medicare and CMR Green Technologies.
What is IPOs?
• An initial public offering (IPO) refers to the process of offering shares of a private corporation to
the public in a new stock issuance.
1.107 BSE get SEBI node for trading electronic gold receipts
• Recently, the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has given node to the BSE to launch
trading in electronic gold receipts (EGR).
o It will pave the way for the exchange to launch spot bullion exchange.
What is EGR?
• These are electronic receipts issued on the basis of a deposit of physical gold.
1.108 SEBI orders forensic audit of Brightcom Group

• Recently, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has ordered a forensic audit into the
financial statements of Brightcom Group for the period between FY15 and FY20.
o The regulator has appointed Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu as the forensic auditor.
1.109 SEBI directs AMCs to set up audit committee

• Recently, the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has directed the mutual fund (MF)
industry to set up an audit committee at the asset management company (AMC) level.
Audit Committee Structure
• The audit committee will require a minimum of three directors and at least two-third of them shall
be independent directors of the AMC.

o The members of the audit committee will be appointed by the board of the AMC.
Key functions of the Committee
• The committee shall be responsible for oversight of the financial reporting process, compliance to
laws and regulations
• It will also ensure that the rectifications, if any, suggested by internal and external auditors in its
reports, among others, are acted upon or not.
1.110 SEBI restructured Advisory Committee on Investor Protection and Education Fund
• Recently, the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has restructured its advisory committee
on Investor Protection and Education Fund (IPEF), under the chairmanship of G Mahalingam.
o The committee consist eight members.
• The committee is mandated to recommend investor education and protection activities for the
utilization of the SEBI Investor Protection and Education Fund (IPEF).
About SEBI’s IPEF?
• The Fund has formed to be utilised for the purpose of protection of investors and promotion of
investor education and awareness in accordance with SEBI (Investor Protection and Education
Fund) Regulations, 2009.
1.111 SEBI proposes to allow FPIs to participate in commodity derivatives market
• Recently, the Security and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed allowing foreign portfolio
investors (FPIs) to participate in the exchange-traded commodity derivatives market (ETCDs).
Key Details of the Proposal
• Initially, FPIs will be allowed to trade in all non-agricultural commodity derivatives and a few
selected broad agricultural commodity derivatives.
• Eligible Foreign Entities norms will be discontinued for foreign investors to make them participate
in Indian ETCDs through the FPI route.
What is Foreign Portfolio Investment?
• It consists of securities and other financial assets held by investors in another country.
What is ETCDs?
• It is a type of market where securities got offered to traders and investors without direct access
to spot or derivatives commodities markets exposure
1.112 SEBI guidelines for MFs with respect to Indian Accounting Standards
• SEBI has come out with guidelines for asset management companies (AMCs) with respect to
following Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS), to be effective from April 1, 2023.
• Mutual fund schemes (MFs) will have to prepare the opening balance sheet as on date of
transition and the comparatives as per the requirements of Ind AS.
• MFs may not be mandatorily required to restate the previous year’s published perspective
historical per unit statistics as per requirement of Ind AS.
o This is only for the first two years from first time adoption of Ind AS.
• MFs will have to furnish certain additional information in perspective historical per unit statistics.
o This information will be related to label the previous Generally Accepted Accounting
Principles (GAAP) information prominently as not being prepared in accordance with Ind AS.
✓ As well as disclosure of the nature of the adjustments that would be required to
make it comply with Ind AS.
About Ind As
• These standards have been as notified under the Companies Act 2013 and issued under the
supervision of Accounting Standards Board (ASB)
o ASB is a committee under Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI).
• These have been formulated keeping the Indian economic & legal environment in view and with a
view to converge with international standards.
1.113 Cabinet nod for changes in FDI policy ahead of LIC IPO
• Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister of India has approved amendments to
India’s foreign direct investment (FDI) policy to allow global investors to take part in the initial
public offering (IPO) of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).
• The Cabinet has approved foreign direct investment (FDI) of up to 20% in LIC & such other body
corporates under the automatic route.
1.114 US, European Union cut few Russian banks from SWIFT
• Recently, the United States (US), the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and
Canada have decided to disconnect key sanctioned Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide
Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT).
• Restrictions have also been imposed on the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (Bank of Russia)
as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
About SWIFT
• It is the world’s main banking messaging service that facilitates rapid cross border payments.
• Governed by: Group of 10 (G-10) central banks (Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, The
Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States, Switzerland, and Sweden), and the European Central
Bank.
• Lead overseer: National Bank of Belgium.
1.115 Minimum Assured Return Scheme: PFRDA appoints EY Actuarial Services as design consultant
• Recently, the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) – the pension regulator
of India, has announced plans to launch Minimum Assured Return Scheme (MARS) under the
National Pension Scheme (NPS).
• MARS will be the first scheme from PFRDA that will offer a guaranteed return to investors.
• PFRDA has appointed EY Actuarial Services LLP as a consultant to help design the proposed MARS.
1.116 Japan and India renews Bilateral Swap Arrangement of up to USD 75 billion
• Recently, India and Japan have renewed the Bilateral Swap Arrangement (BSA) of up to USD 75
billion with effect from February 28, 2022.
• The Bank of Japan, acting as an agent for the Minister of Finance Japan, and the Reserve Bank of
India signed the amendment and restatement agreement of the BSA.
• The BSA is a two-way arrangement where both authorities can swap their local currencies in
exchange for US dollars.
1.117 India to grow at 8.4% in FY23: Moody’s

• Recently, the Moody’s Investors Service on its Global Macro Outlook report has raised India’s gross
domestic product (GDP) growth forecast to 8.4% for 2022-23 from 7.9%.

1.118 India Ratings pegs India’s FY22 GDP growth at 8.6%
• Recently, the India Ratings has revised downwards its gross domestic product (GDP) growth
forecast for 2021-22 to 8.6% from the consensus 9.2% projected earlier.
1.119 NSO 2nd advance estimates of national income

• Recently, the National Statistical Office (NSO) has released 2nd Advance Estimates (SAE) of National
Income, 2021-22 and Quarterly Estimates of GDP for October-December quarter (Q3), 2021-22.
Key Details of the Released Data
• Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at Constant (2011-12) Prices in the year 2021-22 is estimated to
attain a level of ₹ 147.72 lakh crore, as against the First Revised Estimate of GDP for the year 2020-
21 of ₹ 135.58 lakh crore.
• The growth in GDP during 2021-22 is estimated at 8.9% as compared to a contraction of 6.6 percent
in 2020-21.
• GDP at Current Prices in the year 2021-22 is estimated to attain a level of ₹ 236.44 lakh crore, as
against ₹ 198.01 lakh crore in 2020-21, showing a growth rate of 19.4%.
• GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices in Q3 of 2021-22 is estimated at ₹ 38.22 lakh crore, as against ₹
36.26 lakh crore in Q3 of 2020-21, showing a growth of 5.4%.
About NSO
• It comes under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
• It was first envisaged by Rangarajan Commission for implementing and maintaining statistical
standards and coordinate statistical activities of state as well as central agencies.
National News
1.120 “Statue of Equality”
• The Prime Minister has dedicated to the nation the ‘Statue of Equality’ in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• The 216-feet tall statue commemorates the 1000th birth anniversary of the 11th century Bhakti Saint
Sri Ramanujacharya, who promoted the idea of equality in all aspects of human life.
• It has been conceptualized by Chinna Jeeyar Swami of Sri Ramanujacharya Ashram.
1.121 CCI approves acquisition of additional equity of Escorts Ltd. by Kubota Corporation
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved acquisition of certain additional equity of
Escorts Limited by Kubota Corporation.
1.122 KVIC bans Khadi Emporium at DN Road in Mumbai

• Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), has cancelled the “Khadi Certification” of its oldest
Khadi Institution named Mumbai Khadi and Village Industries Association (MKVIA) for selling non-
Khadi products in the name of genuine Khadi.
• MKVIA was running the prestigious “Khadi Emporium” at D.N. Road in Mumbai since 1954.
1.123 Odisha Light House Tourism plan

• The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways is to develop five light houses in the state of Odisha.
o Gopalpur lighthouse in Ganjam, Paradip lighthouse in Jagatsinghpur, False point lighthouse in
Kendrapara, Chandrabhaga lighthouse in Puri, Puri lighthouse.

1.124 Kanchoth festival celebrated
• The ancient festival of Kanchoth has been celebrated across the Chenab valley region of Jammu and
Kashmir (J&K).
• It is annually celebrated mainly by Nag followers.
1.125 World’s Largest Igloo Café opened at Jammu and Kashmir

• Café Name: Snowglu
• Opened at: Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir
• Owner: Syed Wasim Shah
1.126 Atal Tunnel in the World Book of Records

• Atal Tunnel has been recognized by the World Book of Records, London, as the longest highway
tunnel in the world at an altitude of more than 10,000 feet.
• It is a 9.02 km long tunnel located at Rohtang (Himachal Pradesh), connecting Manali with Lahaul.
• It is the world’s first tunnel having fourth generation (4G) internet connectivity.
1.127 Mumbai International Film Festival
• The 17th edition of Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Short Fiction and
Animation films (MIFF-2022) is going to be held from 29 May to 4 June, 2022 at the Films Division
complex, Mumbai.
• This year special award for Best Short Film on the theme, India@75 has been instituted.
1.128 India raises incorrect depiction of country’s map with WHO
• India has strongly reacted to the incorrect depiction of India’s map on the World Health
Organization’s (WHO) website showing the COVID-19 data.
• The map shows Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh marked in grey colour and the rest of India in navy
blue and separately demarcated Arunachal Pradesh.
1.129 Maiden steel shipment flags off from Haldia to Pandu through Bangladesh
• Union Minister of Ports has flagged off the maiden voyage of barges with a consignment of 1798
MT steel products of Tata Steel from Haldia in West Bengal to Pandu in Assam through the Indo-
Bangladesh Protocol route (IBP route).
• An agreement has been signed between Brahmaputra Cracker & Polymer Limited (BCPL), (Ministry
of Petroleum) and Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata for developing a streamlined logistics
chain for movement of feed stock through rail or coastal shipping.
1.130 Vehicle Tracking System Device for goods vehicles
• Ministry of Road and Transport and Highways has issued a draft notification for goods carriage
vehicle, carrying any dangerous or hazardous goods to install a vehicle tracking system device.
1.131 India's longest railway tunnel connected
• The T-49 main tunnel of the Katra-Banihal section of Udhampur- Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link
(USBRL) project has been successfully connected.
• T49 has a length of 12.758 km surpassing the Peer Panjal Tunnel (11.2 km) has become the longest
tunnel of Indian Railways.
• The tunnel has been constructed by NATM (New Austrian Tunneling Method), which is a modern
technique of drill and blast method.

1.132 Foundation Stone of 51 National Highway Projects laid in Andhra Pradesh
• Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways has inaugurated and laid Foundation Stone of 51
National Highway Projects of total length 1380 Km in Vijaywada, Andhra Pradesh.
• The project includes construction of Rail Over Bridges (ROBs) under Setu Bharatam.
About Setu Bharatam
• It is programme launched in 2016 to build bridges for safe and seamless travel on National
Highways.
1.133 Harvard India Conference 2022

• The 19th edition of the Harvard India Conference 2022 has been organized virtually by the graduates
from the Harvard University.
• Theme: “India at 2030: Decade of Transformation”.
• Aim: to discuss, debate, and champion India-centric issues.
1.134 A 1000-year-old Vishnu sculpture restored in Madhya Pradesh
• The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has restored a sandstone
sculpture of Lord Vishnu in Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh.
• The sculpture popularly known as Shesh Shaiyya belongs to the Kalchuri period.
• An idol of Brahma and a Shivalinga nearby has also been restored.
1.135 India and UAE sign trade pact
• India and the United Arab Emirates have signed the first ever Comprehensive Economic Partnership
Agreement (CEPA).
• It is a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) covering goods, services and digital trade etc.
1.136 India’s first water taxi service inaugurated in Maharashtra
• Union Minister for Ports has inaugurated India’s first water taxi service in Maharashtra from
Belapur Jetty.
• The taxi will connect the Navi Mumbai area to mainland Mumbai.
• The jetty has been constructed under the Sagarmala scheme of the Ministry of Ports.
About Sagarmala
• It is an initiative to enhance the performance of the country's logistics sector by exploring the
potential of waterways and the coastline.
1.137 Medharam Jathara Festival 2022

• Asia’s Largest Tribal Festival, the Sammakka Saralamma (Medaram) jathara has commenced in
Medaram village, Telangana on the banks of Jampanna vagu, a tributary of the Godavari.
• It is the second-largest fair of India, (after Kumbh Mela) celebrated by the Koya tribe; the second
largest Tribal Community of Telangana.
• It is a biennial festival celebrated in the month of February in honor of the Goddesses Sammakka
and Saralamma.
• Jaggery, called ‘Bangaram’ (gold) locally; equal to the weight of devotees is offered to tribal deities.
1.138 India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant
• India’s first commercial-scale biomass-based hydrogen plant will be constructed in Khandwa,
Madhya Pradesh.
• The plant will produce 1 tonne hydrogen per day, from 30 tonnes of biomass feedstock.
• It will also produce biochar and methane.

• The plant is being put up by a joint venture of Watomo Energies Ltd and Biezel Green Energy with
an investment of ₹24 crore.
1.139 Western Railways’ Mumbai Division runs 100th Textile Express
• The Mumbai Central Division of Western Railway has achieved a milestone of loading the 100th
textile train from Chalthan (Surat area) to Sankrail (Kharagpur Division, SER).
1.140 India and Bangladesh virtual dialogue on Waste Management
• The municipalities of Indore and Dhaka North have conducted a virtual dialogue to share best
practices in Waste Management.
• The dialogue was organised by High Commission of India and Union Ministry of Housing and Urban
Affairs.
• Indore has been ranked as the cleanest city of India in Cleanliness Survey 2021.
1.141 Vigyan Sarvatra Pujyate
• Vigyan Sarvatra Pujyate (science is revered all over) is a nationwide week-long programme being
organized to mark the National Science Week.
• It is being organized under the leadership of Principal Scientific Officer (Government of India) and
the Ministry of Culture.
• Aim: To attract students towards scientific knowledge of articles of daily use and propagating
scientific theories.
• Themes: The programme is being organized under four themes.
o From the annals of the history of S&T
o Milestones of Modern S&T
o Swadeshi Paramparik Inventions and Innovations
o Transforming India
• The Ministry of Culture has organized a series of lecture demonstrations under the theme “Dhara-
an Ode to Indian Knowledge System”.
• The first event under this series is dedicated to ‘India’s Contribution to Mathematics through Ages’.
• The DRDO has organized exhibitions on the theme ‘Amrit Mahotsav Science Showcase: Roadmap to
2047’ at 16 cities of the country.
1.142 NHPC sets up a new subsidiary “NREL”
• National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) has set up a new wholly owned subsidiary
company “NHPC Renewable Energy Ltd. (NREL)”.
• NREL will work for development of Renewable Energy, Small Hydro and Green Hydrogen based
business of NHPC Ltd.
1.143 Webinar on blockchain technology
• The Hindu and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Academy, Kerala have jointly
organized the webinar on ‘Blockchain: The New Technology of Trust and Future Prospects’.
• Aim: to discuss the advancements and the future course in the field of Block Chain Technology.
1.144 Wego to acquire Cleartrip’s West Asia business
• Wego has acquired the West Asia business of Cleartrip, an online travel portal owned by Flipkart.
• Wego is an online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa region.

1.145 OCEANS 2022 conference
• The bi-annual event of global marine researchers, “OCEANS 2022” conference has been jointly
hosted for the first time in India by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras and the National
Institute of Ocean Technology.
• Theme of the conference: ‘Inspire-Innovate-Sustain’.
1.146 Apps, website and social media accounts linked to ‘Sikhs for Justice’ blocked
• The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has blocked the apps, website, and social media
accounts of foreign-based “Punjab Politics TV” for being detrimental to the sovereignty and
integrity of India.
• ‘Punjab Politics TV’ has been found to have links with banned organization “Sikhs for Justice” (SFJ).
1.147 5th Global Bhagavad Gita Convention
• The Vice President has inaugurated the 5th Global Bhagavad Gita Convention virtually from
Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
• Organized by: Centre for Inner Resources Development (CIRD), North America.
• Theme: ‘Mental Harmony’.
1.148 Smartphone users in India to reach 1 billion by 2026
• According to India edition of Deloitte’s Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT)
predictions, the number of Smartphone users in India is going to reach the 1 billion mark by 2026.
• As per the report; India is going to be the second largest smartphone manufacturer in the next five
years.
• India has reported 1.2 billion mobile subscribers in 2021, with 750 million smartphone users.
1.149 Cairn Vedanta discovers oil in Barmer
• Vedanta group subsidiary, Cairn Oil and Gas has announced an oil discovery in an open acreage
licensing policy (OALP) block of Barmer, Rajasthan.
• This is the third hydrocarbon discovery notified by the company under the OALP portfolio and has
been named 'Durga'.
1.150 Khajuraho Dance Festival
• The 48th Khajuraho Dance Festival has commenced in Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh.
• This year a 5-km ‘Dil Khel Ke Ghoomo’ marathon was also organized under the banner of ‘Safe
Tourism Project for Women’ at the event.
• Aim: To create a sense of security among women in tourist destinations with the slogan ‘Hindustan
Ke Dil Mein Aap Safe Hain’.
1.151 Conference on Indian Temple Architecture
• The Union Minister for Culture has inaugurated the conference on Indian Temple Architecture
titled "DEVAYATANAM – An Odyssey of Indian Temple Architecture", at Hampi, Karnataka.
• Organized by: the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
• The Union Government has proposed Hoysala temples of Belur and Somnathpur to the UNESCO
World Heritage List.
• The Ministry of Tourism has introduced the PRASHAD and Swadesh Darshan Scheme to facilitate
tourism in the country.
1.152 AIGF launches intelligence services portal
• All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) has launched an intelligence services portal.

• The new portal is supported by India’s gaming focused online news portal g2g.news (Gateway to
Gaming) of G2G Technologies.
1.153 Taj Mahotsav to begin from March 20 in Agra
• Taj Mahotsav 2022, an annual cultural festival will be organized by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism for
ten days from March 20 to March 29, 20222.
• Theme for Taj Mahotsav 2022: Aazadi ke Amrit Mahotsav sang, Taj ke rang
• Venue of the event: Shilpgram, a well-known crafts village in Agra.
1.154 PM inaugurates 2 new railway lines between Thane and Diva in Maharashtra
• Recently, the Prime Minister of India has virtually inaugurated two new railway lines connecting
Thane and Diva in Maharashtra.
• Estimated cost of setting up two new railway lines: Rs 620 crores.
• He also flagged off two suburban trains of the Mumbai Suburban Railway.
Additional Information
• Samvad belongs to Centre for Development of Advanced Computing and Sandesh to National
Informatics Centre.
• SAG functions under the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO).
1.155 The 2021 Notorious Markets List released
• The 2021 annual list of the world's notorious markets has been released by the United States Trade
Representative (USTR).
• India's popular e-commerce website IndiaMart.com, Palika Bazaar and Tank Road in New Delhi,
Heera Panna in Mumbai and Kidderpore in Kolkata have featured in the list.
1.156 Workshop on Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace
• The first edition of the Workshop on Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace has been
organized by the Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of Law and Justice.
• The Supreme Court gave the “Vishakha guidelines” which formed the basis for “Sexual Harassment
of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.
About Vishakha guidelines
• These are a set of guidelines that are intended to protect women at the workplace.
• These were instituted by the Supreme Court of India in 1997 and state the method to be followed
while dealing with cases related to the sexual harassment of women.
1.157 Painting by VS Gaitonde sets new record for Indian art
• An “Untitled” painting (from 1969) by V S Gaitonde has made a record for a work of modern or
contemporary Indian art globally.
• The painting has been sold for Rs. 42 crore at an auction by Pundole’s in Mumbai.
• It belongs to the Glenbarra Art Museum in Japan.
1.158 New Satavahana era site discovered in Telangana
• A team of researchers has discovered an early historic site belonging to the Satavahana era in
Telukunta village of Peddapalli district (Telangana).
• A mound constructed of two layers of brick walls, pottery and tiles of Satavahana period during the
surface exploration have been discovered.
• The mound, locally called ‘Sammakka Saaralamma Gutta’ are believed to be of 1st century BC and
2nd Century AD

• The team was led by Dr. M A Srinivasan, from the Potti Sriramulu Telugu University and Public
Research Institute for History, Archaeology and Heritage (PRIHAH).
• Thakur Rajaram Singh for the first time identified Telukunta as an early historic site in the 1980s.
• Dr. VV Krishna Sastry has mentioned Telukunta to Dongathurthi hill range as an iron smelting site
in 1st Century BC.
• In the 1980s, a coin of Vishnukundi dynasty was also found at the village.
1.159 Indian Railways to reintroduce Uday Express double-decker train
• Indian Railways' Southern Railway zone has announced to reintroduce the UDAY (Utkrisht Double
Decker Air-Conditioned Yatri) Express between Coimbatore and Bengaluru from March 31st, 2022.
1.160 Operation Ganga
• The Indian government is conducting an evacuation mission named Operation Ganga to bring back
all the Indian nationals stranded in Ukraine after Russia’s invasion on Ukraine.
• The government has sent four Union ministers to countries neighboring Ukraine as special envoys
to better coordinate and speed up the evacuation of Indians.
• Civil Aviation Minister is undertaking coordination in Romania and Moldova, Petroleum and Natural
gas Minister in Hungary, Law and Justice Minister in Slovakia, and junior aviation minister in Poland.
1.161 International Monsoons Project Office launched
• Union Minister of State Science & Technology has launched the International Monsoons Project
Office (IMPO) on the occasion of National Science Day.
• It will be hosted at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, for five years.
• Aim: to undertake activities and connections related to international monsoon research.
Key Highlights
• IMPO will function under the guidance of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the
World Weather Research Programme (WWRP).
• Both WCRP and WWRD are coordinated by the United Nations World Meteorological Organization
(WMO).
• IMPO will support the Monsoons Panel, jointly established by the WCRP’s CLIVAR (Climate and
Ocean Variability, Predictability, and Change) and GEWEX (Global Energy and Water Exchanges)
projects.
• It will also support to the WWRP’s working group on tropical meteorology research.
• The Ministry of Earth Sciences, WWRP and WCRP are organizing the 7th WMO International
Workshop on Monsoons in March 2022.
• WCRP is an international programme established in 1980 that helps to coordinate global climate
research.
• WWRP promotes research activities on weather, its prediction and its impact on society.
• The purpose of CLIVAR is to describe and understand climate variability and predictability on
seasonal to centennial time-scales, identify the physical processes responsible for climate change.
• GEWEX is a research project intended to observe, comprehend and model the Earth's water cycle.
1.162 Inauguration of Multiple National Highway Projects
• Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways has inaugurated and laid foundation stone of 46
National Highway Projects in Karnataka.

