Q1. Recently, President of India Droupadi Murmu has inaugurated a supercomputer facility at the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati. The Supercomputer facility is called?
PARAM 8000
Param 9000
PARAMNet
PARAM KAMRUPA
PARAM KAMRUPA
President Droupadi Murmu inaugurates ‘PARAM KAMRUPA’ Supercomputer facility President of India, Droupadi Murmu has inaugurated a supercomputer facility at the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati.
Q2. What is India’s position in the Global Hunger Index 2022?
52
93
101
107
107
In the 2022 Global Hunger Index, India ranks 107th out of 121 countries with sufficient data to calculate 2022 GHI scores.
Q3. The 3rd World Kuchipudi Natyotsavam is being organised in which state?
Karnataka
Rajasthan
Kerala
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
The third World Kuchipudi Natyotsavam would be organised for three days starting in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
Q4. In which state, 5th edition of the Megha Kayak Festival 2022 has started?
Goa
Assam
Meghalaya
Kerala
Meghalaya
Kayak Festival 2022 started in Meghalaya.
Q5. What is the rank of India in the Mercer Global Pension Index?
32
40
51
25
40
The Indian pension system ranked 40th on the overall index ranking out of 43 systems, and had the lowest rank in the adequacy sub-index.
Q6. Which of the following is INCORRECTLY matched of Global Index and India’s Ranking in it?
Global Hunger Index – India’s rank 107th
Henley Passport Index 2022 – India’s rank 8th
Global Crypto Adoption Index 2022 – India’s rank 4th
World Competitiveness Index 2022 – India’s rank 37th
Henley Passport Index 2022 – India’s rank 87th.
Q7. Who has been named the FIH Player of the Year in the men’s category in 2022?
Manpreet Singh
Harmanpreet Singh
Varun Kumar
PR Sreejesh
Harmanpreet Singh
India’s Harmanpreet Singh and Netherlands’ Felice Albers have been named the FIH Player of the Year for the 2021-2022 season in the men’s and women’s competitions respectively.
Q8. 1st edition of Women Indian Premier League will be played in which year?
2026
2025
2024
2023
2023
Q9. Who is the winner of the Men’s Ballon d’Or award 2022?
Cristiano Ronaldo
Lionel Messi
Mohamed Salah
Karim Benzema
Karim Benzema
Real Madrid Star Karim Benzema won the Men’s Ballon d’Or Award 2022 for the first time. He is also the fifth Frenchmen to claim the prestigious prize, the first since Zinedine Zidane in 1998.
Q10. Rudrankksh Patil has recently won gold in the men’s 10m air rifle event in the ISSF World Championship. Which is the first Indian to achieve the feat?
Abhinav Bindra
Rudrankksh Patil
Shiva Narwal
Manu Bhaker
Abhinav Bindra
18-year-old Rudrankksh Patil won gold in the men’s 10m air rifle event in the ISSF World Championship here, becoming only the second Indian to achieve the feat after the legendary Abhinav Bindra.
Q11. Which country has won the Cricket Women Asia Cup 2022?
Sri Lanka
Bangladesh
India
Pakistan
India
The Indian women’s team won the Asia Cup 2022 defeating Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the final.
Q12. Which company produced the ‘Made-in-India’ “Droni” drone?
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
Garuda Aerospace
Antrix Corporation
Skyroot Aerospace
Garuda Aerospace
A made-in-India camera drone ‘Droni’ has been with advanced features and was launched by the former Indian Cricket team Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Q13. Which institution has recently released the ‘Living Planet Report 2022’?
World Wide Fund for Nature
Discovery Channel
United Nations Environment Programme
World Bank
World Wide Fund for Nature
According to the latest Living Planet Report by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), there has been a 69 per cent decline in the wildlife populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish, across the globe in the last 50 years.
Q14. Which state announced to offer farmers a unique farm ID, similar to an Aadhaar number?
Kerala
Tamil Nadu
Uttar Pradesh
Gujarat
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh govt will provide a unique farm ID similar to an Aadhaar number to the farmers of the state.
Q15. Who has won the Booker Prize 2022?
Annie Ernaux
Shehan Karunatilaka
Elizabeth Strout
Anamaria Vartolomei
Shehan Karunatilaka
Shehan Karunatilaka, a Sri Lankan author wins the Booker prize for “The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida”.
Northeast Frontier Railway organises Rozgar Mela in Guwahati
The ‘Rozgar Mela’ is an initiative adopted by the government of India for filling up vacancies at various central government departments including the railway department.
This initiative will be creating a scope for the aspirants who are looking forward to joining the Central Government services.
The programme will be at Rang Bhavan Cultural Hall located at Maligaon, Guwahati. Central Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and Ayush Sarbananda Sonowal will be handing over the appointment letters to the newly selected candidates.
New candidates will be offered appointment letters across the nation. PM Narendra Modi addressed these selected candidates virtually.
The first tranche of new appointments will consist of 75,000 vacancies and the Ministry of Railways is one the contributor to the initial tranche of appointees.
Around 200 new recruiters from various government departments, including Railways, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), etc., will receive appointment letters in this programme.