• The total investment of these projects is Rs 19,930 crore.
• He has also laid foundation stones for 11 National Highways projects with total length of 534 km
worth Rs. 5722 crore in Madhya Pradesh.
1.163 Industry Connect 2022
• Union Health Minister has inaugurated a seminar on “Industry Connect 2022: Industry and
Academia Synergy”.
• Organized by:
o The Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals.
o Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Government of India.
o Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (CIPET).
o Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
• Objectives:
o Focus on Research and Development- laboratory to Industry.
o Skill Gap Analysis for the Human Capital in Petrochemicals Sector.
o Support Aatmanirbhar Bharat by developing Indigenous Technology.
o Support of Technology with the assistance of the Technology Development Board.
1.164 Coal India launches ERP system
• Union Coal Minister has inaugurated the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system in Coal India
Ltd (CIL).
• Objectives: to manage daily business activities such as financial, human resources, sales and
distribution and production and planning.
1.165 CII Manufacturing Conclave 2022
• Union Minister for Commerce & Industry has inaugurated the CII Manufacturing Conclave 2022.
• Organized by: Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
1.166 TEC organizes webinar
• Telecommunications Engineering Centre (TEC) has organized a webinar on “Standard Based
Solutions in Smart Cities”.
• This webinar has been organized in line with the Government’s initiatives for the development of
Smart cities in India.
• TEC is the technical arm of Department of Telecommunications (DoT); Ministry of Communications.
1.167 ‘Meet the Champions’ initiative
• Paralympic Gold and Silver medalist Mariyappan Thangavelu has visited Holy Angles Girls' School in
Salem (Tamil Nadu) to spread awareness among the students about the importance of sports and a
balanced diet.
About the Campaign
• It is unique school visit campaign where the Olympians and Paralympians share their experiences
and lessons to eat right and encourage students to take up sports.
• Organized by: Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
1.168 Kirloskar Ferrous Industries Ltd. acquires stakes in ISMT Ltd.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of stakes in ISMT Ltd. by
Kirloskar Ferrous Industries Ltd.

1.169 91st Srimanta Sankardev Sangha Annual Conference
• The 91st edition of the Srimanta Sankardev Sangha Annual Conference has begun at Naharkatia in
Assam.
• On the occasion, the Assam government has announced to set up ‘Naamghars’ (Vaishnavite
Monasteries).
• These monasteries will be set up across places where saint and social reformer Srimanta
Sankardeva Sankardeva spent at least one night during his journey from Batradava (Assam) to
Cooch Behar (West Bengal).
About Srimanta Sankardeva
• He was a 15th- 16th century Assamese polymath, a saint-scholar, playwright, musician, poet,
dancer, actor and artist social-religious reformer.
1.170 Delhi police launches multiple digital initiatives

• Delhi police has launched three new digital initiatives - Anubhuti, a refurbished Delhi Police website
and e-Chittha portal.
• Anubhuti is a QR code-based paperless feedback system. ‘e-Chittha’ has been launched to ensure
duty deployment and its implementation.
1.171 75 years of Indo-Belgian diplomatic ties
• A special logo has been unveiled to commemorate 75 years of diplomatic relations between India
and Belgium.
• The logo has been released by Belgian ambassador in India and the Joint Secretary and Head of
Europe West Division, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
1.172 Delhi government to develop Science Innovation Hub in a local school
• The Directorate of Education, Delhi government has announced to set up a "Science Innovation
Hub" at the Kautilya Sarvodaya Co-education School at Chirag Enclave.
• The school will have all the facilities such as a planetarium and a museum, for promoting a scientific
culture and temperament among students.
1.173 India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant
• India’s first commercial-scale biomass-based hydrogen plant will be constructed in Khandwa,
Madhya Pradesh.
• The plant will produce 1 tonne hydrogen per day, from 30 tonnes of biomass feedstock.
• It will also produce biochar and methane.
• The plant is being put up by a joint venture of Watomo Energies Ltd and Biezel Green Energy with
an investment of ₹24 crore.
1.174 Western Railways’ Mumbai Division runs 100th Textile Express
• The Mumbai Central Division of Western Railway has achieved a milestone of loading the 100th
textile train from Chalthan (Surat area) to Sankrail (Kharagpur Division, SER).
1.175 India and Bangladesh virtual dialogue on Waste Management
• The municipalities of Indore and Dhaka North have conducted a virtual dialogue to share best
practices in Waste Management.
• The dialogue was organised by High Commission of India and Union Ministry of Housing and Urban
Affairs.
• Indore has been ranked as the cleanest city of India in Cleanliness Survey 2021.

1.176 Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 4.0 launched
• Under IMI 4.0, all vaccines under Universal Immunization Program (UIP) will be provided as per
National Immunization Schedule.
• IMI 4.0 will have 3-rounds and to be conducted in 416 districts across 33 States/UTs in the country.
• In the first round (Feb-April 2022), 11 states will conduct IMI 4.0 and the others (22 states) will
conduct the 2nd rounds from April to May 2022.
About Mission Indradhanush
• It was launched in December 2014, with the aim of increasing full immunization coverage.
• It was launched for covering partially and unvaccinated children and pregnant women, in pockets
of high-risk, hard-to-reach and low immunization coverage areas.
o This mission was focused on protecting them from vaccine preventable diseases.
1.177 Data on Leprosy in India

• National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP) has released data regarding the Leprosy
conditions in India.
• India still accounts for over half (almost 60%) of the world's new leprosy patients.
• According to World Health Organization (WHO), 114,451 new leprosy cases were detected in the
India in 2019-20.
• India has been declared "leprosy-free" in 2005.
About NLEP
• It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme under the umbrella of National Health Mission (NHM).
o It aims at eliminating leprosy in each of the districts by 2030.
1.178 Health Minister chairs meeting exploring possibilities of mutual cooperation in R&D
• Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare has chaired a meeting of the Technology Development
Board (TDB).
• Objective: to discuss the ways in which the TDB can develop mutual cooperation with the Ministry
of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers for Research and
Development (R&D) activities.
About Technology Development Board
• Establishment: 1996; Constituted by: Government of India.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Science and Technology.
• Objective: to promote the development and commercialization of indigenous technologies and to
promote the process of adoption of imported technology.
1.179 Grant released to States for Urban Local Bodies

• Recently, the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance has released an amount of Rs.
1154.90 crore to 4 States for providing grants to Urban Local Bodies.
o The grants are meant for Non-Million Plus cities (NMPCs) including Cantonment Boards and
has been released for supporting and strengthening the delivery of basic services.
o 50% of the grant is for ‘Sanitation Solid Waste Management and attainment of star ratings
while remaining 50% is tied to ‘Drinking water, rainwater harvesting and water recycling’.
• In State/UTs, amount of ULB grant released in 2021-22, Uttar Pradesh (Rs. 1592 crore) received the
highest funds followed by Andhra Pradesh (Rs. 873 crore) and Bihar (Rs. 759 crore).

1.180 DCGI grants EUA to Covid vaccine Corbevax for children between 12-18 years of age
• Recently, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has granted Emergency Use Authorisation
(EUA) to COVID-19 vaccine Corbevax for children aged between 12-18 years.
o It is India’s first indigenously developed Receptor Binding Domain protein sub-unit COVID-19
vaccine, manufactured by Biological E Ltd, Hyderabad.
• With this, India now has two Covid-19 vaccines for children including Covaxin (administered for the
children aged 15 to 18 years).
1.181 Central govt, Panacea Biotec to jointly develop new Covid-19 vaccines
• Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI) has announced a partnership with
pharma company Panacea Biotec and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI).
• Partnership Objective: to develop vaccine candidates to provide broad protection against SARS-
COV-2 variants and other betacoronaviruses.
1.182 Four police stations declared ‘Eat Right campus’ by FSSAI

• Recently, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has certified four police stations
of New Delhi district as ‘Eat Right Campus’ for implementing ‘Sehatmand Delhi’ programme.
• It is for the first time such an initiative has been taken for the health and nutrition of police
personnel in India.
About Sehatmand Delhi’ programme:
• It is an initiative of Department of Food Safety, Delhi Government.
• Objective: to identify premises that can be recognised as Eat Right Campus.
1.183 Reports of Institute for Competitiveness highlighting India’s COVID-19 Vaccination Programme
• Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare has released two reports of the Institute for
Competitiveness titled ‘COVID-19-India’s Vaccine Development Story’ and ‘India's COVID – 19
Vaccination Administration Journey’ in New Delhi.
• The report highlights the crucial aspects that have contributed to the success of India's COVID-19
vaccine development and administration efforts.
1.184 India’s first Biosafety Level 3 Mobile Laboratory inaugurated in Nashik

• Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare has inaugurated South Asia and India’s first
Biosafety level-3 (BSL-3) containment Mobile Laboratory- BioKlenz in Nasik district, Maharashtra.
• BioKlenz has been designed and built by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in collaboration
with Mumbai based bio-safety equipment maker Klenzaids.
• Purpose: It will investigate newly emerging and re-emerging viral infections that are highly
infectious and of lethal potential to human beings.
1.185 Union Health Minister inaugurates two new departments and Centres at the IIPS Mumbai
• Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare has inaugurated two new Departments and two new
Research Centres at International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) in Deonar, Mumbai, viz,
o Department of Survey Research and Data Analytics and the Department of Family and
Generations.
o Centre of Demography of Gender and Centre for Ageing Studies.
• Focus Areas: well-being of girl-children, women and the elderly population.
About IIPS
• It is an autonomous organization under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
1.186 FSSAI to introduce 'Health Star' rating system for packaged foods
• Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has announced to launch a ‘Health Star’ rating
system for packaged foods based on the fats, sugar and salt content in the food item.
• Packaged foods will display the health star rating on the front of the pack.
• The number of stars will indicate whether the item is healthy or unhealthy.
1.187 ICMR/ DHR Policy on Biomedical Innovation & Entrepreneurship for Medical Professionals
• Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)/ Department of Health Research (DHR) DHR Policy on
Biomedical Innovation & Entrepreneurship for Medical Professionals, Scientists and Technologists
at Medical, Dental, and Para-Medical Institutes/Colleges has been launched recently.
• Policy promotes Make-in India, Start-Up-India and Atmanirbhar Bharat initiatives of Government
of India developing an innovation led ecosystem at the medical institutes across India.
1.188 Union Health Minister launches the National Polio Immunization Drive, 2022
• Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has launched the National Polio Immunization Drive
on the Polio National Immunization Day 2022 (NID) or Polio Ravivar on 27th February 2022.
• Every child under 5 years of age were administered polio drops.
• India conducts one nationwide NID and two Sub-National Immunization Day (SNIDs) for polio
every year to maintain population immunity against wild poliovirus and to sustain polio free status.
• India reported the last case of wild poliovirus on 13th January 2011.
About Polio or poliomyelitis
• It is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus which spreads from person to person.
• It can infect a person's spinal cord, causing paralysis.
1.189 National Higher Education Qualification Framework

• University Grants Commission (UGC) has released a Draft National Higher Educational
Qualification Framework (NHEQF).
• It aims to elevate all HEIs (Higher Education Institutions) to a common level of benchmarking to
ensure that all institutions are providing quality education.
About UGC
• It is a statutory body set up by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, in
accordance to the UGC Act 1956. The headquarters are in New Delhi
• It is charged with coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of higher education
in India.
1.190 Career counseling workshop 'Pramarsh 2022'

• Minister of State for Culture & Parliamentary Affairs has launched the career counseling workshop
'Pramarsh 2022' for the students of the Bikaner District region.
• In this workshop 1 lakh students participated from more than thousand schools of Bikaner district
mainly from rural area.
• The workshop was organized with the help of the Ministry of Labour & Employment’s, National
Institute of Career Services (NICS) and Edumilestone’s, an educational start-up.

1.191 Parliamentary Standing Committee recommendations on art education
• Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports submitted
its report titled “Reforms in the education of performing and fine arts” in Parliament.
o The committee recommended various reforms in line with the National Education Policy
(NEP) 2020 that advocates integrating arts with the education system.
• It recommends government should make art education a “compulsory subject up to Class 10”.
o This art education should include music, dance, visual arts and theatre with special emphasis
on Indian traditional and folk arts.
1.192 Supreme Court rejects plea to include religious schools under RTE, 2009
• Supreme Court has refused to intervene in a petition challenging sections of the Right to
Education Act of 2009.
• In past, a plea has been filled which challenged the constitutional validity of Sections 1(4) and 1(5)
of the Right to Education Act, 2009 which contained this exclusion.
o These sections exclude vedic pathsalas, madrasas and institutions imparting religious
education from its ambit.
1.193 Admission to 100 new Sainik Schools through e-Counselling

• Recently, the Sainik School Society (SSS) is in the process of developing an automated system for
conduct of e-Counseling for seeking admissions in new Sanik Schools.
• It will ensure complete transparency in the admission process.
• It will also provide access for real-time monitoring of the entire process, and necessary action, as
required at each stage.
1.194 J&K delimitation commission Interim Report

• 3-member J&K delimitation commission headed by the retired Supreme Court (SC) judge Justice
Ranjana Prakash Desai, has submitted its interim report.
• The Commission has proposed reserving nine seats for Scheduled Tribes (STs) on the basis of
population. While, seven seats were proposed for the Scheduled Castes (SCs).
What is Delimitation?
• It is the process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country to represent
changes in population.
1.195 Tamil Nadu re-adopts Bill against NEET

• Tamil Nadu Assembly has re-adopted the Anti-National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) Bill.
• The Anti-NEET Bill Bill seeks to dispense with NEET, for admission in undergraduate medical degree
courses in Tamil Nadu.
1.196 Delhi govt. adds 11 new Schools of Specialized Excellence

• Recently, the Government of Delhi has added 11 new Schools of Specialized Excellence (SoSE).
• With the new addition, the total number of SoSEs in Delhi has increased to 31.
About Schools of Specialized Excellence
• Initiative of: Delhi Government; Launch Year: 2021
• Objective: to provide specialized education in students from classes 9 to 12 in five areas i.e.

o Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Humanities, Performing and
visual arts, High-end 21st century skills , Armed forces preparatory school (included in 2022).
1.197 ‘Heal in India’ campaign

• Union government is looking to promote India’s medical facilities and infrastructure under a new
‘heal in India’ campaign to standardize processes and treatment packages for foreign nationals.
• The objective behind standardization of packages is to ensure patients coming on medical visa for
treatment are not overcharged.
1.198 NAAC New Guidelines on College Accreditations

• National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has issued new guidelines for accreditation
of higher educational institutions.
• Under new guidelines, colleges and universities that have completed even one academic year will
be eligible to apply for provisional accreditation. It aims to “widen the horizon of accreditation”.
About NAAC
• It is an autonomous government organization which assesses and accredits Higher Education
Institutions (HEIs). It was established in 1994.
• It is funded by the UGC and is headquartered in Bangalore.
About UGC
• It is a statutory body, set up by Department of Higher Education of Ministry of Education.
• It was set in accordance to UGC Act 1956 and is charged with coordination, maintenance and
determination of standards of higher education.
1.199 “DHARA: An ode to Indian Knowledge System” lecture series
• Recently, the Union Ministry of Culture has organized ‘DHARA, an Ode to Indian Knowledge
System’ as a part of the Science Week - Vigyan Sarvatra Pujyate at New Delhi.
• The event celebrated India’s contribution to Mathematics.
• The first lecture in the series was ‘‘Mathematics in India’ which focused on India’s contribution to
Mathematics through the ages.
1.200 UGC reforms: Edtech firms can tie up with universities to develop online courses
• Recently, the Chairperson of the University Grants Commission (UGC) has informed that universities
and colleges offering online UG and PG programmes will be allowed to collaborate with ed-tech
platforms towards developing course content and financial rules.
o The decision will be backed by amending UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes
and Online Programmes) Regulations, 2020.
1.201 Parvatmala Scheme

• Recently, Union Finance Minister in Union Budget for 2022-23 has announced National Ropeways
Development Programme “Parvatmala” to improve connectivity and convenience in hilly areas.
• It will be taken up on Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode, which will be a preferred ecologically
sustainable alternative in place of conventional roads in difficult hilly areas.
o The contracts for 8 ropeway projects for a length of 60 km would be awarded in 2022-23.
1.202 J&K on boarded National Single Window System

• Recently, the Jammu & Kashmir has become the first Union Territory to be on boarded on the
National Single Window System (NSWS).
o This will help in improving Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in the Union Territory.
About NSWS
• The platform was launched in September 2021 and has been developed by DPIIT (Department for
Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) in association with Invest India.
• It is a one-stop digital platform that aims at allowing investors to apply for various pre-operations
approvals required for commencing a business in the country.
1.203 Women MSMEs Entrepreneurs

• Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises has shared data regarding the number of women
entrepreneurs registered under different portals and governments initiatives for women
entrepreneurs.
Key Information Shared
• Under Udyog Aadhaar Memorandum (UAM) number of women entrepreneurs registered is as
following:
o From 01/04/2019 to 31/03/2020 it was 5,50,739.
o From 01/04/2020 to 30/06/2020 it was 1,81,822.
• Under Udyam Registration (UR) portal number of women entrepreneurs registered is as following:
o From 01/07/2020 to 31/03/2021 it was 4,91,069.
o From 01/04/2021 to 02/02/2022 it was 7,08,656.
• The Government has mandated that all Central Ministries/ Departments and PSU’s should procure
at least 3% of their annual procurement from women owned micro and small enterprises.
About Udyam Sakhi Portal
• It was launched by the Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises for women entrepreneurs.
• The portal is network to nurture entrepreneurship and create business models for low cost
products and services in order to empower women and make them self-sufficient.
1.204 Snow Sculpture & Leh Berry
• Lt. Governor of Ladakh concluded the first-ever ‘Ice & Snow Sculpture Workshop’ 2022 organized
by Kangsing Snow and Ice Sculpture Association in association with Ladakh Police.
• Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) under the aegis of Union Ministry of Science &
Technology is also promoting plantation of ‘Leh Berry’.
o Leh berry is an exclusive food product of the cold desert and is also a means of wide-ranging
entrepreneurship as well as self-livelihood.
1.205 Tourism Ministry & Alliance Air Aviation Limited signs MoU to promote domestic tourism
• Union Ministry of Tourism has signed a MoU with Alliance Air Aviation Limited (AAAL) at New Delhi
to boost cooperation for the promotion and marketing of domestic tourism throughout India.
1.206 Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission

• Recently, on 21st Feb, 2022, 6th anniversary of the launch of Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban
Mission (SPMRM) is being observed.
• It was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) in 2016 to bridge the gap between
rural and urban population by providing equal facilities, technology, social-economic development
• In terms of SPMRM, Rurban areas refer to a cluster (Non-Tribal and Tribal) of 15-20 villages having
about 30 to 40 lakh population
• Clusters will be geographically contiguous Gram Panchayats with a population of about 25000 to
50000 in plain and coastal areas and a population of 5000 to 15000 in desert, hilly or tribal areas.
1.207 North East MSME Conclave: Building Competitiveness for Leveraging Opportunities’
• Union Minister of Development of North East Region has addressed the ‘North East MSME (Micro,
Small and Medium Enterprises) Conclave: Building Competitiveness for Leveraging Opportunities’.
• The conclave was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).
1.208 Assam government to launch 'Project Arohan' to hone students' skills

• Government of Assam has made an announcement to launch a four year mentorship programme
called Project Arohan.
• Project Aim: to provide guidance to students and hone their skills.
1.209 Delhi Cabinet approves Delhi Film Policy 2022

• Delhi Cabinet has approved India’s most progressive state film policy - Delhi Film Policy 2022.
Key Highlights of the policy
• Delhi Government will provide a subsidy of up to Rs 3 crore for film production in Delhi.
• Creation of Rs 50 crore Delhi film fund to support film producers.
• Delhi Government will set up a e-Film Clearance Portal
1.210 MSME Minister inaugurates two day MSME Conclave in Sindhudurg

• Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has organized a MSME Conclave
in Sindhudurg district, Konkan division, Maharashtra.
• Objective: to promote entrepreneurship and trade opportunities for MSMEs in the Konkan region
by handholding them in use of technology, product development and skilling.
• During the conclave, the MSME Minister announced the establishment of MSME-Technology
Centre with an outlay of Rs. 200 Crore in Sindhudurg.
• He also launched Union MSME RuPay Credit Card of Union Bank of India launched in association
with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
o It offers an interest-free credit period of up to 50 days to MSME borrowers on their
business spends.
1.211 Union Commerce Minister chairs SCALE Committee meeting

• Recently, the Union Minister for Commerce and Industry has chaired a review meeting of the
Steering Committee on Advancing Local value-add & Exports (SCALE) in New Delhi.

1.212 Prime Minister's 15 Point Programme for Minorities
• Union Minister for Minority Affairs has shared information regarding the Prime Minister’s New 15
Point Programme for welfare of Minority Communities. It covers various schemes/initiatives of the
participating Ministries/Departments.
• It has an aim to ensure that the underprivileged and weaker sections of six centrally notified
minority communities have equal opportunities for availing the various welfare schemes and
contribute to the overall socio-economic development of the Country.
1.213 Railway Protection Force Rescued 1,045 Kids

• Recently, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) has rescued over 1,000 kids from Railway stations
across the country under ‘Operation Nanhe Farishte’ in the month of January.
What is Operation Nanhe Farishte
• It is the operation launched by the RPF to reunite lost or lonely children with their families at
railway and railway stations and protecting them from smugglers.
1.214 Safety measures for children below four years of age

• Recently, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has prescribed norms related to safety
measures for children below four years of age, riding or being carried on a motorcycle.
o For this the ministry has amended the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.
• The new norms specifies use of a safety harness and crash helmet and also restricts speed of such
motor cycles to 40 kmph.
1.215 DGCA Child Restraint System

• Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sent an advisory to all airline operators to
implement a Child Restraint System which has been designed to protect and restrain an infant or
child during all phases of flight. This system has a combination of a belt and an internal harness.
• Airlines have been asked to encourage and increase the usage of the system by passengers
carrying children or infants.

1.216 Gems & Jewellery sector is expected to achieve export target of $40 Billion this year: Piyush Goyal
• Recently, the Union Minister for Commerce & Industry has virtually addressed the inaugural
ceremony of India International Jewellery Show (IIJS) Signature 2022, organised by the Gem and
Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) at Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai.
• Gems & Jewellery (G&J) sector is expected to achieve an export target of USD 40 Billion in 2021-
22. It stood at USD 32 billion in 2021-22 till January 2021.
• Gold and Diamond trade contributes about 7% of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
1.217 India urea import deal with Iran

• India is planning to pay in Rupees for its first long-term urea import deal with Iran.
o This is to hedge itself from global supply disruptions, higher prices and forex volatilities.
• India has plans to pay in rupees with the involvement of local banks to import annually 1.5 million
tons of urea from Iran.
1.218 Exports of Electronic Goods sees a jump of 88% since 2013-14

• Union Minister for Commerce & Industry has informed that India’s export of electronic goods
increased by almost 88% from USD 6600 Million in 2013-14 to USD 12,400 Million in 2021-22.
1.219 MoHUA Secretary chairs ‘Labharthiyon Se Rubaroo’ initiative

• Recently, the 22nd edition of the ‘Labarthiyon Se Rubaroo’ virtual campaign was chaired by Manoj
Joshi, Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) at New Delhi.
• Beneficiaries of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U) from Assam, Jharkhand and Kerala
took part in the campaign.
About Labarthiyon Se Rubaroo
• It is an intensive virtual inspection campaign of PMAY (U) houses.
• It is an initiative of MoHUA to monitor the progress of PMAY (U) projects and bring about able
governance and transparency by direct interaction with beneficiaries
1.220 Telangana’s State Festival of Medaram Jathara

• Recently, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs has sanctioned ₹2.26 Crores for various activities pertaining
to Medaram Jathara, 2022.
• Medaram Jatara is the 2nd largest fair of India, after the Kumbh Mela, celebrated by the 2nd largest
Koya Tribal Community of Telangana. It was declared a State Festival in 1996.
1.221 Union Culture Minister inaugurates 2-Day Global Summit on ‘Reimagining Museums In India’
• Recently, the Union Minister for Culture has organized the first of its kind, 2-Day Virtual Global
Summit on ‘Reimagining Museums in India’ at Hyderabad.
• The Government of India is developing 10 museums on tribal freedom fighters to honour their
contribution in freedom struggle.
1.222 MoU signed between NTRI and BAJSS to establish BAJSS as resource center of NTRI
• National Tribal Research Institute (NTRI), New Delhi, under the mentorship of TRI Uttarakhand, has
signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Bharatiya Adim Janajati Seva Sangathan
(BAJSS), New Delhi.
• Objective: to preserve, protect and digitise rare books on tribe groups, and renovate and digitise a
tribal museum.
• Under the MoU, a digital library with a repository of rare books on tribals will be established with
BAJSS building at Jhandewala, New Delhi as a resource centre at NTRI.
1.223 Ministry of Education launches Bhasha Certifiate Selfie campaign

• The campaign has been launched to commemorate International Mother Language Day.
• The campaign
encourage cultural
diversity, promote
mulitlinguism and,
foster the spirit of
Ek Bharat
Shreshtha Bharat.
• Under the
campaign, people
are encouraged to
upload their selfie
with the certificate from their social media accounts using the hashtag #BhashaCertificateSelfie.
• Aim of the campaign: to promote Bhasha Sangam mobile app
1.224 Maharashtra CM stresses on demand to accord classical language status for Marathi
• On the occasion of Marathi Bhasha Gaurav Din, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra has once again
demanded the Government of India to accord classical language status to Marathi language.
• Marathi Bhasha Gaurav Din (Marathi Language Day) is celebrated annually on 27th February (on
the birthday of Marathi Poet Kusumagraj) across Maharashtra and Goa.
1.225 Cabinet approves setting up of G20 Secretariat ahead of India's Presidency

• Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister of India has approved the setting up of
the G20 (Group of twenty) Secretariat and its reporting structures ahead of India’s G20 Presidency.
• India will hold the G20 Presidency from 1 December 2022 to 30 November 2023.
• India’s Presidency will culminate with the G20 Summit in India in 2023.
About G20
• Members: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia , Italy,
Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom,
the United States, and the European Union.
• G20 Presidency for 2022: Indonesia.
• Overall theme for G20 under Indonesian Presidency: "Recover Together Recover Stronger”.
1.226 Pilot movement of food grains on vessel from Patna (Bihar) to Pandu (Guwahati)
• Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways flagged off an inland waterway vessel MV Lal
Bahadur Shastri from Patna to Guwahati.
o It is a pilot movement to check feasibility of inland water ways in food grain cargo shipping.
o This first food grain movement will be an integrated IWT movement via National Waterway
(NW)-1 (Ganga), NW-97, Indo-Bangladesh Protocol (IBP) route and NW-2 (Brahmaputra).

1.227 Upper Bhadra gets national project status
• Chief Minister of Karnataka has announced that the high-powered committee of central
government gave national project status to “Upper Bhadra Project”.
• This status of national project will change irrigation scenario of central Karnataka and will help the
state in getting Rs 12,500 crore from the Centre.
1.228 Prime Minister flags off 100 ‘kisan drones’

• Prime Minister of India has virtually inaugurated the Kisan Drone Yatra at Manesar, Haryana.
• Kisan Drone Yatra is an initiative of Garuda Aerospace
• As a part of the initiative, 100 Kisan drones have been flagged off across India to spray pesticides &
other farm materials.
1.229 ‘Lavender Cultivation’ under Aroma Mission to be started in Ramban

• Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, has
chaired the District Development Coordination & Monitoring Committee (DISHA) Meeting for
Ramban District at Convention Centre Jammu.
o He highlighted that Lavender is designated as Doda brand product
o Key decision of the meeting: to start Purple Revolution in Ramban District, Jammu &
Kashmir by encouraging Lavender Cultivation under the Council of Scientific and Industrial
Research–Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR–IIIM)’s Aroma Mission through
Ministry of Science and Technology.
✓ Lavender cultivation will be started in Ramban District, on the similar lines with
Baderwah and Khilani in Doda District and Reasi District.
• Purple or Lavender Revolution was launched by the Union Ministry of Science & Technology
through CSIR Aroma Mission to increase lavender cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir.
• Doda is the birthplace of India's Purple Revolution.
1.230 Draft Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Bill 2022

• Union Government has come up with Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Bill 2022 which
empowers government to fix maximum selling price of fertilizers and control its quality and
distribution.
• The Bill seeks to establish the Integrated Plant Nutrition Management Authority of India.
1.231 Doubling of Domestic Steel Making Capacity

• Recently, the Union Minister of Steel has shared information regarding the government vision to
double domestic steel making capacity and government’s steps to fulfill this vision.
• The present annual crude steel capacity of the country is 144 MT and is envisaged to reach 300 MT
by 2030-31.
1.232 SAMADHAN Portal

• Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises has shared information regarding the
SAMADHAN portal.
• As per the information available in the SAMADHAN portal, the total outstanding payment to the
Micro and Small Sector since 01.04.2020 is Rs 11,741.21 crore.
• SAMADHAN is a web portal called for monitoring of the outstanding dues to the MSMEs from the
buyers of goods and services.
1.233 IFLDP continuation with an outlay of Rs. 1700 Crore
• Indian Footwear and Leather Development Programme (IFLDP) has been approved for
continuation from 2021-22 with an approved financial outlay of Rs. 1700 crore.
o It has been approved as continuation of the erstwhile IFLADP till 31.03.2026 or till further
review.
The following major sub-schemes have been approved under IFLDP during 2021-26:
• Sustainable Technology and Environmental Promotion (proposed outlay Rs.500 crore).
• Integrated Development of Leather Sector (IDLS) sub-scheme (proposed outlay Rs.500 crore).
• Establishment of Institutional Facilities (proposed outlay Rs.200 crore).
• Mega Leather Footwear and Accessories Cluster Development (MLFACD) sub-scheme (proposed
outlay Rs.300 crore).
• Brand Promotion of Indian Brands in Leather and Footwear Sector (proposed outlay Rs.100 crore).
o Development of Design Studios (proposed outlay Rs.100 crore).
• Under the scheme, the government will provides 50% financial assistance and the limit of the
assistance is fixed at Rs 10 crores. It will be provided for three years.
About IFLDP
• It comes under the Ministry of Commerce.
• It aims at development of infrastructure for the leather sector, addressing environmental concerns
specific to the leather sector, facilitating additional investments, employment generation and
increase in production.
1.234 Powerthon-2022 for Enabling Advanced Technology in Power Distribution

• Union Minister for Power has launched Powerthon-2022, a hackathon competition under
Revamped Distribution Sector Reform Scheme (RDSS).
• It has been organized by REC Limited in collaboration with SINE, IIT Bombay.
• It aims to find technology driven solutions to solve the complex problems in power distribution
and to ensure quality and reliable power supply.
About RDSS
• It was introduced by Ministry of Power and is a Reform-based and Result-linked Scheme.
• It also aimed to improve the quality & reliability of power supply for building a robust power
sector.
1.235National Strategy on Additive Manufacturing

• Union Minister of Electronics & Information Technology has released “National Strategy on
Additive Manufacturing (NSAM)” to cater to the next-generation digital manufacturing and aiming
to mitigate immediate disabilities of local industries.
• It aims to inspire maximum economic benefits from the future growth opportunities, while
minimizing risks and mitigating associated challenges with Additive Manufacturing (AM).
• The Key goals envisaged are to position India as a global hub for AM development and deployment.
• It also envisage establishment of “National Centre for AM” for harnessing AM transformation and
driving capabilities by continuously engaging all key stakeholders.
1.236 ‘Council for Leather Exports’ data on Leather, footwear exports from India
• The country's leather and footwear exports are expected to cross USD 6 billion (about Rs 44,800
crore) in 2022-23.
• During April-January this fiscal, leather and leather products exports rose by 33 per cent to USD 3.6
billion. The exports stood at USD 3.3 billion in 2020-21 and USD 4.7 billion in 2019-20.
1.237 ICCR Indian Crafts Fair

• Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) is organizing a crafts exhibition-cum-fair in Delhi with
the aim of popularizing traditional Indian crafts among the diplomatic community.
• It is being held at Bikaner House, and has been named ‘Coalescence: Craft-Culture-Community-
Climate.’ It has been curated by Jaya Jaitly of Dastkari Haat Samiti.
• This three-day fair will provide an experience of India’s cultural history and craft techniques that
contribute to the planet’s ecological balance.
About ICCR
• It functions under the Ministry of External Affairs.
• It was founded on 9th April 1950 with the aim of promoting the culture of the nation globally as
well as to involve in cultural exchanges with other nations and their people.
• It is headquartered in New Delhi and Vinay Sahasrabuddhe is the current president.
1.238 Guidelines and Standards for EV charging infrastructure

• Ministry of Power has issued the revised consolidated Guidelines and Standards for Electric
Vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.
Key Details of the Revised Guidelines
• It envisages provisions to provide an affordable tariff chargeable by public EV charging station
operators and owners and Electric Vehicle (EV) owners.
• Enabling owners of electric vehicles to charge EVs at their residences or offices using their existing
electricity connections.
1.239 Applications for Semiconductor and Display Fabs

• Under the India Semiconductor Mission, government has received 5 applications for
Semiconductor and Display Fabrication (fab) with total investment to the tune of USD 20.5 Bn (INR
153,750 crore).
About Semicon India Programme
• It was notified by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, with an outlay of INR
76,000 crore. India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) has been set up as an independent institution to
spearhead the Semicon India programme.
o ISM is a specialized and independent business division of Digital India Corporation.
o The mission has been set up with the objective of building a vibrant semiconductor besides
displaying ecosystem in order for India to emergence as a global hub in electronics
manufacturing and design.
o It was launched with the aim of attracting large investments in manufacturing AMOLED-
based display panels or TFT LCD.
1.240 EGI seeks withdrawal of new Central Media Accreditation Guidelines

• Editors Guild of India (EGI) sought withdrawal of the Central Media Accreditation Guidelines
released by Press Information Bureau (PIB).
• These guidelines are announced by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
• As per the guidelines, Accreditation is only available for journalists living in the Delhi NCR region.

• Authorized media persons are prohibited from using the words ``Accredited to the government of
India” on public platforms, social media profiles, visiting cards, etc.
1.241 Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP)

• Minister for Road Transport & Highways has shared that the government is planning to roll out its
vehicle safety standards, which has been termed as Bharat New Car Assessment Programme
(NCAP).
• NCAP will look at the safety of new vehicles and assign star ratings on their safety and sturdiness,
in line with Global NCAP and European NCAP car safety programmes.
• It will make at least six airbags mandatory for all new vehicles that can carry up to eight
passengers.
1.242 Common e-auction window for coal

• Recently, the government has approved offering of all the non-linkage coal by coal companies
through one e-auction window of Coal India Limited (CIL)/Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL).
o Prior to this auction used to be done through sector-specific auctions.
• This e-auction will cater to all the sectors, namely power sector and non regulated sector (NRS),
including traders.
1.243 Centre of Excellence in Maritime and Shipbuilding (CEMS)

• Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways have inaugurated the Centre of Excellence in
Maritime and Shipbuilding (CEMS) facility in Visakhapatnam.
• It was developed as a special purpose vehicle, in association with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping
and Waterways and Indian Register of Shipping.
• Objective: to bridge the skill gap, up-skilling and re-skilling of the current workforce.
• The centre will offer a wide variety of industry-relevant skill development programmes, to equip
students with employable engineering and technical skills.
1.244 SBI-NCF-IGNCA sign MoU for Development of Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design
• Recently, the State Bank of India (SBI) has signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) with the Indira Gandhi Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) and National Culture Fund (NCF).
o This MoU has been sighed for Development of Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design
(ABCD) at Red Fort, in Delhi.
What is Atmanirbhar Bharat Centre for Design (ABCD) Project?
• The ABCD project is being implemented by IGNCA.
• The project aims to highlight, promote and celebrate the products that have the Geographical
Indication sign as well as Economic Value Addition to GI products.
• This Centre will provide a collaborative space between the karigars and the designers, to enable
design interventions in sync with an exclusive and niche market for the artifacts.
What is Geographical Indication?
• It is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a
reputation that are due to that origin.
• It acts as a certification that the product possesses certain qualities, is made according to traditional
methods, or enjoys a good reputation due to its geographical origin.
About National Culture Fund

• It is a trust notified, under charitable Endowments Acts, 1890 and comes under the Ministry of
Culture.
• It has a primary mandate to nurture & establish partnerships in the field of heritage and mobilize
resources for the restoration and protection of tangible and intangible heritage.
About IGNCA
• Launched in 1985, it is a premier government-funded arts organization in India and is an
autonomous institute under the Union Ministry of Culture.
1.245 Sustainable Cities India Program

• Recently, the World Economic Forum and the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) signed a
MoU to collaborate on a jointly designed ‘Sustainable Cities India program’.
• WEF and NIUA will adapt WEF’s ‘City Sprint’ process as well as ‘Toolbox of Solutions’ for
decarbonisation of five to seven Indian cities in two years.
About Sustainable Cities India program
• It aims to enable cities to generate decarbonisation solutions in different sectors including energy
and transport.
• It seeks to enable cities to decarbonise in a systematic and sustainable way, in a bid to reduce
emissions and deliver equitable and resilient urban ecosystems.
What is ‘City Sprint’ process and ‘Toolbox of Solutions’?
• It is a series of multi-sectoral, multi-stakeholder workshops that involved government, business,
and civil society leaders to enable decarbonisation, specifically through clean electrification and
circularity.
o It will help to jumpstart and accelerate net zero action and planning.
• The City Sprint Process uses “Toolbox of Solutions”, which is a digital platform.
o It comprises of more than 200 examples of clean electrification, efficiency & smart
infrastructure best practices and case studies across energy systems, buildings, and mobility
from 110 cities of the world.
About NIUA
• Established in 1976, the NIUA is India’s leading national think tank on urban planning and
development.
• It seeks to provide innovative solutions to address the challenges of a fast urbanizing India, and
pave the way for more inclusive and sustainable cities of the future.
1.246 ECI appoints 15 Special Observers for the Poll Going States
• Recently, the Election Commission of India has appointed 15 former civil servants as special
observers for the upcoming assembly elections to Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand and Uttar
Pradesh.
o These Special Observers will be supervising and monitoring the work being done by the
electoral machinery in their assigned States.
About Election Commission of India
• It is an autonomous body under the Ministry of Law and Justice.
• It is established by the Constitution of India directly to ensure free and fair elections in the country
through Article 324.

• The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies, State
Legislative Councils and the offices of the President and Vice President of the country.
1.247 Kerala’s proposal to limit Lokayukta’s powers

• Recently, the Kerala government has proposed to amend the Kerala Lokayukta Act, 1999.
o The Kerala cabinet has recommended to the Governor to promulgate the ordinance.
Proposed Changes:
• The proposal sought to give the government powers to “either accept or reject the verdict of the
Lokayukta, after giving an opportunity of being heard”.
o Currently, under Section 14 of the Act, a public servant is required to vacate office if
directed by the Lokayukta.
• By this ordinance, the quasi-judicial institution orders will no longer be binding on the government.
What are Lokpal and Lokayukat?
• The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013 provides for the establishment of Lokpal for the Union and
Lokayukta for States.
o The Act provides for establishing a Lokpal in centre headed by a Chairperson, and of
its other members, not exceeding eight.
o The Section 63 of the act, provides for establish a body to be known as the Lokayukta for
the State, if not so established, constituted or appointed, by a law made by the State
Legislature”.
• These institutions are statutory bodies without any constitutional status.
• They perform the function of an "ombudsman” and inquire into allegations of corruption against
certain public functionaries and for related matters.
o Lokpal functions in Centre while the Lokayukat’s functions in their respective states.
• The First Lokpal was appointed in March 2019 and it started functioning since March 2020 when
its rules were framed.
o The Lokpal is at present headed by former Supreme Court Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose.
1.248 Draft India Data Accessibility and Use Policy 2022
• Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) has published a Draft India Data Accessibility and Use Policy
2022.
o It envisage that all data collected, generated, and stored by every government ministry and
department will be open and shareable barring certain exceptions.
• A regulatory authority called the Indian Data Council (IDC) and an agency by the name India Data
Office (IDO) will oversee framing metadata standards and enforcement, respectively.
1.249 Revamping of the Department of Commerce

• Recently, the Central Government has planned to revamp and fortification of the Department of
Commerce to make it future ready.
o The revamping is aimed at further building on its strategic direction and aspirations for the
next decade and scaling up and re-engineering the operation model with enhanced 'new-
age' capabilities.

1.250 Grant of Rs. 1348.10 crore released to Six States for Urban Local Bodies
• Recently, the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance has released Rs. 1348.10 crore to 6
States, viz, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Tripura for providing grants to
Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).
• Out of these six states, the maximum and minimum amount were received by Odisha (Rs.411
crore) & Tripura (Rs.14 crore) respectively.
• The grants are meant for Non-Million Plus cities (NMPCs) including Cantonment Boards.
International News
1.251 Portugal Parliamentary elections
• Portugal’s ruling Socialist Party (PS) led by Prime Minister Antonio Costa has secured an absolute
majority in the Parliamentary snap elections.
1.252 UAE to introduce federal corporate tax on business profits

• The United Arab Emirates has introduced a federal corporate tax on business profits starting from
June, 2023.
• The tax will be levied on all corporations and commercial activities in the country, except
"extraction of natural resources".
1.253 AU suspends Burkina Faso

• The African Union (AU) has suspended Burkina Faso from all activities after the country suffered its
latest coup.
• Recently, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regional bloc has also
suspended Burkina Faso from all its ranks.
1.254 Sri Lanka ‘Unitary Digital Identity framework’

• India has agreed to provide a grant to Sri Lanka for implementing a ‘Unitary Digital Identity
framework’.
• The Unitary Digital Identity Framework is apparently modelled on the Aadhaar card.
1.255 “Cope South 22” joint air exercise

• It is a bilateral tactical airlift exercise between the air forces of Bangladesh and the United States
(US) going to be conducted in Bangladesh.
• Aim: to improve interoperability with the Bangladesh air force and to support the armed forces of
Bangladesh's long-term modernization efforts.
1.256 Russia ends Crimea military drills

• Russian defence ministry has announced the end of military drills being undertaken in Crimea
along the Ukraine border.
1.257 US names Qatar as a major non-NATO ally

• The United States (US) has designated Qatar as a major non-NATO ally.
• The designation enables Qatar to access military and financial advantages of U.S.
• Reasons:
o Qatar played a central role in negotiations between US and Taliban in Afghanistan.
o It also hosts the biggest US air base in the Middle East; “the Al Udeid Air Base”.
• The US has designated 18 countries as major non NATO allies.
About NATO
• The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an intergovernmental military alliance between 27
European countries, 2 North American countries, and 1 Eurasian country.
1.258Australia to list Hamas as terrorists

• Australia has announced its intentions to list entire Palestinian movement Hamas to its list of
outlawed “terrorist” organizations.
• It has previously listed Hamas’s al-Qassam Brigades military wing as a terror group in 2003.
• Australia had also named the U.S.-based far-right extremist group National Socialist Order
(Atomwaffen Division) as terrorist organization.
About Hamas
• It is a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization headquartered in
Gaza.
• The US, the European Union and Britain have also named Hamas as a terrorist organization.
1.259 France to withdraw troops from Mali

• France has announced to withdraw its troops from Mali after nearly 10 years over a breakdown in
relations with the country’s ruling junta.
• France first deployed the troops at Mali’s request in 2013 to counter jihadist insurgency.
1.260 Israel becomes first country to allow large, high-flying drones in civilian airspace
• Israel’s Ministry of Transport and Road Safety has announced the country’s first certification for
unmanned aircraft vehicles (UAVs) to operate in civilian airspace.
• The certification was issued to the Hermes Starliner unmanned system, developed and
manufactured by Elbit Systems, and Israeli Defence Electronics Company.
1.261 Truth Social tops the chart of most downloaded apps

• Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s new social media app “Truth Social” has topped the list of
the most downloaded apps in Apple’s U.S. App Store.
• The app was introduced by Trump after he was banned by Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in 2021.
1.262 Japan unveils first hydrogen-powered train

• Japan has unveiled its first hydrogen-powered train which will be put to testing in March, 2022.
• The “Hybari" train can travel up to 140 kilometers at a top speed of 100 km/h on a single filling of
hydrogen.
• Developed by: East Japan Railway Co, Toyota Motor Corp. and Hitachi Ltd.
• World’s first Hydrogen train was unveiled by Germany in 2018 which was built by Alstom SA.
1.263 Pakistan President signs ordinance amending Electronic Crimes Act

• Pakistan President has signed an ordinance amending the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act,
2016.
• The new ordinance brings fake news or ridiculing any person on television under the category of
electronic crime.