This programme aims to fulfill the government’s commitment towards generating job opportunities for the youth and ensuring the mass’s welfare in the country.
Justice Dhanajaya Yeshwant Chandrachud appointed as the 50th Chief Justice of India
Justice Dhananjaya Yashwant Chandrachud appointed as the 50th Chief Justice of India. He will take over as CJI with effect from 9th November 2022. He will serve as the CJI for two years.
He was administered the oath by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
He was preceded by former CJI, UU Lalit, who served a short tenure of 74 days.
DY Chandrachud is a former Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court and Bombay High Court. He presently serves as the National Legal Services Authority’s executive chairman.
Justice Chnadrachud’s father Justice Y.V Chandrachud was the 16th Chief Justice of India.
Goa will host 9th World Ayurveda Congress & Arogya Expo
Union Minister of AYUSH Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the 9th World Ayurveda Congress (WAC) and Arogya Expo at Panaji, Goa from 8th to 11th December 2022.
Key Points
The four-day event was supported by both the central and state governments and the Union Ministry of Ayush.
The 9th World Ayurveda Congress (WAC) aims to create an accessible and affordable healthcare system that is in harmony with modern medicine practices.
The theme for the 9th World Ayurveda Congress (WAC) this year is ‘Ayurveda For One Health’.
The motto of this year’s celebration is “Har Din Har Ghar Ayurveda” (Ayurveda Everyday, Ayurveda Everywhere).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Mission LiFE
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Mission LiFE movement (Lifestyle for the Environment) at the Statue of Unity in Gujarat in the presence of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Key Points
Mission LiFE is an India-led global mass movement that will nudge individual and collective action to protect and preserve the environment.
It was introduced by Prime Minister Modi at the COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021.
The mission emboldens the spirit of the P3 model, Pro Planet People. It unites the people of the earth as pro planet people, uniting them all in their thoughts.
It functions on the basic principles of ‘Lifestyle of the planet, for the planet and by the planet’.
It inspires us to do all that can be done in our everyday life to protect the environment and believes that the environment can be protected by making changes in our lifestyle.
PM Modi advocated a circular economy where the concept of ‘Reduce, Reuse and Recycle’ can help in striking a balance between the development, economic growth and sustainability.
India’s first ‘Migration Monitoring System’ inaugurated in Mumbai
India’s first ‘Migration Monitoring Systems’ was inaugurated by the Maharashtra Women and Children Development Minister Mangalprabhat Lodha in Mumbai.
Key Points
The system has been developed by the Department of Women and Child Development.
The website-based Migration Tracking System (MTS) will track the movements of vulnerable seasonal migrant beneficiaries through unique identification numbers.
The Migration Monitoring Systems aims to provide updated information on migrant pregnant women, lactating mothers and children instantly on a single system.
The information about seasonal migrant women and children will be available on a single platform with the ‘Migration Monitoring Systems’.
President Droupadi Murmu inaugurates ‘PARAM KAMRUPA’ Supercomputer facility at IIT Guwahati
President of India, Droupadi Murmu, inaugurated ‘PARAM KAMRUPA’ Supercomputer facility and a high-power active and passive component laboratory of SAMEER at Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati.
Key Points
PARAM Kamrup, a one of its kind supercomputer in the NorthEast region, has been set up under the National Supercomputing Mission.
It will provide advanced computing, healthcare techniques along with solutions for many issues to this region. Many components of this supercomputer developed indigenously.
The SAMEER laboratory will be used for the design and development of high-power microwave passive and active components. This facility will provide a platform for scientists to carry out research and development activities in different areas of high-power microwave engineering.
The National Supercomputing Mission (NSM) has deployed Supercomputer PARAM Ganga at IIT Roorkee in March 2022.
About National Supercomputing Mission
The National Supercomputing Mission was launched In 2015 with the objective to enhance the research capacities in the country to form a Supercomputing grid.
The mission is being jointly operated by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
It supports the government’s vision of ‘Digital India’ and ‘Make in India’ initiatives.
It is implemented by Center for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Pune and IISc, Bengaluru.
Meghalaya will host ‘Megha Kayak Festival, 2022’
Meghalaya is all set to host a four-day mega global adventure sports spectacle, the ‘Megha Kayak Festival, 2022’, starting October 13 at the picturesque Umtrew River at Umtham Village.
Key Points
The event is organized by Meghalaya Tourism which is in line with Hon’ble Chief Minister Conrad Sangma’s vision of showcasing the mesmerizing Meghalaya to the world.
The 2022 edition of the festival will see over 100 participants from around 20 countries across the world.
The festival will include white water kayaking events in three competition categories – Downriver Time Trial, Extreme Slalom and Downriver Freestyle for professionals as well as intermediate and amateur racers.
This festival will be a wonderful opportunity to promote adventure tourism and help establish Meghalaya as one of the major water sports destinations in the world.
Roger Binny elected as the 36th BCCI President
Former cricketer Roger Binny has been officially elected as the 36th Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president. He replaces Sourav Ganguly, who had been on the post since 2019. He was elected unopposed.
Binny has represented India in 27 Tests and 72 ODIs and has also served as a member of the national selection committee.