• This is being seen as a step to suppress the freedom of media, freedom of speech and dissenting
voices.
1.264 Germany halts Nord Stream 2 approval

• Germany has suspended the process of certifying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.
• The announcement comes after Russia declared two separatist regions Donetsk and Luhansk of
Ukraine as Independent.
About the pipeline
• It is a 1,230 km long natural gas pipeline under the Baltic Sea, running from Russia to Germany's
Baltic coast.
• It runs parallel to Nord Stream pipeline 1 and is aimed to double its capacity, to 110 billion cubic
meters of gas per year.
• The pipeline has been completed but awaits approval from Germany and the European Union.
1.265 Malawi finds wild polio case; first in Africa in five years
• Recently, Malawi has declared an outbreak of wild polio as a case was identified in a child in
Lilongwe.
• It is the first case of the wild polio virus in Africa in more than five years.
• The African Continent was declared free of all forms of wild polio in 2020.
• According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the strain identified in the child has been linked
to the strain circulating in Pakistan.
• Wild polio remains endemic in only two countries viz, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
1.266 58th Munich Security Conference held in Germany

• Recently, the 58th Munich Security Conference (MSC 2022) was held in Hotel Bayerischer Hof,
Munich, Germany.
• It is an annual conference on international security policy.
• Chairman of Munich Security Conference: Dr. Christoph Heusgen.
• Union Minister for External Affairs represented India at the event.
1.267 UK closes 'golden visa' route for investors over security concerns
• Recently, the United Kingdom (UK), has closed the Tier 1 Investor visa (Golden Visa) route to all
new applicants from all nationalities with immediate effect over security concerns.
• The decision is aimed to provide opportunities for UK citizens & stop corrupt elites who threaten
national security & induce dirty money in the UK.
1.268 6th European Union - African Union Summit

• The 6th European Union (EU)-African Union (AU) Summit has taken place in Brussels, Belgium.
About EU
• It is a political and economic union of 27 member states that are located primarily in Europe.
About AU
• It is a union consisting of 55 member states located on the African continent.

1.269 U.S. fines Pakistan’s National Bank
• The Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the New York State
Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) have imposed a fine of USD 55.4 million on the National
Bank of Pakistan’s (NBP) New York branch.
1.270 Nepal's Parliament passes contentious U.S grant agreement

• Parliament of Nepal has ratified the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) pact under which a
USD 500 million grant will be provided meant for the construction of power transmission lines and
improvement of roads in the country.
• The MCC was signed between Nepal and U.S in 2017 to fund infrastructure projects.
• It is a bilateral U.S foreign aid agency established by the US Congress in 2004.
1.271 North Korea undertakes ballistic missile test

• North Korea has undertaken a ballistic missile test (8th test in 2022).
• The missile landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
1.272 Russia’s Invasion on Ukraine

• Russia has conducted a military exercise on neighboring country Ukraine resulting to a war like
situation in the country.
Key Highlights
• The largest plane in the world; Ukraine's Antonov-225 cargo plane named "Mriya" (The Dream) has
been destroyed by Russian air strikes.
• The picture of Mary Magdalene (follower of Jesus Christ) holding a missile has become a symbol of
the Ukrainian resistance to the invasion. It has been named St. Javelin.
• Javelin was designed by the US defence companies in the late 1980s. It is a lightweight weapon
which can be fired by soldiers and does not require a launcher.
• Ukraine has been hit by new data wiper malware “HermeticWiper” which destroys the master boot
record (MBR) of a system, shredding data and making the system unusable.
• The malware has been reported to be a part of Russia’s “hybrid warfare”.
1.273 Israel becomes first country to allow large, high-flying drones in civilian airspace
• Israel’s Ministry of Transport and Road Safety has announced the country’s first certification for
unmanned aircraft vehicles (UAVs) to operate in civilian airspace.
• The certification was issued to the Hermes Starliner unmanned system, developed and
manufactured by Elbit Systems, and Israeli Defence Electronics Company.
1.274 Canada clears world's first plant-based vaccine against Covid-19

• Recently, the world’s first plant-derived Covid-19 vaccine named Covifenz was cleared for use in
adults aged 18 to 64 in Canada.
• It is also the first authorized COVID-19 vaccine developed by a Canadian-based company
• Developers of Covifenz: Quebec based biopharma company Medicago Inc. (owned by Mitsubishi
Chemical), Philip Morris & GlaxoSmithKline Plc.
1.275 NDB first multilateral agency to open office in Gift City

• Recently, the New Development Bank (NDB) has received an approval to set up its office at the
Gujarat International Finance Tech City (GIFT City).
• NDB becomes the first multilateral agency to open its office in GIFT city.
About NDB
• Set up by: BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa)
• Objective: mobilizing resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in the
BRICS as well as other emerging markets.
1.276 ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight at, EXPO2020 Dubai

• Recently, the Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, has inaugurated the
‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight at the India Pavilion in EXPO2020, Dubai.
• It will showcase India’s prowess in sectors like food processing, horticulture, dairy, fisheries, and
organic farming and the vast investment opportunities that it offers.
About EXPO2020
• It has been organized at Dubai in the United Arab Emirates from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022.
• The main theme of the Dubai Expo 2020 is “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”.
o It also has three new themes such as; Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability.
1.277 Work Plan 2022 signed between India and Germany

• Recently, the India and Germany have signed a Work Plan 2022 during the virtually held 8th
meeting of the Indo-German Working Group on Quality Infrastructure.
• Work Plan aims to cooperate in strengthening quality infrastructure, reducing technical barriers to
trade, enhancing product safety and strengthening consumer protection.
• The areas identified for collaboration includes:
o Mobility, energy, circular economy, smart farming/ agriculture, medical devices, digitalization
(artificial intelligence, Industry 4.0 and other new technology areas), machinery safety,
medical devices and equipment and market surveillance.
1.278 Japanese Industrial Townships (JITs)

• Recently, Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT) of India and Ministry of
Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan held annual meeting to review the progress under
Japanese Industrial Townships (JITs) in India.
About JITs
• These townships were set up in accordance with “Action Agenda for India-Japan Investment &
Trade Promotion and Asia-Pacific Economic Integration”.
o It was signed between METI (Japan) and DPIIT (India) in April 2015.
1.279 India and Russia agree to deepen cooperation at the UNSC

• Recently, the India and Russia held bilateral consultations on United Nations Security Council
(UNSC) agenda and related developments at a meeting in Delhi.
About UNSC
• It was established by the UN Charter in 1945 and has been charged with ensuring international
peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General
Assembly, and approving any changes to the UN Charter.
• The council has 15 members: the five permanent members and ten non-permanent
members elected for two-year terms.

o The five permanent members are the United States, the Russian Federation, France, China
and the United Kingdom.
• Russia will assume the presidency of the UN Security Council in February, 2022.
1.280 4th Quad ministerial meeting

• Recently, the Foreign Ministers of Australia, India and Japan participated in the 4th QUAD
ministerial meeting in Melbourne, Australia.
What is QUAD?
• It is the informal strategic grouping between India, Japan, USA, and Australia with a shared
objective of ensuring and supporting a “free, open and prosperous” Indo-Pacific region.
1.281 UNCTAD on Global Trade in 2021

• Recently, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTD) has released its
report on global trade for 2021.
• Global trade touched $28.5 trillion which is a record level in 2021, according to the research.
o This shows a 25% increase over 2020 and a 13% increase over 2019 before the COVID-19
pandemic started.
About UNCTD
• It was established in 1964 as an intergovernmental organization intended to promote the interests
of developing states in world trade.
1.282 World Bank fund to fight future pandemics

• Recently, the US treasury secretary has urged from leading industrialized countries to support the
establishment of a new World Bank fund.
o It will be a new “financial intermediary fund" under the auspices of the World Bank.
• This fund has intended to help address gaps in preparedness, particularly among low-income
countries for future global health crises.
About World Bank
• Member countries: 189; Head Quarter: Washington DC, President: David Malpass.
1.283 India, France Adopt Blue Economy Plan

• Recently, the India and France have adopted a road map on the blue economy and ocean
governance.
o This has been adopted to enhance their partnership for the exploitation and preservation
of marine resources through economic, infrastructure and scientific cooperation.
Key Details of the Road Map
• Both the countries agreed on this roadmap which seeks to ensure that the ocean remains a global
common, on the basis of rule of law.
• It scope will encompass maritime trade, fisheries, ocean observation, marine biodiversity, marine
protected areas, renewable marine energy, etc.
• As part of this, India and France plan to organise an annual bilateral dialogue on the blue economy
and ocean governance.
o The dialogue will play a driving role in the formulation, organisation and follow-up of
cooperation projects in the four pillars of the partnership:
✓ Institutional,

✓ Economic,
✓ Infrastructures,
✓ Scientific and academic.
• Both countries will prioritize the blue economy in the expansion of their economic exchanges.
o They will facilitate contacts between economic actors, business leaders, and maritime
clusters in the two countries, as well as cross-border investments and visa issuance to blue
economy entrepreneurs.
• India will develop its ports, with a focus on environmentally friendly infrastructure, such as eco-
fishing ports. In this regard, both sides will encourage knowledge and methodology sharing.
• Both sides will enhance their scientific cooperation as well as exchanges of students and
researchers in the area of research in marine science and technology.
What is Blue Economy?
• The concept of Blue Economy was introduced by Gunter Pauli in his 2010 book titled “The Blue
Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs”.
• It is the integration of ocean economy development with values of social inclusion and
environmental sustainability, along with dynamic and innovative business models.
1.284 India – UAE Economic Partnership Agreement

• Recently, the India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has inked a trade pact called as
Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
Key Details of the Agreement
• It is a bilateral trade pact that will cover over a period of time 90% of India’s exports in goods
sector.
o It will attract zero duty for around 90% of products exported from India to UAE and will
reduce tariffs for 80% of goods exports.
• Apart from the goods sector, this agreement also includes the services sector.
• It provides for automatic registration and marketing authorization of Indian generic medicines in
90 days.
• It has anti-dumping measures to prevent any country from dumping its products into the Indian
market by using the route of the UAE.
• It also has very strong rules of origin clauses that will disallow any country to export goods to India
taking advantage of relaxed tariff on the Indian side.
• It provides a permanent safeguard mechanism to protect businesses in both countries to prevent
“any unnecessary or unwarranted surge in volumes of (imports) any particular product.
• This agreement also focuses on Technology, digital trade and sustainability.
Benefits of the Agreement
• It will boost annual bilateral trade to $100 billion within 5 years of its adoption, up from about $60
billion currently.
• India-UAE CEPA is likely to create an estimated 10 lakh jobs in India.
• It will open many new opportunities for Indians in UAE, including in fintech, ed-tech, green tech,
automation and Artificial Intelligence.
• It will also help in providing market entry points to Africa, Middle East and Europe

1.285 DST-CII India-Singapore Technology Summit
• Recently, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology has delivered an
inaugural speech and shared information at 8th edition of DST-CII India-Singapore Technology
Summit.
Key Information Shared
• India is placed 3rd among countries in scientific publication as per National Science Foundation
(NSF) database.
• India has featured within the top 50 innovative economies globally (at 46th rank), as per Global
Innovation Index (GII).
• Singapore is India’s largest trade partner in ASEAN and it is the leading source of Foreign Direct
Investment.
o About 9000 Indian companies are registered in Singapore and more than 440 companies
from Singapore are registered in India.
• Bi-lateral Trade between India and Singapore increased by 35% from 19.8 billion dollars to 26.8
billion dollars from 2020 to 2021.
• Singapore will set up more Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) Nodes in Indian Cities after Bangalore.
About DST-CII India-Singapore Technology Summit
• It has been organized by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) in collaboration with
Confederation of Indian industry (CII).
• Theme: “Building Economies for the future”.
• This summit will provide a high profile and wide-ranging platform for businesses, knowledge
institutions and government agencies to forge partnerships and boost innovation, investment and
trade.
• The summits focus sector includes:
o Climate and Sustainable green technologies, Industry 4.0 and advance engineering, Space-
tech leadership, Green Mobility, Health Care technology and precision medicines, etc.
1.286 India sends first shipment of wheat to Afghanistan via Pakistan

• Recently, Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla flagged off the first shipment of 2,500 tonnes of wheat
from Amritsar to Afghanistan via the Pakistani land route.
• The shipment is part of the commitment made by the Government of India to supply 50,000 metric
tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan.
• Government of India has signed an agreement with the United Nations World Food Program (WFP)
to distribute 50,000 MT of wheat within Afghanistan
• The shipments will be handed over to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) in Jalalabad,
Afghanistan.
• India has already supplied 5,00,000 doses of Covaxin, 13 tonnes of essential lifesaving medicines
and 500 units of winter clothing to Afghanistan.
• The vaccine and medical supplies were handed over to the World Health Organisation (WHO) at the
Indira Gandhi Hospital, Kabul.
1.287 World Oil Outlook Data
• Recently, the Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, has shared information regarding
the World Oil Outlook 2021 data, concerning India.
Key Data Shared
• As per outlook, the oil demand in India is expected to reach around 11 mb/d (million barrels per
day) by 2045 as compared to approximately 4.9 million barrels per day in 2021.
• By 2026, global oil consumption is projected to reach 104.1 mb/d.
o This would represent an increase of 4.4 mb/d from 2019 levels.
About World Oil Outlook 2021
• This is a means to highlight and further the understanding of the many possible future challenges
and opportunities that lie ahead for the oil industry.
• It is a flagship publication by Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
About OPEC
• It is an intergovernmental organization or cartel of 13 countries created at the Baghdad
Conference in 1960, by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.
• It aims to manage the supply of oil in an effort to set the price of oil in the world market, in order
to avoid fluctuations that might affect the economies of both producing and purchasing countries.
• It is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.
1.288 Seminar organized as a part of ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight at EXPO2020
• Recently, the India Pavilion at EXPO2020 Dubai UAE has hosted a seminar – ‘India: Millets
production and upscaling value chain’.
o Theme of India Pavilion at EXPO2020: India@75: Openness. Opportunities. Growth.
• The seminar was organized as a part of the ongoing ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight
(17th February to 2nd March, 2022).
About ‘Food, Agriculture and Livelihood’ fortnight
• It was inaugurated by the Indian Delegation led by Dr Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary, Ministry
of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare at the India Pavilion.
• 'Millet' is a theme launched as a part of the 'Food, Agriculture and Livelihood' fortnight.
• A millet and food festival has been organized during the fortnight as a part of the UN International
Year of Millets 2023.
• A millet book has also been released during the fortnight.
About EXPO2020 Dubai
• It is a world expo, hosted by Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• Theme: Connecting Minds, Creating the Future
• Duration: 182 days (1 October 2021 – 31 March 2022).
• Mascots: Latifa and Rashid (intrepid Emirati siblings); Salama the Ghaf tree; Alif - Mobility Pavilion
guardian; Opti - Opportunity Pavilion guardian; Terra - Sustainability Pavilion guardian.
Science and Technology

1.289 NASA’s study suggests presence of liquid water in Mars
• A team of NASA’s (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) scientists have suggested the
presence of surface water on Mars nearly 2 billion years ago.
• The study has been conducted through the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) launched in 2005.

• They used the Context Camera and High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) color
camera onboard the spacecraft to map the extent of chloride salts across Mars’ southern
hemisphere.
1.290 Two New Bird Species Discovered on Borneo

• Ornithologists have discovered two new bird species from the Meratus Mountains of Borneo.
• The new species named Cyornis and Zosterops belong to a genus of passerine birds.
• Cyornis belongs to family Muscicapidae and is distributed across southern Asia.
• Zosterops is a unique white-eyed bird in family Zosteropidae distributed in the Afrotropical,
Indomalayan, and Australasian regions.
• The researchers have recommended the vulnerable status for the new species in the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.
1.291 NASA HERMES Mission

• NASA’s HERMES mission has passed a critical mission review called Key Decision Point C to evaluate
the preliminary design and program plan of the mission.
About HERMES Mission

• HERMES stands for “Heliophysics Environmental and Radiation Measurement Experiment Suite”
and is planned to be launched in November, 2024.
• It will help in monitoring space weather and fluctuating conditions in space driven by the Sun.
• It will be mounted outside the “Habitation and Logistics Outpost module” of Gateway outpost of
NASA.
• Gateway will be where Artemis astronauts live and work as they orbit the Moon, supporting
scientific experiments and technology development applicable for both lunar and future deep space
human exploration.
• HERMES will be a critical part of Artemis mission.
About Artemis
• It is NASA’s mission which will land the first woman and first person of color on the Moon, using
innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface.
1.292 IIT Madras team finds gene linked to higher diabetes risk
• A team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, has identified a
gene/protein variation which increases the risk of diabetes, heart attacks and hypertension in the
population by 1.5 times.
• It is present in about 15% of Indians and south Asians.
• The team has been led by Nitish R. Mahapatra, professor in the Department of Biotechnology,
Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta, School of Biosciences, IIT-Madras.
• The new research has been published in the journal “Diabetes” of the American Diabetes
Association.
1.293 New Ultra Strong 2-D polymer

• Developed by: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT
• Polymer name: 2DPA-1.
• Special Property: It is lighter than plastic and stronger than steel.
1.294 Parker Solar probe captures first images of Venus
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Parker Solar Probe has captured first
visible light images of the surface of Venus from space.
• The images were captured during Parker’s third flyby around the planet using its Wide-Field Imager
(WISPR) in July 2020.
• The images have been confirmed in the Fourth flyby conducted in February, 2021.
• This latest observation has laid the groundwork for future missions to Venus such as NASA’s
DAVINCI and VERITAS and European Space Agency’s (ESA) EnVision mission.
About Parker Solar Probe
• It was launched in 2018 with the mission of making observations of the outer corona of the Sun.
1.295 NASA introduces two new Solar Missions

• NASA has announced two new science missions named the Multi-slit Solar Explorer (MUSE) and
HelioSwarm.
• Aim: to understand the dynamics of the Sun, the Sun-Earth connection, and the constantly changing
space environment.
• These missions will aid in protecting the astronauts, satellites, and crucial communications signals.
About MUSE
• It will be launched to understand the forces driving the heating of the Sun’s corona and the
eruptions in that outermost region that are responsible for the space weather.
About Helioswarm
• Under this, nine spacecraft would be launched to measure fluctuations in the magnetic field and
motions of the solar wind called the solar wind turbulence.
1.296 New HIV strain discovered in the Netherlands

• Researchers from Oxford University have discovered a highly virulent strain of HIV (human
immunodeficiency virus) from the Netherlands.
• The new strain has been named VB variant and the study has been published in the journal Science.
• The research team first identified the VB variant in 17 HIV positive individuals from the data of the
BEEHIVE project out of which 15 belonged to Netherlands.
About BEEHIVE
• Bridging the Epidemiology and Evolution of HIV in Europe (BEEHIVE) is a data collection and
analysis initiative in Europe and Uganda.
1.297 NASA's ATLAS Observatory

• The NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) has become the first
observatory capable of searching the entire dark sky every 24 hours for hazardous near-Earth
objects (NEOs).
• The observatory now has four telescopes
o Two new telescopes in South Africa and Chile.
o Two telescopes in the northern-hemisphere on Haleakala and Maunaloa in Hawaii (United
States).
• The observatory became operational in 2017 and is operated by the University of Hawaii's (UH)
Institute for Astronomy (IfA).

1.298 ISRO successfully launches PSLV-C52
• The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully launched the PSLV C-52 rocket
(Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
• The rocket has carried EOS-04 (earth observation satellite) and 2 Small Satellites.
About EOS- 04
• It is a Radar Imaging Satellite designed to provide high quality images under all weather conditions
for Agriculture, Forestry and Plantations, Soil Moisture and Hydrology and Flood mapping.
1.299 Study derives accurate value of Pluto’s atmospheric pressure

• A team of scientists have found the value of Pluto’s atmospheric pressure to be 12.23 μbar at the
surface.
• It is more than 80,000 times less than the atmospheric pressure at mean sea level on Earth.
• The pressure was calculated from data obtained by observation of stellar occultation by Pluto using
Devasthal optical telescope (DOT) and Devasthal Fast Optical Telescope (DFOT) telescopes located
at Devasthal, Nainital (Uttarakhand).
• The study has also confirmed earlier findings that Pluto suffers intense seasonal episodes because of
large depression on Pluto, known as Sputnik Planitia.
• DOT is India’s largest optical telescope.
About Occultation
• It happens when a celestial object gets hidden from the view of the observer due to another
celestial object passing in between them.
1.300 First woman cured of HIV after stem cell transplant

• A patient with leukemia in the U.S. has been cured of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) after
receiving a stem cell transplant from a donor who was naturally resistant to the virus.
• She has become the first woman and the third person to date to be cured of HIV.
• HIV is the causal organism of Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
• The first patient cured of HIV was a Caucasian male known as the “Berlin patient”, who experienced
HIV remission for 12 years.
• The second patient called the “London patient” has been in HIV remission for more than 30 months.
1.301 CMFRI identifies new fish in Indian coast

• The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has identified a new Carangid (Vatta)
species from the Indian coast belonging to the ‘queen fish’ group.
• The fish is named ‘Scomberoides pelagicus’ and is locally known as pola vatta.
• There are over 60 species of carangids in the Indian coasts and four of them belong to the ‘queen
fish’ category.
• The newly-described one is the fifth queen fish from the Indian waters.
• Queen fish are named as Least Concern in the IUCN red list.
1.302 Astronomers find new asteroid sharing Earth's orbit

• Astronomers of the US National Science Foundation’s (NSF) NOIRLab (National Optical-Infrared
Astronomy Research Laboratory) have identified a new Trojan asteroid sharing Earth’s orbit.

• The asteroid named 2020 XL5 is the second of its kind and was detected in December, 2020 by the
Pan-STARRS S1 telescope survey.
• It is small yet the largest Trojan asteroid ever discovered by astronomers measuring 0.7 miles in
diameter.
About Trojan asteroids
• These are asteroids that share orbit with a planet.
• The first known Earth Trojan asteroid was 2010 TK7 (0.3 km wide) discovered in 2010.
• Trojan asteroids have been found earlier around Venus, Uranus, Mars and Neptune.
About Pan-STARRS
• Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS) is a ground-based
telescope used for astronomical imaging, located at Haleakala Observatory in Hawaii, U.S.
• It is operated by the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, and is funded by the US
Air Force.
1.303 NASA raises concern over Starlink’s 30,000 satellites

• SpaceX has asked for permission to launch next set of 30,000 satellites followed by 12,000
satellites.
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has raised concerns over the same.
1.304 Nanna Shale Nanna Koduge app launched

• Department of Primary and Secondary Education in Karnataka has launched the “Nanna Shale
Nanna Koduge” application.
• It means ‘My School, My Contribution’.
• Aim: To help address infrastructure needs of government schools, shortage of teachers, optimal use
of learning aids and utilisation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds.
1.305 New Nuclear Fusion Energy Generation Record

• Joint European Torus (JET) Laboratory has made a new record of producing 59 Mega Joules from
Fusion Reaction for 5 seconds.
• JET Laboratory is based in the United Kingdom.
• The energy was produced in a machine called a tokama.
• ITER is a fusion research mega-project supported
1.306 Research finds efficient way of detecting food contamination using Gold Nano rods
• A team of Indian researchers has found a more efficient way of detecting food contamination.
• This can be done by tuning the properties of Gold-Nano rods by applying a DC electric field (external
forces) for developing sensors that can detect trace amounts of molecules.
• The study has been conducted by W. Zaibudeen and Ranjini Bandyopadhyay of the Raman
Research Institute, Bangalore.
• It has been published in the journal ‘Soft Matter’.
1.307 Indian Scientist develops technology for the repair and restoration of high-value components
• Professor Ramesh Kumar Singh of IIT Bombay has developed an autonomous technology for repair
and restoration of high-value components such as moulds, turbine blades, and other aerospace
components with enhanced quality and repeatability.

• The laser-directed energy deposition (LDED) technique has been developed with support from the
Advanced Manufacturing Technologies Program of the Department of Science and Technology
(Government of India).
• Professor Ramesh has partnered with Bharat Forge, Aditya Birla Science and Technology Company
and Interface Design Associates for the commercialization of the new technology.
1.308 Indian researchers trace tectonic evolution of Indian Ocean basin

• A team of researchers has traced the tectonic evolution of the Greater Maldive Ridge (GMR), which
can help reconstruct the original Gondwanaland break up.
• GMR, located in the western Indian Ocean is aseismic that is not associated with earthquake
activities.
• The team was led by Dr. Priyesh Kunnummal from the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbai.
• The study has been published recently in the journal ‘Gondwana Research’.
Key Highlights
• The team has found that the GMR might have formed near the Mid-Oceanic Ridge, where the
creation of a new ocean floor occurs.
• The study has also concluded that the Deep-Sea Channel region (DSC) may probably be oceanic in
nature with the presence of under-plated materials associated with hotspot volcanism.
1.309 New plant variety spotted in Arunachal

• A team of researchers from Kerala have identified a new plant variety belonging to the coffee
family “Rubiaceae” from Shi-Yomi (Arunachal Pradesh).
• The new variety has been named Ophiorrhiza medogensis (var. shiyomiense) after the region to
which it is endemic and has been recorded in India for the first time.
• The team was led by M Sabu (CSIR emeritus scientist) and V S Hareesh of the Malabar Botanical
Garden and Institute for Plant Sciences, Kozhikode.
• The findings have been published in the international journal Adansonia, published by the French
Museum of Natural History, Paris.
1.310 Scientists from DRDO and IIT Delhi demonstrate Quantum Key Distribution
• A team of scientists from Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Indian
Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi have successfully demonstrated Quantum Key Distribution (QKD)
link for the first time in the country.
• The link has been demonstrated between Prayagraj and Vindhyachal in Uttar Pradesh (distance 100
km.).
About QKD
• QKD, also called Quantum Cryptography, is a mechanism to develop secure communication.
• The technology enables two communicating sides to generate random secret keys known
exclusively to them, which can be used to encrypt and decrypt messages, thus achieving a very
highly-secure communication.
1.311 Venera D Mission

• Russia has suspended the U.S from further participation in the Venera-D (Dolgozhivushaya) mission
due to implementation of new sanctions against Russia.
About Venera- D

• It is a joint space exploration project between Russia's Roscosmos and US space agency National
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to explore Venus.
• It is to be launched in 2029.
• Aim: to study the Venus’ atmosphere and collect soil samples.
• It will be the first Venus probe launched by Russia.
• Besides Venera D, Russia is also aiming to send a Venus exploration mission in 2031 and 2034.
1.312 NASA raises concern over Starlink’s 30,000 satellites

• SpaceX has asked for permission to launch next set of 30,000 satellites followed by 12,000
satellites.
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has raised concerns over the same.
1.313 Nanna Shale Nanna Koduge app launched

• Department of Primary and Secondary Education in Karnataka has launched the “Nanna Shale
Nanna Koduge” application.
• It means ‘My School, My Contribution’.
• Aim: To help address infrastructure needs of government schools, shortage of teachers, optimal use
of learning aids and utilisation of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds.
1.314 New Nuclear Fusion Energy Generation Record

• Joint European Torus (JET) Laboratory has made a new record of producing 59 Mega Joules from
Fusion Reaction for 5 seconds.
• JET Laboratory is based in the United Kingdom.
• The energy was produced in a machine called a tokama.
• ITER is a fusion research mega-project supported by seven members: China, the European Union,
India, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the USA.
1.315 The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C52) mission

• Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-
C52) mission from first launch pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
Defence in News
1.316 India- Oman Joint Military Cooperation Committee Meeting
• The 11th edition of the India-Oman Joint Military Cooperation Committee Meeting (JMCC) on
bilateral defence cooperation has been held in New Delhi.
• The JMCC is the highest level engagement between the two nations in the field of defence that
evaluates and provides guidance to the overall framework of defence exchanges.
1.317 Boys Sports Company, RVC Centre and College to conduct an induction rally
• Boys Sports Company (BSC), Remount Veterinary Corps (RVC) Centre and College, Meerut is going
to conduct a selection rally for Induction of raw and proven players as Sports Cadets from all over
India.
• These cadets will be inducted in Equestrian Discipline (Horse Riding) at RVC Centre and College,
Meerut Cantt.

• BSC is a joint venture between Sports Authority of India and Indian Army with a provision to select
and groom potential talent in Equestrian discipline to improve and achieve India’s medal prospectus
in future international sports competitions.
1.318 IAC Vikrant

• It is an India-Russian joint venture that produces the supersonic cruise missile 'BrahMos'.
1.319 Singapore Air Show-2022

• It is a biennial event which provides a platform for the Global Aviation Industry to showcase their
products.
• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has showcased the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas MK-I in
the ‘Singapore Air Show-2022’.
About LCA Tejas
• It is an Indian multirole light supersonic fighter.

• Manufactured by: Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy.
1.320 Oman Navy chief visits India
• Commander of the Royal Navy of Oman (CRNO) has visited India to enhance bilateral relations with
Indian Navy, as also to explore new areas for defence cooperation with India.
• Oman has granted India access to the Port of Duqm in Oman for military use and logistical support.
• The two countries also have the White Shipping agreement, which allows sharing information
regarding non-military merchant vessels.
• The two Navies have been participating in the biennial maritime exercise ‘Naseem Al Bahr’ since
1993.
1.321 Maiden visit of the Commander of Royal Saudi Land Forces to India
• The Commander of the Royal Saudi Land Forces, Lieutenant General Fahd Bin Abdullah Mohammed
Al-Mutair, has visited India.
• This is the first ever visit by a serving Royal Saudi Land Forces Commander to India.
• Aim: to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries.
1.322 Joint Security Exercise at Port Blair Airfield
• Andaman & Nicobar Command (ANC) has conducted a joint security exercise at Port Blair airfield.
• Aim: to test the preparedness of all security agencies during various contingencies.
• These drills have been conducted at Indian Navy Ship (INS) Utkrosh and Veer Savarkar
International Airport.
• Quick Reaction Teams (QRTs) from the Army, Navy, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and
Special Forces elements from the National Security Guard (NSG), Ghatak Platoons and Marine
Commandos (MARCOS) participated in the drills.
1.323 President’s Naval Fleet review 2022
• The 12th edition of the President’s Fleet Review has been conducted at Visakhapatnam, Andhra
Pradesh.
• Theme: ‘75 years in Service of the Nation’.
• President of India (the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces) has reviewed the Naval Fleet
embarked on the Presidential Yacht “Indian Navy Ship (INS) Sumitra”.
• The fleet comprised of over 60 ships and submarines, and 55 aircraft.
1.324 Eastern Bridge-VI exercise
• The 6th edition of the bilateral exercise “Eastern Bridge-VI” between Indian Air Force (IAF) and
Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) has been held at Air Force Station Jodhpur.
• Aim: to enhance operational capability and interoperability between the two Air Forces.
1.325 DefExpo 2022
• The 12th edition of the Asia's largest exhibition on land, naval and homeland security systems
“DefExpo 2022” is going to be held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat in March, 2022.
• Theme of the event: ‘Path to Pride’.
• The Defence Minister has launched a DefExpo-2022 mobile app for all issues related to the event.
1.326 Navy gets 12th P-8I aircraft
• The Indian Navy has received the 12th P-8I patrol aircraft from the US-based aerospace company
Boeing.
• The Navy had signed a contract to procure four additional P-8I aircraft in 2016 after procuring eight
P-8Is in 2009.
About P-8I
• It is a long-range maritime reconnaissance and Anti-Submarine Warfare Aircraft.
• India was the first international customer of Boeing for this aircraft.
• The first aircraft was inducted by the Navy in 2013.
1.327 ‘EX DHARMA GUARDIAN-2022’ military exercise
• The 3rd edition of the joint military exercise “EX DHARMA GUARDIAN-2022” between India and
Japan is going to be conducted, at Belagavi (Belgaum), Karnataka from 27 February to 10 March
2022.
• Aim: enhancing inter-operability and foster mutual understanding.
• The 15th Battalion the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment will represent the Indian Army.
1.328 Indian Navy and HAL sign a 'Mutual Expression of Interest'
• Indian Navy (IN) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) have signed a 'Mutual Expression of
Interest' to facilitate Faculty Exchange Program between Naval Institute of Aeronautical
Technology, Kochi (Kerala) and HAL Management Academy, Bengaluru.
• Aim: to create awareness among trainees for latest aviation technologies and Maintenance, Repair
& Overhaul (MRO) management through courses, guest lectures, workshops and conferences.
• The agreement has been signed during the 3rd IN-HAL Apex Level Meeting.
1.329 Ministry of Defence organizes a webinar on the announcements made in Union budget
• Ministry of Defence has organized a post budget webinar on the announcements made in Union
budget 2022-23.
• Theme: ‘Aatmanirbharta in Defence - Call to Action’.
• On the occasion, the Defence Minister has made multiple announcements to encourage the industry
and the startups.
o At least five projects to be sanctioned under Make-I during Financial Year 2022-23 to
promote research and development.
o Creation of a monitoring mechanism under Director General (DG)-Acquisition.
o Reformation of Quality Assurance (QA) process.
o iDEX-Prime to support projects to help growing startups in the defence sector.
About Make- I Projects

• These are Government funded (90%) projects to enhance indigenous capabilities of developing
defence equipment by both public and private sector industry in a faster time frame.
About iDEX
• The scheme Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) was launched in April 2018.
• Aim: to achieve self-reliance, innovation and technology development in the field of Defence and
Aerospace.
1.330 Indian Navy to get first batch of 3 MH-60R Multi-Role Helicopters in July 2022
• The first batch of 3 MH-60 Romeo (R) Multi-Role Helicopters from U.S are going to arrive in India by
July, 2022.
• Built by: Lockheed Martin.
• The three helicopters were delivered to the Indian Navy in July, 2021 in the U.S. and are being used
for training Indian pilots at Pensacola, Florida and San Diego.
• India had signed a USD 2.2 billion deal for 24 MH-60R helicopters in February 2020.
1.331 Indian Air Force to participate in ‘Ex Cobra Warrior 22' in the UK
• The Indian Air Force (IAF) will participate in a multi-nation air exercise named 'Ex Cobra Warrior 22'
at Waddington, United Kingdom in March 2022.
• IAF Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will represent India in the exercise.
1.332 MILAN 2022 multilateral exercise

• Indian Navy’s biennial multilateral naval exercise MILAN 2022 has begun in the ‘City of Destiny’,
Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh).
• Theme: ‘Camaraderie – Cohesion – Collaboration’
• Aim: to project India as a responsible maritime power to the world at large and to enhance
operational skills and professional interaction between friendly navies.
• A part of the event, an International Maritime Seminar has been organized with the theme –
‘Harnessing Collective Maritime Competence through Collaboration’.
• This year the exercise has witnessed its largest ever participation of more than 40 countries.
• Since its inception in 1995, the event has been held biennially except in 2001, 2005, 2016 and 2020.
1.333 BEL to undertake retro-modification for T-90 tank
• Ministry of Defence has signed a contract with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) for the retro-
modification of Commander Sight of India’s main battle tank “T-90”.
• Commander sight of T-90 is presently fitted with Image Converter (IC) tube-based sight for night
viewing. It is to be replaced with an advanced Mid Wave Thermal Image (MWIR).
• MWIR has been jointly designed and developed by DRDO and BEL.
1.334 DRDO and Safran to develop Engine for AMCA
• India and France are going to sign an agreement for the joint development of a 125KN engine for
the indigenous 5th generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).
• The engine will be developed by DRDO and French engine maker Safran.
• The AMCA is being developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA).
• Earlier, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Safran have developed the Shakti engine, which
powers the indigenous Advanced Light Helicopter.

Environment
1.335 New Species added to the mammal list of India
• Recently found ‘white cheeked macaque’ in Arunachal Pradesh has been added in the mammal list
of India.
• Discovered by: Scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI).
• While the Macaque was first discovered in China in 2015, its existence was not known in India
before this.
1.336 New gecko species discovered in Western Ghats

• The species has been named as Hemidactylus easai.
• It has been discovered from the hills of Attappady, in the Western Ghats, Kerala.
1.337 Cyclone Batsirai makes landfall

• Cyclone Batsirai has made landfall on coast of Madagascar on 6th February 2022.
1.338 New species of spider and millipede discovered

• A team, led by researchers from Department of Zoology, Christ College, Kerala, has discovered a
new species of millipede.
• This new species, named as Delarthrum anomalans, belongs to the family Paradoxosomatidae, a
group of minute millipedes.
1.339 Kaziranga National Park: A net carbon emitter

• According to a research, Kaziranga National Park (KNP) in Assam has been termed as a net Carbon
emitter meaning it is releasing more carbon than it is absorbing.
• Reasons
o The soil in KNP is home to a large population of bacteria that release carbon dioxide as they
breathe, adding to what trees and others emanate.
o Decreasing rainfall in the area.
• The research has been conducted by a team of scientists from the Indian Institute of Tropical
Meteorology, Pune (Maharashtra) and Tezpur University, Assam.
• It has been published in the journal Agricultural and Forest Meteorology.
• KNP is the home to the largest-population of the one-horned rhinoceros in the world.
• It was declared a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World
Heritage Site in 1985.
1.340 Mount Everest’s highest glacier melting at an alarming rate
• A team of researchers has found the melting of glaciers on the Mount Everest such as South Col
Glacier, located at the highest point in the world, at an alarming rate.
• The researchers from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD),
Nepal have warned that the glaciers could disappear by the middle of this century.
• The research has been published in the journal 'Climate and Atmospheric Research'.
About ICIMOD
• It is based in Kathmandu, Nepal and is a regional intergovernmental learning and knowledge sharing
center for Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan.

1.341 Tiger population at the Sariska Tiger Reserve increases
• The tiger population in the Sariska Tiger Reserve located in Alwar, Rajasthan has gone up to 25.
• This is due to the tiger habitat management measures launched in June 2020 at the reserve.
• Tigers are globally listed as “Endangered” on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature
(IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
1.342 Storm Eunice hits England
• Storm Eunice has made its landfall in London resulting in the Britain's meteorological service to
issue its first ever "danger to life” Red weather warning.
• The storm has caused a huge amount of damage in parts of Western, Central and Northern Europe.
• It has been named Storm Zeynep in Germany and Storm Nora in Denmark.
1.343 Army’s Bent Toed Gecko: A New Lizard Species from Meghalaya Named in Honor of Indian army
• Recently, a new species of Gecko was recorded from the Umroi Military Station, Ri-Bhoi district in
Meghalaya by researchers.
o The Gecko has been scientifically named as Cyrtodactylus exercitus.
o The Gecko has been given the English name Indian Army’s bent-toed gecko to honour the
contribution of Indian Army.
• Another new species of Gecko Cyrtodactylus siahaensis has been discovered in Mizoram.
o It has been named after, after Mizoram’s Siaha district where it was found.
• The discovery has been published in European Journal of Taxonomy.
• Additional Information: In a separate study researchers have discovered Cyrtodactylus lungleiensis,
a new species of bent-toed gecko named after Mizoram’s Lunglei town.
1.344 Great Backyard Bird Count 2022

• The annual Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) has taken place in coordination with Bird Count India
(umbrella group of birding, nature and conservation organizations).
• It is the Indian edition of the biggest bird-o-thon which is an annual avian census.
• The event requires participants to count birds for at least 15 minutes from a particular location and
upload the sightings online on the website of eBird.
• The first GBBC was launched by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and National Audubon Society in
the US in 1998 to create real-time data on wild birds.
• eBird is the world’s largest biodiversity-related citizen science platform.
• The three most common birds reported in India in 2021 are common myna, red-vented bulbul and
rose-ringed Parakeet.
• India ranked second worldwide in number of species documented during the 2021 event.
• Apart from GBBC, the Campus Bird Count (CBC) is also an effort to monitor birds that make their
home in educational and institutional campuses.
1.345 Indian Neutrino Observatory (INO)
• Tamil Nadu government has presented its dissent to the Supreme Court for the establishment of
the Indian Neutrino Observatory (INO) over environmental concerns in the Western Ghats.
• The INO project is proposed at Pottipuram in Bodi West hills of Tamil Nadu.
• It lies near the Mathikettan-Periyar tiger corridor which links the Periyar Tiger Reserve along the
Kerala and Tamil Nadu borders, the Mathikettan Shola National Park and Srivilliputhur
Meghamalai Tiger Reserve.
About INO
• It is a multi-institutional project aimed at building a world-class underground laboratory for non-
accelerator based high energy and nuclear physics research in India.
• The project is being jointly funded by Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) and the Department of
Science and Technology (DST).
• The INO has to be constructed by 7 primary project partners and 13 project participants.
• The primary partners include:
o Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai.
o Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai.
o Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc), Chennai.
o Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (SINP), Kolkata.
o Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC), Kolkata.
o Harish Chandra Research Institute (HRI), Allahabad.
o Institute of Physics (IOP), Bhubaneswar.
1.346 Australia hit by Rain Bomb
• Eastern Parts of Australia including Brisbane have been struck by a rare phenomenon called “Rain
Bomb” causing fatalities due to the accompanying flash floods.
• Rain bomb is one of a kind of extreme meteorological events that occur around the Earth which is
destructive in nature.
• It is also known as Wet Microbursts.
About Wet Microbursts
• It is a small column of sinking air known as downdraft that forms within a thunderstorm and has a
diameter of less than or equal to 2.5 miles.
• Microbursts can cause significant surface damage and can also be life-threatening. These are
accompanied by heavy rainfall.
1.347 ASEAN-India High Level Conference on Renewable Energy

• Recently, the ASEAN and India have held high level conference on Renewable Energy.
o Theme “Experience and Innovations for Integrated Renewables Market”.
o Organized by: Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Ministry of External Affairs.
About ASEAN
• It is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia, established in Bangkok
in August 1967.
• Member Southeast Asian states namely, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines,
Myanmar, Vietnam, Singapore and Thailand, into one organization.
1.348 Data On Water Bodies In The Country

• Minister of State for Jal Shakti has shared data, collected from the 1st first census of water.
o This census of water was combined with the 6th round of minor irrigation census (reference
year 2017-18).
• As per the tentative figures of State-wise number of water bodies Andhra Pradesh has the highest
number of water bodies and number of encroachments reported.
• In state wise number of water bodies used for minor irrigation, Maharashtra has highest no. of
water bodies used for Minor Irrigation.

About 1st first census of water:
• The Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation have launched
the first census of water bodies to develop a national database for all water bodies by collecting
information on all important aspects of the subject including their size, condition, etc.
1.349 GT Suggests National River Rejuvenation Mechanism

• Recently, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Ministry of Jal Shakti to devise an
appropriate National River Rejuvenation Mechanism.
o This mechanism will be for effective monitoring of steps to curb pollution and for
rejuvenation of all polluted river stretches across the country.
• It may consider setting up a National, State or district environment data grid at appropriate levels
as an effective monitoring strategy.
• NGT is a statutory body, established by the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010, for the effective and
expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and
other natural resources.
1.350 GAIL starts India’s maiden project of Blending Hydrogen
• Recently, the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has commenced India’s first-of-its-kind project
of mixing hydrogen into natural gas system at Indore (Madhya Pradesh).
o GAIL has started injection of grey hydrogen at City Gate Station (CGS), Indore and it would
subsequently been replaced by green hydrogen.
About GAIL
• It is a government owned Natural Gas Corporation (under the ownership of Ministry of Petroleum
and Natural Gas) responsible for natural gas processing and distribution in India headquartered in
GAIL Bhawan New Delhi, India. Manoj Jain, is the present Chairman & MD.
1.351 Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to host “New Frontiers” program
• The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy has hosted a programme titled “New Frontiers: A
programme on Renewable Energy” from 16th February to 18th February 2022.
• The programme was hosted as a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM).
1.352 Power and NRE Minister chairs 4th India - Australia Energy Dialogue
• Recently, the 4th India - Australia Energy Dialogue was held virtually.
• Co-chairs of the Meeting: R.K. Singh, Union Minister for Power & Renewable Energy (India) & Angus
Taylor, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction (Australia).
• Key Area of Discussion: Energy Transition with focus on renewables, energy efficiency, storage,
Electric vehicles, critical minerals and mining
Key Highlights of the Dialogue
• A Letter of Intent (LoI) on New and Renewable Energy Technology was signed between India and
Australia to scale up manufacture and deployment of ultra-low-cost solar and clean hydrogen.
1.353 India, Australia, Singapore come together to address marine pollution

• Recently, the Government of India, in partnership with the Australian and Singapore Governments
has conducted an international virtual workshop on combating marine pollution.
• Aim: to discuss research interventions toward monitoring and assessing marine litter and plausible
sustainable solutions to address the global marine plastic pollution issue.

• Participants from East Asia Summit (EAS) countries participated in the workshop.
o EAS (established in 2005) is the premier forum for discussions on important strategic issues
in the Indo-Pacific Region.
1.354 Aravalli Biodiversity Park in Gurugram declared as India’s first OECM site
• Recently, Aravalli Biodiversity Park in Gurugram, Haryana, has been declared as India’s first other
effective area-based conservation measures (OECM) site.
• The OECM tag is awarded by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
• OECM sites are areas that are not protected but support rich biodiversity.
1.355 Guidelines on Extended Producers Responsibility on plastic packaging

• Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has notified the Guidelines on Extended
Producers Responsibility (EPR) on plastic packaging under Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.
• It provides framework to strengthen circular economy of plastic packaging waste, promote
development of new alternatives to plastics and provide further next steps for moving towards
sustainable plastic packaging.
About Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016
• It was notified by the Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
• It aims to increase minimum thickness of plastic carry bags from 40 to 50 microns and stipulate
minimum thickness of 50 micron for plastic sheets.
• It also brings in the responsibilities of producers and generators, both in plastic waste
management system and to introduce collect back system of plastic waste by the producers/brand
owners.
1.356 Andhra Pradesh’s CLAP campaign

• The Andhra Pradesh Government had started the “Clean Andhra Pradesh (CLAP)- Jagananna
Swachha Sankalpam Programme, on October 2, 2021.
• It has an aim of segregating liquid and solid waste, encouraging home composting and onsite
waste treatment, apart from door-to-door collection of garbage.
o It also seeks to make the rural areas free of open defecation.
• More than 13,000 sarpanches have been instructed strictly to lead Open Defecation Free (ODF)
campaign from the front as well as ensure that their villages are ODF.
• Open defecation is the human practice of defecating outside rather than into a toilet.
o Open defecation free (ODF) is a term used to describe communities that have shifted to
using toilets instead of open defecation.
1.357 World Sustainable Development Summit 2022

• Recently, the Prime Minister of India delivered the inaugural address at The Energy and Resources
Institute’s (TERI), World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS), 2022 in New Delhi, India.
• Theme: ‘Towards a Resilient Planet: Ensuring a Sustainable and Equitable Future’.
About World Sustainable Development Summit
• It is the annual flagship event of TERI which aims to bring together global leaders and thinkers in
the fields of sustainable development, energy and environment sectors on a common platform.
About TERI

• It is a research institute in New Delhi that specializes in the fields of energy, environment and
sustainable development.
1.358 Udhampur's River Devika project

• Recently, the Minister of state (independent charge) ministry of earth science has stated that
historic River Devika project, built at the cost of over Rs 190 crore, will be complete by June, 2022.
• It is North India's first river rejuvenation project and will offer a unique destination both for
pilgrim tourists as well as recreation tourists.
1.359 National Centre of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization (NCoE-CCU)

• Recently, with the help of Department of Science & Technology, two new NCoE-CCU is getting
established in India.
o The two centers includes National Centre of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization
(NCoE-CCU) at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, Mumbai, and National Centre in
Carbon Capture and Utilization (NCCCU) at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific
Research (JNCASR), Bangalore.
• These CoEs will facilitate capturing & mapping of current R&D and innovation activities in the
domain and also develop networks of researchers, industries and stakeholders.
What are Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU)?
• It is a process that captures carbon dioxide emissions from sources like coal-fired power plants and
either reuses or stores it so that, it will not enter the atmosphere.
1.360 One Ocean Summit

• Prime Minister will address the high-level segment of One Ocean Summit along with several other
heads of states & governments from United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and Canada.
• One Ocean Summit is being organized by France from 9-11 February, in Brest, France, in
cooperation with the United Nations and the World Bank.
• Objective: To mobilize the international community to take tangible action towards preserving and
supporting healthy and sustainable ocean ecosystems.
1.361 Govt. of India, World Bank sign loan agreement of $115 million
• Government of India, Karnataka and Odisha and the World Bank has signed $115 million loan
agreement to implement, Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agricultural Resilience through Innovative
Development (REWARD) Programme.
• Karnataka will receive USD 60 million, Odisha will receive USD 49 million while the remaining USD
6 million will be utilized by the Indian government’s Department of Land Resources.
About REWARD Programme
• It is a project which is being implemented in three-four Indian states as a six-year project and is
one of the largest water management programs around the world.
• This project is a joint initiative of the Department of Land Resources, Ministry of Rural
Development in association with the World Bank.
• Objective: To improve water and land conservations as well as preventing soil run-off, harvesting
rainwater, regenerating natural vegetation, and replenishing the groundwater table.

1.362 PM inaugurates Asia's biggest Bio-CNG plant 'Gobar-Dhan' in Indore
• Recently, the Prime Minister of India has virtually inaugurated ‘Gobar-Dhan’- Asia’s biggest bio-
compressed natural gas (CNG) plant in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
o Project Implemented by: Indore Clean Energy Pvt Ltd.
o Total Cost of the project: Rs 150 crores (completely borne by IEISL)
o Waste Treatment Capacity: The plant can treat 550 tonnes per day of segregated wet
organic waste.
o Plant Model: The plant is based on zero landfill models, whereby no rejects would be
generated.
• In the coming two years, Gobar Dhan Bio CNG plants will be established in 75 big Municipal
bodies.
1.363 MNRE and FICCI organize Chintan Baithak on “Roadmap to achieve net zero carbon emissions by
2070” as a part of “New Frontiers: A Programme on Renewable Energy”
• Recently, the Union Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) & Federation of Indian Chambers
of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) jointly organized a Chintan Baithak on "Roadmap to achieve net
zero carbon emissions by 2070”.
• Chaired by: Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi, Secretary, MNRE
1.364 Consultation Workshop on ‘Financing for Decarbonization of Transport’

• Recently, NITI Aayog and World Resources Institute (WRI), India has conducted a virtual
consultation workshop on ‘Financing for Decarbonization of Transport’, as a part of the Nationally
Determined Contributions - Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC-TIA) project
• The workshop has been organized with the support of GIZ India.
• Aim: to identify actionable strategies and bring together financing institutions and transport
organizations to collectively work towards furthering innovative financing policies for the
decarbonization of transport.
About NDC-TIA project
• It is a joint program of seven organizations.
• It engages India, China and Vietnam in promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonizing
transport in their respective countries.
• Implementing partner for India Component: NITI Aayog.
1.365 Vice President inaugurates National WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Conclave-2022

1.366 NHPC sets up subsidiary for development of RE, Small Hydro and Green Hydrogen Projects
• NHPC Limited has set up a new wholly owned subsidiary company - “NHPC Renewable Energy
Limited (NREL) for the development of renewable energy (RE), Small Hydro and Green Hydrogen
based business of NHPC Ltd.
• The decision is line with Government of India’s target to achieve 500 GW of clean energy by 2030.
1.367 Delhi cabinet approves India's first e-waste eco-park

• Recently, the Delhi Cabinet has approved the construction of India's first 'e-waste eco park' in New
Delhi for effective management of increasing e-waste.
• It will recycle, refurbish and dismantle waste in a scientific and environmentally safe manner.
1.368 Bhakra Beas Management Amendment Rules

• Union Power Ministry has made an amendment to the rules governing the appointment of
Member Power and Member Irrigation on Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB).
• According to the Bhakra Beas Management Board Rules, 1974, the member (power) in BBMB was
from Punjab and the member (irrigation) was from Haryana.
o In the amended rules of 2022, this requirement has been done away with and their
permanent membership has been terminated.
About BBMB
• As per the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960, the waters of Ravi, Beas and Sutlej are allocated to India
and are available to be utilised for irrigation purposes within the country.
• The BBMB controls these projects, and the expenditure is shared by the two states in the ratio of
their shares.
1.369 MoEFCC’s new notification on brick kilns

• Recently, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) came up
with stringent standards for brick kilns to reduce air pollution from brick kilns.
Key Details of the new notifications
• Standard for PM emissions - 250 milligram per normal cubic metre (mg / Nm3)
• Existing brick kilns shall be converted to either zig-zag technology or vertical shaft or use of PNG as
fuel in brick making.

o This should be done within a period of one year in case of kilns located within a 10 km radius
of non-attainment cities and two years for other areas.
1.370 Bihar’s first floating power plant in Darbhanga to be commissioned soon

• Bihar’s first floating power generation unit in Darbhanga, set up in a pond, will be commissioned
within a month.
o The Unit is commissioned to Avaada Energy and can generate around 2 MW of green and
clean energy. It can generate 505 megawatt peak (MWp) electricity.
o It envisages to produce green energy from solar panels and promote fish farming
(pisciculture).
• Bihar’s second floating plant which is under construction in Supaul district will be completed by
the end of March 2022.
1.371 HPCL signs MoU with SECI for renewable energy, electric mobility, alternative fuels
• Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited
(SECI) have signed a MoU in New Delhi to realize green energy objectives and the Government of
India’s efforts towards a carbon-neutral economy.
• MoU envisages cooperation and collaboration in the field of Renewable Energy, Electric Mobility,
and alternative fuels.
1.372 House panel seeks frequent consultations from coal companies on environmental protection
• Union Minister of Coal has chaired meeting of Parliamentary Consultative Committee for Ministry
of Coal to discuss status of compliance of environmental norms by coal & lignite companies.
• Coal India has planned to install 3,000 MW solar plants by 2023-24, to meet its electrical power
requirement.
About Parliamentary Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Coal
• Chairman: Pralhad Joshi; Total Members: 23 Members (21 – Lok Sabha; 2 – Rajya Sabha).
Awards
1.373 Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards 2021
• The President of India has approved the conferment of Jeevan Raksha Padak Series of Awards 2021
on 51 persons.
• It includes 6 Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak (SJRP), 16 Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak (UJRP) and 29
Jeevan Raksha Padak (JRP).
• 7 personnel of Indian Railways’ Railway Protection Force (RPF) have also received the award.
S. No. Award Awardee
1 SJRP Gyan Chand (posthumous)
2 SJRP Anil Kumar
3 UJRP Dinker Tiwari
4 UJRP Tridip Paul
5 UJRP Rajbir Singh
6 UJRP Sanjeet Kumar Ram
7 JRP Bongu Narasimha Rao

1.374 94th Academy Awards
• Indian documentary ‘Writing with Fire’, has been nominated at the 94th Academy Awards in ‘Best
Documentary Feature Category’.
• Directors: Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Ghosh
1.375 Coal India gets 'India's Most Trusted Public Sector Company' award
• Coal India Ltd. has been awarded the 'India's Most Trusted Public Sector Company' award at the
“Energy Meet and Excellence Award” function.
• The function was organized by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India
(ASSOCHAM) in Kolkata.
1.376 Annual Banking Technology Awards 2021
• Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) has announced the IBA’s 17th Annual Banking Technology Awards
2021 in 7 categories;
o Best Technology Bank of the Year
S. No. Segment Winner
1 Large Banks Bank of Baroda
2 Small Banks South Indian Bank
3 Foreign Banks Citibank
4 Regional Rural Banks (RRB) Baroda Rajasthan Kshetriya Gramin Bank (BRKGB)
o Best Use of Artificial Intelligence & Data Analytics
1 Large Banks ICICI Bank
2 Small Banks The South Indian Bank and Karur Vyasa Bank
3 RRB Telangana Grameena Bank (TGB)
o Best IT Risk & Cyber Security Initiatives
1 Large Banks Union Bank of India
2 Medium Banks Yes Bank
3 Small Banks The South Indian Bank
4 Foreign Banks The Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation
5 RRB BRKGB and TGB
6 Co-operative Banks The Saraswat Cooperative bank
7 Small Finance Banks Ujjivan Small Finance Bank
o Best Digital Financial Inclusion Initiatives
1 Large Banks State Bank of India
2 Small Banks The Jammu & Kashmir Bank
3 RRB BRKGB
o Best Payments Initiatives
1 Public Banks State Bank of India
2 Private Banks ICICI Bank
o Best Fintech Adoption
1 Large Banks ICICI Bank
2 Medium Banks Federal Bank
3 Small Banks South Indian Bank
4 RRB BRKGB
o Cloud Adoption
1 Large Banks Union Bank of India
2 Medium Banks Yes Bank
3 Small Banks Karur Vysya Bank
4 Foreign Banks Citibank
5 RRB BRKGB
1.377 Dadasaheb Phalke Awards 2022

• India's highest award in the field of cinema; the Dadasaheb Phalke Awards have been presented by
the Directorate of Film Festivals (Ministry of Information and Broadcasting) in Mumbai.
• The major awardees include:
S. No. Category Winner
1 Film of the Year Pushpa: The Rise
2 Best Film Shershaah
3 Best Actor Ranveer Singh for film 83
4 Best Actress Kriti Sanon for film Mimi
5 Outstanding Contribution to Films Asha Parekh
6 Critics Best Actor Sidharth Malhotra
7 Critics Best Actress Kiara Advani
8 People’s Choice Best Actor Abhimanyu Dasani
9 People’s Choice Best Actress Radhika Madan
10 Best Debut Ahan Shetty for film Tadap
11 Best Playback Singer Male Vishal Mishra
12 Best Playback Singer Female Kanika Kapoor
13 Critics Best Film Sardar Udham Singh
14 Best Director Ken Ghosh for State of Siege: Temple Attack
15 Best Actor in Web Series Manoj Bajpayee for The Family Man 2
16 Best Actress in Web Series Raveena Tandon for Aranyak
17 Best Web Series Candy
18 Best International Feature Film Another Round
1.378 Assam CM confers state’s highest civilian award to Ratan Tata in Mumbai
• Recently, the Chief Minister of Assam has conferred the ‘Assam Baibhav’ award to industrialist and
philanthropist Ratan Tata in Mumbai for his contribution towards furthering cancer care in Assam.
• Assam Baibhav is Assam’s highest civilian award.
• Assam Government earlier conferred the
1.379 Bill Gates conferred Hilal-e-Pakistan honour on first-ever visit to Pakistan

• Recently, the Government of Pakistan has conferred the award of Hilal-e-Pakistan to American
Philanthropist & Microsoft founder Bill Gates for his efforts to eradicate Polio in Pakistan.
• Hilal-e-Pakistan is Pakistan’s second highest civilian award.
1.380 URJA Awards 2022

• The 5th edition of URJA Awards 2022 has been organized by Gravittus Foundation.
• It is bestowed on the leaders and dignitaries from different fields who have made significant
contributions to society.
S. No. Award Category Winner
1 Perseverance Award Urvi Jangam
2 Business Leader of the Year Award Yohan Poonawalla
3 Young Media Leader award Anant Goenka
4 OTT award Akshay Badarpurkar
5 Promising Actor award Rinku Rajguru
6 Contribution in Medicine Dr. Amita Phadnis
7 Outstanding contribution to the field of Education Vidya Yeravdekar
8 Life and Style Transformational award Preity Baney
9 Bravery award Sangram Patil (posthumously)
10 Excellence in Cricket award Kedar Jadhav
11 Lifetime Achievement award in Cinema Zeenat Aman
1.381 National Science Communication Awards and AWSAR Awards

• On the occasion of National Science Day, the National Science Communication Awards 2022 have
been awarded to:
S. No. Category Awardee
1. General P.N. Panicker Foundation, Thiruvananthapuram
2. Print Media Ramesh Chandra Parida (Bhubaneswar) and Dr.
Hirday Kumar Chopra (New Delhi)
3. Popularization among Children Dr Naresh Yadav (Gurugram) and Vijaykumar
Chandrakant Verenkar Goa
4. Voluntary Initiative & Co- Dr. Vikas Mishra Kanpur, Dr. Suman Mor (Punjab
operation (NAVIC) University) and Dr. Santosh Kumar Singh (BHU)
5. Innovative and Traditional National Association for Varanasi
Methods
6. Electronic Medium Jalal Uddin Baba (Kashmir) and Rajinder Kumar
Dhamija (New Delhi)
• The Augmenting Writing Skills for Articulating Research (AWSAR) Awards 2022 have been
conferred upon:
S. No. Category Awardee
1. Post-doctoral fellows Dr Pragyan Parimita Rath (New Delhi)
2. First Prize for the Ph.D. category Ajay Chandrakant Lagashetti (Pune)
3. Second prize for the Ph.D. category Anoop Singh (New Delhi)
4. Third prize for the Ph.D. category Deeksha Pandey (New Delhi)
1.382 Geetha Varma wins Thodayam Women’s Day Award
• The first ever Thodayam Women’s Day Award is going to be conferred upon Kathakali artiste
Geetha Varma.
• The award will be presented by Thodayam Kathakali Yogam (non-governmental organization) on
the occasion of International Women’s Day in Thali (Kerala).
1.383 CSIR Jigyasa Vigyan Mahotsav 2022
• The awards for National Level Scientific Creativity Competition “CSIR Jigyasa Vigyan Mahotsav
2022” have been conferred upon 75 students from all over India.
• Among the winners, Mohammed Hisam, Shruti Nimbali and Sanchi Bansal have won the Grand
Prize of Rs 1 Lakh each.

• The competition was organized by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to provide
an opportunity to school children to exhibit their creative skills and develop scientific knowledge.
• Ministry of Science and technology is Celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahostav under the theme “Amrit
Mahotsav Science Showcase: Roadmap to 2047”.
1.384 National ICT Awards
• Recently, the Union Minister of State for Education presented the National Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) Awards 2022. Award was presented to 49 teachers across India.
About ICT Awards
• It is presented under “Information and Communication Technology in Schools (ICT in Schools)”
scheme by Ministry of Education.
• It is presented to those teachers who have enhanced student learning by effectively and
innovatively integrating technology into the school curriculum and subject teaching.
1.385 C-DOT wins Aegis Graham Bell Awards in 3 categories

• Recently, Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), the premier Telecom R&D centre of the
Government of India has won three awards at the virtual ceremony of 12th Annual Aegis Graham
Bell Awards.
• C-DOT has received the awards in the following categories for it’s indigenously designed &
developed innovative Telecom solutions.
Category Winner About the technology
Tech for Indigenous Early Warning Platform for It can effectively send location-based disaster
Social Good Disaster Management & Preparedness alerts in vernacular language to the people in
based on International disaster-prone areas during various natural
Telecommunication Union’s (ITU’s) hazards
Common Alerting Protocol (CAP)
Innovative in C-DOT SAMVAD – A Unified Platform It offers secured messaging, voice and video
Lockdown for Secure Messaging and Calling calls, video conferencing in a secured manner.
Management Solution
Preventive C-DOT Quarantine Alert System It is a comprehensive solution for effective
measures to (CQAS) monitoring of the Covid quarantined persons
combat Covid and detection of quarantine breaches based on
19 geo-fencing and caters to both smart-phone and
feature phone users.
About Aegis Graham Bell Awards
• It is a tribute to the father of the telephony - Alexander Graham Bell.
• Instituted by: The Aegis School of Business, Data Science and Cyber Security.
• Supported by: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Skill India & National Informatics
Centre.
• Purpose: to promote innovations and recognize the outstanding contributions by the innovators.
1.386 India First Tech Start-up Conclave & Awards

• The All India Council for Robotics and Automation is hosting the ‘India First tech startup conclave
& awards 2022’ with the support from Department of electronics and information technology.
• The event aims to provide a unique platform for young innovators, entrepreneurs, industry experts,
professionals, policymakers, investors, and exhibitors.

• This platform will facilitate exchange of innovative ideas, knowledge base, and showcase
products/services in order to revitalize various research and development opportunities.
Sports
1.387 Magnus Carlsen wins 2022 Tata Steel Chess tournament
• Magnus Carlsen (Norway) has won the 84th Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2022 by beating Fabiano
Caruana (Italian- American) in Wijk Aan Zee (Netherlands).
• Erigaisi Arjun (India) has won the Tata Steel Challengers and has earned a spot in the 2023 Tata
Steel Masters.
1.388 Odisha Open 2022

• The 2022 Odisha Open badminton tournament has been held at Cuttack.
S. No Category Winner Country

1 Men’s Singles Kiran George India
2 Women’s Singles Unnati Hooda India
3 Men’s Doubles Nur Mohammad Azriyn Ayub and Lim Khim Wah Malaysia
4 Women’s Doubles Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela India
5 Mixed Doubles Sachin Dias and Thilini Hendahewa Sri Lanka
1.389 PR Sreejesh wins World Games Athlete of the Year Award

• India hockey goalkeeper PR Sreejesh has won the prestigious World Games Athlete of the Year
award for the year 2021.
• He is the second Indian to win the award after Indian women’s hockey captain Rani Rampal became
the first Indian to win the honor in 2020.
1.390 ICC Under- 19 World Cup

• The Indian team has won the 2022 International Cricket Council (ICC) under-19 World Cup held in
the West Indies by beating England.
• The Indian team was led by Yash Dhull.
• Yash Dhull has been named as the captain of the ICC Men's U19 World Cup Team of the
Tournament.
• Left-spinner Vicky Oswal and all-rounder Raj Bawa have also been named in the team.
1.391 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup

• India has won the 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup for the record breaking 5th time.
• India defeated England in the Final Match to lift the World Cup.
1.392 India’s 1000th ODI match

• Indian Cricket Team has won its 1000th One Day International Cricket Match on 6th February 2022
against West Indies.
1.393 FIFA Club World Cup

• English Football Club (FC) Chelsea has won their maiden FIFA Club World Cup title by beating
Brazil’s Palmeiras FC in the final held in Abu Dhabi.
• It has become the third English side to win the tournament after Manchester United and Liverpool.
1.394 2022 Bengaluru Open II
• The 5th edition of the Bengaluru Open II tournament has taken place in Bangaluru, Karnataka.
• It was a part of the 2022 Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Challenger Tour.
S. No. Category Winners
1 Singles Aleksandar Vukic (Australia)
2 Doubles Alexander Erler (Austria) and Arjun Kadhe (India)
1.395 Yash Dhull makes record

• Yash Dhull (Delhi) has made history by becoming only the third Indian batter to score a hundred in
each innings on Ranji Trophy debut.
• Earlier, Nari Contractor for Gujarat and Virag Awate for Maharashtra have achieved this feat.
1.396 Mumbai to host the 2023 International Olympic Committee Session
• Mumbai has been officially elected as the host for the 2023 International Olympic Committee (IOC)
session.
• The session will possibly see the election for the host country for the 2030 Winter Olympics and
sports programme for Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
• India hosted the last IOC session in 1983.
1.397 Tamil Nadu teenager shines in Airthings Masters rapid tournament
• Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa has become the third Indian player (behind Viswanathan Anand and
Harikrishna) to win a game against World Champion Magnus Carlsen (Norway) in the online
Airthings Masters rapid tournament of the Champions Chess Tour 2022.
1.398Malayali cricket team to play in Ottawa
• Ottawa Tuskers; the only all-Malayali team is going to play in the second division cricket league to
be held in Ottawa, Canada in May, 2022.
1.399 Ireland and UAE qualify for T20 World Cup
• Ireland and United Arab emirates (UAE) have qualified for the International Cricket Council (ICC) T-
20 World Cup 2022 going to be held in Australia.
1.400 Djokovic loses world No 1 ranking to Medvedev
• Daniil Medvedev (Russia) has attained the World Number 1 rank in the Men’s tennis by the
Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP); replacing Novak Djokovic (Serbia).
• He is only the 5th player to attain the top ranking after Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic
and Andy Murray since 2004.
1.401 42nd National Cycle Polo Championship
• The 42nd Senior National Cycle Polo Championship has been held at Mysore, Karnataka.
• Air Force Cycle Polo team (AFCPT) emerged as the National Champions by beating Territorial Army
in the finals.
1.402 Mumbai to host International Olympic Committee session in 2023 after 40 years
• Recently, India has been announced as the host of the 2023 International Olympic Committee's
(IOC) session after winning the bid at the 139th IOC session in Beijing, China
• India will be hosting the event at the Jio Convention Centre, Mumbai.
• India has previously hosted the event once in 1983 at New Delhi.
• Nita Ambani was the Indian Representative in the IOC session.
About IOC Session

• It is an annual meeting of the IOC members, comprising 101 voting members and 45 honorary
members.
1.403 Norway tops Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Medal Table

• Recently, the 24th edition of Winter Olympics (Beijing 2022) was concluded in Beijing, China.
• Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy will host the 2026 Winter Games.
Top 3 countries that topped Beijing 2022 Medal Table
Rank Country Gold Silver Bronze Total

1 Norway 16 8 13 37
2 Germany 12 10 5 27
3 China 9 4 2 15
1.404 Bihar's Sakibul Gani Creates World Record With Triple Century On First-Class Debut
• Recently, Bihar’s Sakibul Gani has become the first cricket player in the history to score a triple
century on his first-class debut.
• He scored 341 runs off 405 balls in the Plate Group Ranji Trophy fixture against Mizoram at the
Jadavpur University, Bengal.
1.405 Sadia Tariq wins Gold at Wushu Stars Championship

• Sadia Tariq from Kashmir has won the gold medal at the junior Wushu Stars championship held in
Moscow.
• This is her second consecutive Gold of the Championship.
Appointments
S. No Person Position Organization/ Country/ Outgoing
Company/ State Person
1 Usha Sharma Chief Secretary Rajasthan Niranjan Arya
2 M Jagadesh Kumar New Chairman of UGC Professor D P
Singh
3 Santishree First Women Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU
Dhulipudi Pandit
4 Ashok Kumar 1st National Maritime National Security Council --
Security Coordinator Secretariat
5 Bajrang Lal Takhar Rowing coach Sports Authority of India --
(SAI)
6 Shilpi Sheoran Assistant wrestling coach SAI --
7 Jincy Phillip Athletics coach SAI --
8 Pranamika Borah Boxing coach SAI --
9 Lachlan Henderson Chairman Cricket Australia Board Richard
Freudenstein
10 A.S. Kumari Chairperson Tamil Nadu State Gowri
Commission for Women Ashokan
11 Vipula Gunatilleka Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jet Airways --
12 Susanne Pulverer First Woman Chief IKEA India Peter Betzel
Executive Officer (CEO) and
Chief Sustainability Officer

(CSO)
13 Chetan Ghate Director Institute of Economic Ajit Mishra
Growth
14 K.N. Raghavan Chairman International Rubber Study --
Group (IRSG)
15 Pralay Mondal Deputy Managing Director CSB Bank --
16 Rahul Bhatia Managing Director IndiGo --
17 Rakesh Sharma Managing Director and IDBI Bank -
Chief Executive Officer
(MD&CEO)
18 Anna Shotbolt British Deputy High She will represent United Jeremy
Commissioner Kingdom in Karnataka and Pilmore-
Kerala Bedford
19 Tan Kim Her Badminton Doubles Coach Badminton Association of --
India
20 Madhabi Puri Buch Chairperson SEBI Ajay Tyagi
Persons in News
S. Person in Country/ Field Miscellaneous
No. News State
1 Rupinder India Advocate He was the Additional Solicitor General (ASG)
Singh Suri
2 Lata India Singer Popularly known as the Nightingale of India and
Mangeshkar Melody Queen.
Recipient of Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma
Bhushan, the title of Officer of the French Legion of
Honour, Dadasaheb Phalke Award, three National
Film Awards, etc.
3 C Janga Telangana Politician Former Member of Parliament.
Reddy
4 M R Kumar Chairman of Tenure extended by 1 year
LIC
5 Raj Kumar Managing Tenure extended by 1 year
Director of LIC
6 Luc France Scientist Won Nobel Prize for discovering the HIV virus.
Montagnier
7 Rahul Bajaj India Industrialist Recipient of Padma Bhushan award.
8 Sandhya West Singer Known as "Geetashree". Recipient of National film
Mukherjee Bengal Award and Banga Bibhushan award. She was awarded
the Padma Shree award but refused to accept it.
9 Chennaveera Karnataka Writer and Popularly known as "Samanvayada Kavi" and
Kanavi Poet "Soujanyada Kavi". Recipient of the Sahitya Akademi
Award for his poetry Jeeva Dhwani and the Sahitya
Kala Kaustubha Award.
10 Bappi Lahiri India Singer Won the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement award.
11 Shakuntala Assam Social work Recipient of Padma Shri award she was popularly
Choudhary known as 'Shakuntala Baideo'.
12 Ashavadi Andhra Poet Recipient of Padma Shri award.
Prakasa Rao Pradesh
13 Ravish Tiwari Uttar Journalist --
Pradesh
14 Maheshwari Kerala Actor Her stage name was K.P.A.C. Lalitha.
Amma Winner of two national awards and Filmfare Lifetime
Achievement Award.
15 Mekapati Andhra Politician He was the Andhra Pradesh Information Technology
Goutham Pradesh and Industries Minister.
Reddy
16 Pratap Assam Journalism A pioneer in Television Journalism
Bordoloi
17 Sadhan West Politics He served as the Minister of Consumer Affairs in the
Pande Bengal West Bengal government
18 U. V. Tamil scholar Birth anniversary was celebrated.
Swaminatha and
Iyer researcher
19 Kili Paul He is a Tanzanian social media star known for his lip-
syncing videos on Bollywood songs. He has been
felicitated by Indian High Commission in Tanzania
20 Srimad Founder of President has inaugurated three-year long
Bhakti Gaudiya Math celebrations of his 150th birth anniversary
Siddhanta and Mission in
Saraswati Puri
Goswami
Prabhupad
21 Sabitha First woman from the Koraga community to obtain
Koraga doctoral degree. Koragas are a tribal community
found in Karnataka and Kerala.
22 Srikanth He has resigned as the non-executive director of HDFC
Nadhamuni Bank
23 Sanjay He has been nominated by the Reserve Bank of India
Malhotra (RBI) as a Director in its Central Board.
24 Rakesh He resigned from InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGO) board.
Gangwal He is the co-founder & promoter of IndiGo
25 Jaiveer Telangana Businessman He was the founder of Ashoka Developers and Builders
Reddy Limited.
26 Hemananda Odisha Politics First Tribal chief Minister of Odisha.
Biswal
27 Aman Named Top researcher of the Google’s Vulnerability
Pandey Reward Program (VRP)
28 Ketanji U.S President nominated her to serve on the Supreme
Brown Court. She is going to be the first Black woman to
Jackson serve on the U.S Supreme Court.
29 Lachit 400th birth anniversary celebrations inaugurated by
Borphukan President. He was the commander of the Ahom
forces known for his leadership in the ‘Battle of
Saraighat’ (1671). The foundation stone has been laid
for the Alaboi war memorial, at Dadara in Kamrup
(Assam) and a 150-foot bronze statue of the legendary
commander.
Books and Authors
S. No Book Title Author Publisher Miscellaneous
1 Ungalil Oruvan M.K. Stalin -- Autobiography
(One among you)
2 Bharat Ratna Shirish Joshi Yaji Kannada book on musician Pandit Bhimsen
Bheemanna Prakashana Joshi (Recipient of Padma Shri, Padma
Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Sangeet
Natak Akademi Award, and National Film
Award).
3 Department of -- Vigyan Coffee table book released by the Union
Science & Prasar Minister of State for Science and
Technology: Past- Technlogy.
Present-Future
4 75 under 50: -- Vigyan Same as above.
Scientists Shaping Prasar
Today's India
5 75 Founders of -- Vigyan Same as above.
Modern Science in Prasar
India
6 Meet, Greet & Dr. B. S. Munjal -- Science cartoon book.
Tweet with and Dr.
Plasma Toons Suryakant Gupta
7 Fueling India’s -- -- The book depicts the story of sustainable
Energy Needs efforts made by CIL.
8 Residential (Developed by) -- Launched by Delhi Government
Electric Vehicle Dialogue and
(EV) Charging Development
Guidebook for Commission of
Resident Welfare Delhi, in
Associations collaboration
(RWAs) with World
Resources
Institute, India
Days in News
S. No. Days Date Theme & Misc.
1 ICG Raising Day February 1 46th Raising Day of Indian Coast Guards (ICG)
2 Safer Internet Day February 8 Theme: "Together for a better internet"
3 International February 6 to Campaign #GoForTheGoals
Development 12
Week
4 World Radio Day February 13 Theme: Radio and Trust.
5 75th Delhi Police February 16 Home Minister has issued a special postage
Raising Day stamp on the occasion.
6 645th Ravidas February 16, Birthday of Guru Ravidas; it is celebrated on
jayanti 2022 Magh Purnima, the full moon day in the month
of Magh month.
7 Mizoram February 20 To mark the establishment of state in 1987.
Statehood Day
8 36th Arunachal February 20 To mark the establishment of state in 1987.
Pradesh Statehood
Day
9 10th GITA February 17 Theme: Collaborate and Create for a Sustainable
Foundation Day Future.
Global Innovation and Technology Alliance (GITA) is a
Public Private Partnership (PPP) between Technology
Development Board (TDB), and Confederation of
Indian Industry (CII).
On the occasion, the GITA Global Technology
Development Awards 2021 have been
presented to 7 companies in different
categories.
Development 12
Week
12 International February 21 Theme: “Using technology for multilingual learning:
Mother Language Challenges and opportunities”.
Day On the occasion, Ministry of Culture has organized an
event ‘Ekam Bharatam’ in collaboration with Indira
Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) and
UNESCO New Delhi Cluster Office.
Minister of State for Culture has released the
‘Vande Bharatam’ song created by Grammy
Award winner Ricky Kej and 93able maestro
Bikram Ghosh.
13 Birth anniversary February 19 He was a Tamil scholar and researcher. He is also called
of U. V. Tamil Thatha (Tamil grandfather).
Swaminatha Iyer He was awarded the title of ‘Mahamahopadhya
(Great Teacher)’ and ‘Dakshina Kalanidhi’.
14 National Science February 22- To commemorate Science and scientific
Week 28, 2022 inventions in the country.
15 World Day of February 20 Theme: 'Achieving Social Justice through Formal
Social Justice Employment'.
16 Bihar Shahid Diwas February 15 To be celebrated in the honor of 34 freedom
fighters that were killed by police, in Tarapur,
Munger (Bihar), in 1932. Chief Minister of Bihar
has inaugurated Tarapur Shaheed Smarak on
the occasion.
17 National Science February 28 Celebrated to commemorate the discovery of Raman
Day Effect by Sir C.V Raman.
Theme: Integrated Approach in Science and
Technology for Sustainable Future.
18 3rd anniversary of February 25 NWM: National War Memorial
NWM
Development 12
Week
1.406 World Wetlands Day celebrated at Sultanpur National Park

• National level celebration of World Wetlands day 2022 on 2nd February was held at Sultanpur
National Park, Haryana.
• During the event, it was announced that the Khijadia Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat and Bakhira
Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh have been included in the Ramsar sites.
o India now has a network of 49 Ramsar sites covering an area of 10,93,636 hectares.
About World Wetlands Day
• 2 February 2022 is the first year that World Wetlands Day will be observed as an International Day
declared by the United Nations.
• It marks the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Wetland Convention) by United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on February 2, 1971 at Ramsar, Iran.
• Theme for 2022: “Wetlands Action for People and Nature”.
About Ramsar Site
• It is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.
1.407 World Day of Social Justice 2022

• World Day of Social Justice is observed every year on 20th February to raise voice against social
injustice happening across the world
• Theme for 2022: Achieving Social Justice through Formal Employment.
1.408 MoWCD to Celebrate International Women’s Day Week from 1st to 8th March
• The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) is going to celebrate International
Women’s Day week from 1st to 8th March 2022.
1.409 APEDA’s 36th Foundation Day

• Recently, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA)
celebrated its 36th Foundation Day on 13th February 2022.
About APEDA
• It is an Indian Apex-Export Trade Promotion Active government body.
o Its vision is to "create a world class organization dedicated to promote India as the ‘supplier
of choice’ of agro and value added food products in the global markets".

1.410 Janaushadhi Diwas week to be observed from 1st March to 7th March 2022
1.411 Ministry of MSME Celebrates “Iconic Week” from 28.02.2022 - 6.03.2022 under AKAM
• The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises is celebrating the iconic week under Azadi Ka
Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM) from 28th February 2022 to 6th March 2022.
List of events/ initiatives planned under the celebration
• Ministry of MSME has launched the Phase II of its ‘National Level Awareness Programme –
Sambhav’
o Under the initiative, more than one lakh students from 1300 colleges all India will be
motivated to take up entrepreneurship.
o MSME Ministry will educate participants about the schemes implemented by the Ministry
to support entrepreneurs via Audio/video films/presentations.
• Entrepreneurship Promotion Drive
o It will be launched by the MSME Ministry in 46 aspirational districts in 9 states across India.
o Objective: to spread awareness amongst the people about benefits of schemes implemented
by the MSME Ministry to develop entrepreneurship culture.
• Mega International Conference
o MSME Ministry will organize a Mega International Conference on 4th & 5th March, 2022 at
New Delhi on Plastic Waste Management.

2 Important Reports in February 2022
S. No. Name of Report Published By Highlights
1 India Press Freedom Rights and Risks In 2021, a total of 121 journalists and media
Index 2021 Analysis Group houses/newspapers were targeted across the
(RRAG) country including 108 journalists and 13 media
houses/newspapers. Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)
(25) highest number of journalists/media
organisations targeted.
2 G20 People’s United Nations The Group of 20 (G20), account for over- 80% of
Climate Vote 2021 Development global gross domestic product(GDP), 60% of the
Program and the world’s population and more than 75% of global
Oxford University greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
3 Online Safety and Child Rights and 93% of the respondents had access to Internet in
Internet Addiction You their homes, and 60% of the boys and 40% of the
girls owned mobiles. 80% of the boys and 59% of
the girls had social media accounts and 31% of the
Adolescents had more than two accounts.
4 Time for United Lancet–World 5% of adults worldwide suffer from depression
Action on Psychiatric each year. COVID-19 pandemic has created
Depression Association additional challenges, with the hardship,
Commission bereavement, isolation, and uncertainties.
5 The Pandemic and Leprosy Mission The proportions of multibacillary (MB) leprosy and
the People’s Plight Trust India grade-2 disability (G2D) among the new cases
increased by 20% and 12%, respectively, during
April-September 2020, as compared to the same six-
month period in 2019.
6 Noise, Blazes and UN Environment It identifies and offers solutions to three
Mismatches: Programme environmental issues: urban noise
Emerging Issues of (UNEP) pollution, wildfires and phenological shifts that
Environmental merit attention and action from governments and
Concern the public at large to address the triple planetary
crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity
loss.
7 Hurun India Wealth Hurun India India's millionaire (USD) households increased by
Report 2021 11% to 4.58 lakh in 2021, and is estimated to reach
6,00,000 households by 2026. The happiness index
has decreased to 66% in 2021. Mumbai topped the
list of cities with most millionaires at 20,300.
Watch collecting is the preferred hobby of India's
millionaires.
8 Climate Change Intergovernmental Working Group II (WG2) has contributed in making
2022: Impacts, Panel on Climate of the Sixth Assessment Report (AR6). This part of
Adaptions and Change (IPCC). the report is about climate change impacts, risks
Vulnerability and vulnerabilities, and adaptation options.
Over 3.5 billion people, or over 45% of the
global population, are living in areas highly
vulnerable to climate change.

9 Spreading like UN Environment Climate change and land-use change are projected
Wildfire: The Rising Programme to make wildfires more frequent and intense, with a
Threat of (UNEP) global increase of extreme fires of up to 14% by
Extraordinary 2030, 30% by the end of 2050 and 50% by the end
Landscape Fire of the century.
10 Wildlife Poaching Wildlife 522 reports of wildlife poaching and trade were
and Illegal Trade in Conservation reported in 2020 across the country. Out of which,
India: 2020 Society (WCS) - highest 51 are from Karnataka. Overall, 173
India incidents were documented from southern States.
The maximum number of events involved are in
ungulates (89 incidents), followed by big cats (82
incidents) and pangolins (72 incidents).
11 International US Chambers of USA has topped the index and is followed by UK and
Intellectual Commerce Germany. India is ranked at 43rd position with an
Property Index overall score of 38.6%. The index uses 50 unique
indicators for evaluation.
12 Delta Ranking NITI Aayog The ranking is based on incremental progress made
December 2021 across 49 key performance indicators (KPIs) under
five broad socio-economic themes - health and
nutrition, education, agriculture and water
resources, financial inclusion and skill development
and infrastructure. Malkangiri has topped for the
month of December, 2021, and is followed by
Chhatarpur in Madhya Pradesh and Baramulla in
J&K.
13 Leadership in US Green Building China has topped with 1,077 LEED projects certified
Energy and Council (USGBC) in 2021, which is followed by Canada at 2nd
Environmental position with 205 projects and India at 3rd with 146
Design (LEEDS) 2021 projects.
14 TomTom Traffic TomTom Istanbul, Turkey is the most congested city in the
Index Ranking 2021 world followed by Moscow. Mumbai has been
ranked at 5th, Bengaluru at 10th, Delhi at 11th and
Pune at 21st.
15 Global Digital Skills Salesforce India had the highest readiness score at 63 among
Index 2022 all the counties while the average digital readiness
score is 33. Three major skill gaps were identified
which are workforce skills, leadership skills and
generational skill gaps.
16 Deloitte's Global Deloitte Global Indian businesses rank 5th in their concern for
2022 CXO climate change Indian companies are more likely to
Sustainability be implementing tougher climate actions compared
Survey with their global counterpart.

17 Global analysis of World Health Over 140 million test kits with a potential to
health care waste in Organization generate 2,600 tonnes of non-infectious waste and
the context of 731,000 litres of chemical waste have been
COVID-19 shipped. Moreover, over 8 billion doses of vaccine
have been administered globally, producing 144,000
tonnes of additional waste in the form of syringes,
needles and safety boxes. Currently, 30% of
healthcare facilities (60% in the least developed
countries) are not equipped to handle existing
health care waste loads. Approximately 87,000
tonnes of personal protective equipment (PPE) that
was procured between March 2020- November
2021.
3 Important Schemes in News February 2022

S.No Scheme in News About Scheme What’s in News?
1 Swadesh ▪ Launch Year – 2014-15 Ministry of Tourism has included
Darshan ▪ Ministry of Tourism Punaura Dham in the Ramayana
Scheme ▪ Aim - To develop theme-based circuit of Swadesh Darshan
tourist circuits in the country. Scheme.
▪ Central Sector Scheme
▪ 15 thematic circuits have been
identified under the Swadesh
Darshan for development.
2 PRASHAD ▪ Launch Year – 2014-15 Recently, the destination of
(Pilgrimage ▪ Ministry of Tourism Punaura Dham has been included
Rejuvenation ▪ Aim - Integrated development of under PRASHAD Scheme of the
and Spiritual, pilgrimage destinations in planned, Ministry of Tourism.
Heritage and prioritized and sustainable
Augmentation manner to provide complete
Drive) Scheme religious tourism experience.
▪ The number of sites under PRASAD
has now reached to 41 in 25 states.
▪ It aimed at infrastructure
development such as entry points
(Road, Rail and Water Transport),
last mile connectivity, basic tourism
facilities like Information/
Interpretation Centers, ATM/
Money exchange, eco-friendly
modes of transport etc
3 Scheme of ▪ Ministry of Home Affairs Government has approved
Modernisation ▪ Aim continuation of umbrella scheme

of Police Forces o To reduce the dependence of Modernisation of Police Forces
(MPF) of the State Governments on (MPF).
the Army and Central Armed The approval for the period 2021-
Police Forces to control 22 to 2025-26 will modernise and
internal security and law and improve the functioning of Police
order situations Forces of States and Union
o To strengthen police Territories.
infrastructure at cutting edge
level
4 Reforms-based ▪ Launch Year – 2021 Recently, Union Minister for Power
and Results- ▪ Ministry of Power has launched Powerthon-2022, a
linked, ▪ Objectives hackathon competition under
Revamped o Reduction of AT&C losses to Revamped Distribution Sector
Distribution pan-India levels of 12-15% by Scheme (RDSS) to find technology
Sector Scheme 2024-25. driven solutions to solve the
o Reduction of ACS-ARR gap to complex problems in power
zero by 2024-25. distribution and to ensure quality
o Developing Institutional and reliable power supply.
Capabilities for Modern
DISCOMs
▪ Implementing Agency - Rural
Electrification Corporation Ltd. ,
Power Finance Corporation
▪ Tenure - Available till year 2025-26
5 USTTAD ▪ Launch Year – 2015 Ministry of Minority Affairs has
(Upgrading the ▪ Ministry of Minority Affairs tied up with the apex body of
Skills and ▪ Aim - Preserving & promoting the handicraft exporters in the country
Training in rich heritage of the traditional arts
as a part of the Hunar Haat to
Traditional & crafts of the Minority
promote exports of
Arts/Crafts for communities products/handicrafts of artisans
Development) ▪ Central Sector Scheme and craftpersons at a wider
▪ It envisages boosting the skill of international level by
craftsmen, weavers and artisans strengthening the export
who are already engaged in the orientation of artisans through
traditional ancestral work. training & capacity building,
product & design development, e-
commerce, marketing and export
promotions.
6. Swachh Bharat ▪ Launch Year – 2021 Chandigarh has been certified as 1-
Mission-Urban ▪ Ministry of Housing and Urban Star Garbage Free in the recently
2.0 Affairs (MoHUA) concluded Star Rating Assessment
▪ Centrally Sponsored Scheme for Garbage Free Cities in 2021,
▪ Tenure - From 2021-22 till 2025-26 under the aegis of Swachh Bharat
▪ Outlay - Rs 1,41,600 crores, Mission-Urban 2.0.
including central share of Rs 36,465 As part of the Mission, UT has
crores. pledged to achieve ‘Lakshya Zero
Dumpsites’ within the Mission
period and has undertaken the
challenge of remediating the 7.7
lakh (MT) of legacy waste lying
across 8 acres of land as part of the
Daddumajra dumpsite.
7. Pradhan Mantri ▪ Launch Year – 2016 Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada
Kisan Sampada ▪ Ministry of Food Processing Yojana (PMKSY) has been
Yojana (PMKSY) Industries extended for a period of 2021-22
▪ Aim - To supplement agriculture, to 2025-26 with an allocation of Rs
modernize processing and decrease 4,600 crore.
Agri-Waste
▪ Launched as SAMPADA (Scheme for
Agro-Marine Processing and
Development of Agro-Processing
Clusters) in 2016.
▪ The scheme was renamed as the
"Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada
Yojana (PMKSY)" in 2017.
▪ Capital subsidy in the form of
grants-in aid ranging from 35% to
75% is provided to investors under
the various Components
8. Vibrant Village ▪ Announced in – Union Budget Vibrant Village Programme has
Programme 2022-23 been launched recently.
▪ Ministry of Home Affairs
▪ Aim - To improve social and
financial infrastructure in remote
habitations, primarily along the
border with China, will be an
improved version of the existing
border area development
programme.
9. Jal Jeevan ▪ Launch Year – 2019 Jal Jeevan Mission has achieved a
Mission ▪ Ministry of Jal Shakti milestone of providing tap water
▪ Objective - To provide safe and to 9 crore rural homes in the
adequate drinking water through country.
individual household tap It has provided tap water supply to
connections by 2024 to all more than 5.79 crore rural
households in rural India. households, in a short span of 2.5
▪ Total estimated cost of JJM is ₹3.60 years.
Lakh Crore Also, Mission achieved another
▪ Government of India has milestone of providing tap water
restructured and subsumed the to every home of 100 districts in
ongoing National Rural Drinking the country.
Water Programme (NRDWP) into Jal Chamba, an Aspirational District of
Jeevan Mission (JJM). Himachal Pradesh has become the
100th ‘Har Ghar Jal’ District.
o Chamba is the 5th
aspirational district to
become ‘Har Ghar Jal’.
10. Ayushman ▪ Launch Year – 2020 National Health Authority has
Bharat Digital ▪ Ministry of Health and Family announced the integration of its
Mission Welfare flagship Ayushman Bharat Digital
▪ Aim - To provide a digital health ID Mission with the Aarogya Setu
to people which will contain their app, allowing users to create the
health records 14-digit unique Ayushman Bharat
▪ Implementing Agency - National Health Account numbers from the
Health Mission app.
▪ It is a digital health ecosystem under
which every Indian citizen will have Cabinet has approved the national
unique health IDs, digitised health roll-out of Central Sector Scheme,
records with identifiers for doctors Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission
and health facilities. (ABDM) of Ministry of Health and
▪ It will come under the Ayushman Family Welfare with a budget of
Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Rs.1,600 crore for five years.
Yojana. National Health Authority (NHA)
will be the implementing agency
of Ayushman Bharat Digital
Mission (ABDM).
11. Mahatma ▪ Launch Year – 2020 Union Minister for Rural
Gandhi National ▪ Ministry of Rural Development Development has launched
Rural ▪ To provide right to work i.e. 100 Ombudsperson App for Mahatma
Employment days of Guaranteed employment Gandhi NREGA.
Guarantee Act within 15 days of job application
(MGNREGA) and within 5 km of home
12. Scheme for ▪ Launch Year – 2022 Minister of Social Justice and
Economic ▪ Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has launched the
Empowerment Empowerment Scheme for Economic
of DNTs, SNTs ▪ It has been formulated for families Empowerment of DNTs (SEED) for
&NTs (SEED) having income from all sources of the welfare of De-notified,
Rs.2.50 lakh or less per annum and Nomadic and Semi Nomadic
not availing any such benefits from Communities
similar Scheme of Centre
Government or the State
Government.
13. Pradhan Mantri ▪ Ministry of Rural Development Union Minister for Rural
Awas Yojana – ▪ Target - Construction of 2.95 crore Development and Panchayati Raj
Gramin (PMAY- houses with all basic amenities by has launched the PMAY-G
G) the year 2022 Dashboard for stringent
▪ Minimum size of house is 25 sq. mt. monitoring of the implementation
▪ Unit assistance of Rs. 1.20 lakh in of the scheme.
plain and Rs 1.30 lakh in hilly states,
difficult areas
▪ Loan upto Rs. 70000 from financial
institutions
▪ Provision of assistance for toilets
construction (Rs. 12000) though
convergence with Swachh Bharat
Mission-Gramin, MGNREGS etc.
14 PM CARES for ▪ Launch Year – 2021 Ministry of Women and Child
Children ▪ Ministry of Women and Child Development has extended the
Scheme Development at central level PM Cares for Children Scheme till
▪ Department of the State/UT 28th February, 2022.
government dealing with the Earlier the scheme was valid till
Juvenile Justice set up in the State 31st December, 2021.
shall be the nodal agency at State
level.
▪ Aim - To support children who have
lost both the Parents or legal
Guardian or Adoptive Parents or
Surviving Parent to COVID-19
pandemic during the period starting
from 11th March 2020 till the end
of pandemic.
▪ The scheme provides support for
education and health and will
create a corpus of ₹10 lakh for each
child when he or she reaches 18
years of age.
15. Shyama Prasad ▪ Launch Year – 2016 Recently, 6th Anniversary of the
Mukherji ▪ Ministry of Rural Development launch of Shyama Prasad Mukherji
Rurban Mission ▪ Aim - To transform rural areas to Rurban Mission was observed.
economically, socially and physically So far, Ministry has approved 296
sustainable spaces clusters under the Mission.
▪ Target - To create 300 rural growth
clusters across the country
▪ Mission focuses on creation of
Rurban clusters in rural areas which
have latent potential for growth, in
all States and UTs, including the
Tribal districts, over the next 5
years.
16. National ▪ Launch Year – 2008 Government has approved the
Means-cum- ▪ Ministry of Education continuation of Central Sector
Merit ▪ Aim - To award scholarships to National Means-cum-Merit
Scholarship meritorious students of Scholarship (NMMSS) over the
(NMMSS) economically weaker sections to 15th Finance Commission cycle for
arrest their drop out at class VIII and a period of five years i.e. from
encourage them to continue the 2021-22 to 2025-26 with financial
study at secondary stage outlay of Rs. 1827.00 crore with
▪ Central Sector Scheme minor modifications in eligibility
▪ The rate of scholarship has been criteria such as increasing income
enhanced from Rs. 6000/- to Rs. ceiling from Rs.1.5 lakh per annum
12000/- per year with effect from to Rs.3.5 lakh per annum and
1st April, 2017. revising the renewal criteria.
17. Capacity ▪ Ministry of Statistics & Programme Recently, Cabinet has approved the
Development Implementation (MoSPI) continuation of the Capacity
Scheme ▪ Aim - To augment infrastructural, Development Scheme till 31
technical as well as manpower March 2026 or till further review,
resources for enabling availability whichever is earlier, subject to the
of credible and timely official adherence to Expenditure Finance
statistics Committee (EFC)
▪ Central Sector Scheme recommendations and the financial
▪ The Scheme comprises Capacity ceilings etc.
Development (Main) Scheme and The outlay approved for the
two sub schemes viz. Support for continuation of the Scheme during
Statistical Strengthening (SSS) and 15th Finance Commission cycle is Rs
Economic Census (EC). 3179 crore.
18. New India ▪ Launch Year – 2022 Recently, Government has
Literacy ▪ Ministry of Education approved a new scheme “New
Programme ▪ Aim - To impart not only India Literacy Programme” for the
foundational literacy and numeracy period FYs 2022-2027 to cover all
but also to cover other components the aspects of Adult Education to
such as Critical life skills, Vocational align with National Education
skills development, Basic education Policy 2020 and Budget
and Continuing education Announcements 2021-22.
▪ Duration: FYs 2022-2027
▪ The estimated total outlay of the
Programme is Rs.1037.90 crore
which includes Central share of
Rs.700 crore and State share of
Rs.337.90 crore respectively for the
FYs 2022 -27.
19. Rashtriya ▪ Launch Year – 2013 Government has approved the
Uchchatar ▪ Ministry of Education scheme of Rashtriya Uchchatar
Shiksha Abhiyan ▪ Aim - To provide strategic funding Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) for
(RUSA) to eligible state higher educational continuation till 31 March 2026 or
institutions till further review, whichever is
▪ Target - RUSA seeks to increase the earlier.
Gross Enrolment Ratio of the The proposal entails an
country to 30% by 2020 expenditure of Rs. 12929.16 crore
▪ Centrally Sponsored Scheme out of which Central Share is Rs.
▪ RUSA would create new universities 8120.97 crores and the State Share
through upgradation of existing is of Rs. 4808.19 crores.
autonomous colleges andIt has been envisaged to support
conversion of colleges in a cluster. around 1600 projects under the
new phase of the scheme.
20. “Border ▪ Ministry of Home Affairs Recently, Central Government has
Infrastructure ▪ Aim - Development of infrastructure approved the continuation of the
and in border areas Central Sector Umbrella Scheme of
Management” ▪ Central Sector Scheme “Border Infrastructure and
(BIM) Scheme Management” (BIM) over the
15th Finance Commission Cycle
from 2021-22 to 2025-26, at a cost
of Rs.13,020 crore.
21. Prime Minister ▪ Announced in: Union Budget 2022- This scheme has been announced
Development 23 in Union Budget 2022-23.
Initiative for the ▪ Ministry of Development of the
North East (PM- North-Eastern Region
DevINE) Scheme ▪ Aim - To fund infrastructure, in the
spirit of PM GatiShakti, as well as
support social development projects
conceptualised based on felt needs
of the North-East
▪ Initial Allocation: Rs 1500 crore
▪ Implemented By: North-Eastern
Council
22. Immigration ▪ Ministry of Home Affairs Recently, Indian government has
Visa Foreigners ▪ Aim - To modernise and upgrade approved the continuation of the
Registration Immigration and Visa services Immigration Visa Foreigners
Tracking (IVFRT) ▪ It seeks to interlink and optimize Registration Tracking (IVFRT)
Scheme functions relating to immigration, Scheme beyond March 31, 2021,
visa issuance, registration of for five years starting April 1, 2021,
foreigners, and tracking of their up to March 31, 2026, with a
movements in India. financial outlay of Rs 1,364.88
crore.
23. Weather-based ▪ Launch Year - 2022 Union Minister of Commerce &
Crop Insurance ▪ This scheme is intended to provide Industry has launched the
Scheme for insurance protection to Cardamom innovative Weather-based crop
Cardamom Growers against adverse weather insurance scheme, a joint initiative
incidence which are deemed to of the Spices Board and
adversely impact the cardamom Agricultural Insurance Company of
crop as per the weather data India for the benefit of Cardamom
recorded in the notified Reference farmers.
Weather Stations (RWS).
▪ Implemented By - Spices Board,
India under Ministry of Commerce &
Industry in Kerala through
Agriculture Insurance Company of
India Ltd.
24. Rajiv Gandhi ▪ Launch Year – 2022 Recently, Congress leader Rahul
Grameen ▪ Launched By: Chhattisgarh Gandhi has launched a financial
Bhumiheen Government assistance scheme 'Rajiv Gandhi
Krishi Mazdoor ▪ Under the scheme, registered Grameen Bhumiheen Krishi
Nyay Yojana labourers in rural areas who do not Mazdoor Nyay Yojana' of the
possess agricultural land will be Chhattisgarh government
given financial assistance of Rs
6,000 per year in three
installments.
25. Rajiv Yuva ▪ Launch Year – 2022 Recently, Congress leader Rahul
Mitan Club' ▪ Launched By: Chhattisgarh Gandhi has launched 'Rajiv Yuva
Scheme Government Mitan Club' scheme' and
▪ Under the scheme, 13,269 clubs distributed financial assistance of
will be formed in panchayats and Rs 25,000 to its beneficiaries.
urban civic bodies.
▪ People in the age group of 15 to 40
years will be part of these clubs.
▪ These clubs will get aid of Rs 1 lakh
per year in four installments for
various activities.
26. Kunsnyoms ▪ Launch Year – 2022 Recently, Ladakh Autonomous Hill
Scheme ▪ Launched By: Ladakh Autonomous Development Council, Leh has
Hill Development Council, Leh launched a new scheme
▪ This scheme has been launched for Kunsnyoms for differently-abled
differently-abled persons in the persons in the district.
district.
▪ Kunsnyoms, meant Equal for All,
Fair for All, aims inclusive and
accessible Ladakh.
27. Scheme of ▪ Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Recently, Union Government has
Assistance to ▪ Under this Scheme, the Government approved continuation of Scheme
National Sports provides assistances to NSFs for of Assistance to National Sports
Federations conducting National Federations (NSFs) with an outlay
(NSFs) Championships and International of Rs. 1575 crore for XV Finance
tournaments in India, participation Commission Cycle (2021-22 to
of national teams in International 2025-26).
tournaments in India and abroad,
organizing National coaching camps,
procuring sports equipment,
engagement of foreign coaches, etc.
28. Pradhan Mantri ▪ Launch Year – 2016 PMFBY has successfully entered its
Fasal Bima ▪ Ministry of Agriculture & Farmer 7th year of implementation with
Yojana Welfare the upcoming Kharif 2022 season,
▪ Centrally Sponsored Scheme completing 6 years of its
▪ It has replaced the National implementation since its launch by
Agricultural Insurance Scheme Prime Minister at Sehore, Madhya
(NAIS) and Modified NAIS. Pradesh.
▪ Uniform premium of 2% for Kharif
Crops, 1.5% for Rabi Crops and 5%
for commercial and Horticulture
crops.
29 Rashtriya Yuva ▪ Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports Recently, Government has
Sashaktikaran ▪ Central Sector Scheme approved continuation of Scheme
Karyakram ▪ The Scheme beneficiaries are the of “Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran
youth in the age-group of 15-29 Karyakram” over the 15th Finance
years, in line with the definition of Commission Cycle (2021-22 to
‘youth’ in the National Youth Policy, 2025-26) at an outlay of Rs
2014. 2,710.65 Crore.
30 Pradhan Mantri ▪ Launch Year – 2017 Recently, Union Minister of Power

Sahaj Bijli Har ▪ Ministry of Power has informed that under the
Ghar Yojana – ▪ Implementing Agency - Rural scheme, as many as 1,23,682
‘Saubhagya’ Electrification Corporation Limited households were electrified
(RECL) through solar-based standalone
▪ Aim - To ensure electrification of all system in Rajasthan, followed by
the households in the country in Chhattisgarh (65,373), Uttar
both rural and urban areas Pradesh (53,234), Assam (50,754),
▪ Five LED lights, one DC fan, one DC Bihar (39,100), Maharashtra
power plug for beneficiaries. (30,538), Odisha (13,735), Madhya
▪ It also includes the Repair and Pradesh (12,651).
Maintenance (R&M) for 5 years He said solar-based standalone
system for electrification of
households was not provided in
Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Jammu
and Kashmir.
4 Static
4.1 List of Important Organizations with Headquarters
S.No Organization Headquarters Establishment Head
Name Year
1 NASA Washington D.C, U.S 1958 Bill Nelson
(Administrator)
2 ISRO Bengaluru 1969 S. Somanath
(Administrator)
3 WHO Geneva, Switzerland 1948 Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
(Director General)
4 NATO Brussels, Belgium 1949 Jens Stoltenberg (Secretary General)
5 EPFO New Delhi 1952 Neelam Shami Rao
6 FICCI New Delhi 1927 Sanjiv Mehta (President);
Arun Chawla (Director General)
7 CEPI Oslo, Norway 2016 --
8 CII New Delhi 1895 T V Narendran ( President)
9 WFP Rome 1961 David Beasley (Executive Director)
10 IOC Lausanne, 1894 Thomas Bach (President)

Switzerland
11 IRSG Singapore -- --
12 IIPS Mumbai 1956 --
13 AU Addis Ababa, 2002 Felix-Antoine Tshisekedi (Chairperson)

Ethiopia
14 FSSAI New Delhi 2011 Rita Teaotia (Chairperson)
15 LIC Mumbai 1956 M R Kumar (Chairperson)
16 KVIC Mumbai 1956 Vinai Kumar Saxena (Chairperson)

17 UGC New Delhi 1956 M Jagadesh Kumar (Chairperson)
18 SWIFT La Hulpe, Brussels 1973 Javier Pérez-Tasso (Chief Executive

Officer)
19 NDB Shanghai 2014 Marcos Troyjo (President)
20 PFRDA New Delhi 2003 Supratim Bandyopadhyay

(Chairperson)
4.2 Countries in News

S.No Country Currency Capital
1 UAE UAE dirham Abu Dhabi
2 Portugal Euro Lisbon
3 Oman Omani rial Muscat
4 Burkina Faso West African CFA franc Ouagadougou
5 Madagascar Malagasy ariary Antananarivo
6 Russia Russian ruble Moscow
7 US US Dollar Washington D.C
8 Bangladesh Bangladeshi taka Dhaka
9 Australia Australian dollar Canberra
10 Qatar Qatari Riyal Doha
11 France Euro , CFP franc Paris
12 Pakistan Pakistani rupee Islamabad
13 Germany Euro Berlin
14 Japan Japanese yen Tokyo
15 Afghanistan Afghan afghani Kabul
16 Malawi Malawian kwacha Lilongwe
17 Canada Canadian Dollar Ottawa
18 Ukraine Hryvnia Kyiv
4.3 Banks in News

S.No Bank Headquarters Tagline
1 RBI Mumbai Developing Bank
2 BOB Vadodara India's International Bank
3 Kotak Mahindra Bank Mumbai Lets make money simple.
4 CSB Bank Thrissur --
5 IDBI Bank Mumbai --
6 UBI Mumbai Good People to Bank with


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1.219 MoHUA Secretary chairs ‘Labharthiyon Se Rubaroo’ initiative ............................................ 48

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1.2 Bharti Airtel to buy 25% stake in Lavelle

1.3 SEBI approves three new IPOs

1.6 Paytm introduces “India’s first” intelligent messenger called ‘Pops’

1.8 State Bank of India launches a dedicated centralized processing cell

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1.11 Government of India sets up a National Land Monetisation Corporation

1.12 Phase I of National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL)

1.16 Online platform ‘Dukaan’ partners with Simpl

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1.23 Airtel Payments Bank partners ICICI Lombard General Insurance

1.40 TomTom Traffic Index's global top 25 list

1.45 NABARD has launched ‘JIVA’ programme

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1.56 NITI Aayog will be hosting the first-ever open-to-all hackathon

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1.62 TransUnion CIBIL launches MSME consumer education program.

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1.75 Union Bank of India launches ‘MSME RuPay Credit Card’

1.78 NAFED signed an MoU with Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).

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1.84 Union Bank MSME RuPay Credit Card launched

1.85 First Foreign Country to adopt India's UPI system

1.86 Centre to recapitalise weak PSBs as part of Rs 15,000 cr capital infusion

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Economy & Finance

1.89 RBI to enter into sell-buy swaps worth $5 billion

1.90 SEBI proposes rules on pricing of IPOs

1.92 Telangana to raise Rs. 1k crore through sale of securities

1.93 NITI Aayog’s Fintech Open Summit

1.94 Fintech Open Hackathon

1.95 What are NFTs?

1.96 Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS) for NBFCs

1.97 SEBI update for listed companies to separate roles of CMD

1.98 RBI’s Regulations Review Authority (RRA) recommendations on regulated entities

1.99 SEBI advisory committee on alternative investment policy

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1.100 Centre rejects Finance Commission’s recommendations

1.101 25th Meeting of Financial Stability and Development Council

1.103 SEBI comes out with terms of usage of market data

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1.104 Investments through P-notes decline to Rs 87,989 crore in January

1.105 SEBI high powered advisory committee on settlement orders

1.106 SEBI gives approval to three more IPOs

1.108 SEBI orders forensic audit of Brightcom Group

1.109 SEBI directs AMCs to set up audit committee

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1.117 India to grow at 8.4% in FY23: Moody’s

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1.119 NSO 2nd advance estimates of national income

1.122 KVIC bans Khadi Emporium at DN Road in Mumbai

1.123 Odisha Light House Tourism plan

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1.125 World’s Largest Igloo Café opened at Jammu and Kashmir