He was one of the architects of India’s 1983 World Cup triumph and president of Karnataka State Cricket Association.
He previously served as a member of the BCCI selection committee.
Global Hunger Index 2022
India has ranked 107th out of 121 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2022. The GHI, aims to track prevalence of global hunger by region and by country.
The Global Hunger Index (GHI) is released by Concern Worldwide and Welt Hunger Hilfe. Its ultimate aim is to help the world achieve “Zero Hunger by 2030″.
Key Points
The proportion of undernourishment in the population went from 14.8 in 2014 to 16.3 in 2022.
India’s child wasting rate under five years jumped from 15.1 in 2014 to 19.3 in 2022.
Stunting in children under five has reduced from 38.7 in 2014 to 35.5 in 2022, and under-five mortality reduced from 4.6 in 2014 to 3.3 in 2022.
Prevalence of undernourishment has also risen in India from 14.6% in 2018-2020 to 16.3% in 2019-2021.
India is ranked behind its neighbours Nepal (81), Pakistan (99), Sri Lanka (64), and Bangladesh (84).
India score of 29.1 which falls in the ‘serious’ category of hunger level.
The top of the list is dominated by European nations including Croatia, Estonia and Montenegro. Yemen has ranked in the lowest position at 121.
China and Kuwait have ranked the highest among the Asian countries.
The 2022 GHI score (measured by a GHI score of 18.2) for the world is considered “moderate”.
Indicators
The GHI, focuses on 4 main parameters
Undernourishment: The share of the population with insufficient caloric intake.
Child stunting: The share of children under age five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition.
Child wasting: The share of children under age five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition.
Child mortality: The share of children who die before their fifth birthday, partly reflecting the fatal mix of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments.
Ukrainian people win European parliament’s Sakharov prize
The people of Ukraine have been awarded the Sakharov Prize 2022 by the European Parliament for Freedom of Thought to honour their fight against Russia’s invasion.
The Prize was bestowed to the people of Ukraine, represented by their president, elected leaders, and civil society.
This award recognizes the bravery of Ukrainians who have been affected by the Russian invasion and their role in defending freedom, democracy, rule of law, and European values on the battlefields.
The Sakharov Prize involves prize money of 50,000 euros.
About the Sakharov Prize
The Sakharov Prize was established in December 1988 by the European Parliament.
This award is conferred to individuals or groups who have dedicated their life defending human rights and freedom of thought.
The award is named in honor of Russian scientist and dissident Andrei Sakharov.
The first award was given to South African Nelson Mandela and Russian Anatoly Marchenko.
Previous year, the Sakharov prize was conferred to the imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The first organization to receive the award in 1992 is the Argentine Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo.
The SASTRA Ramanujan Prize 2022 will be awarded to Yunqing Tang, Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, USA.
Q2. The ‘International Day of Non-Violence’ observed across the world on
October 2
October 9
January 30
October 29
October 2
Every year, on 2 October, the International Day of Non-Violence is observed across the world. This special day marks the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
The main objective of this day is to spread awareness about the idea of non-violence. In 2007, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed the resolution to commemorate the International Day of Non-Violence. This year, the UN has selected the slogan of ‘Say No to Violence’.
Q3. Who has become the first athlete to win gold in Yogasana at the 36th National Games 2022?
Pooja Patel
Shubhankar Vinay Khawle
Shauryajit Khaire
Priya Singh
Pooja Patel
At the 36th National Games, Pooja Patel of Gujarat has become the first athlete to win gold in Yogasana. Yogasana is one of the five sports to be played at the National Games this year for the first time.
Q4. Cheetahs were recently introduced in the Kuno National Park, this national park is located in which state?
Madhya Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Meghalaya
Maharashtra
Madhya Pradesh
The Centre has constituted a 9-member Task Force to monitor Cheetah introduction in Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh and other designated areas.
Q5. Recently, Indian President Droupadi Murmu launched ‘herSTART’, an initiative aimed at supporting women-led startups in which state?
Assam
Haryana
West Bengal
Gujarat
Gujarat
President Smt Droupadi Murmu launched herSTART, an initiative of Gujarat University Startup and Entrepreneurship Council (GUSEC) aimed at supporting women-led startups in scaling up, the second and final day of her first visit to Gujarat as the President.
Q6. Which of the following village has been declared India’s first 24×7 solar-powered village?
Modhera
Mawlynnong
Malana
Mandawa
Modhera
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared Modhera in Gujarat’s Mehsana District as India’s first 24×7 solar-powered village.
Q7. Who is set to take over as the 50th Chief Justice of India (CJI) after Justice UU Lalit?
Justice K.M. Joseph
Justice S. Abdul Nazeer
Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul
Justice DY Chandrachud
Justice DY Chandrachud
Justice Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud is set to take over as the 50th Chief Justice of India (CJI) after the present Chief Justice UU Lalit formally recommended him as his successor.
Q8. Which state has recently enacted the “Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Ordinance, 2022”?
Tamil Nadu
Odisha
Tripura
Goa
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi gave his assent to an ordinance to ban online gambling and regulate online gaming in the state.
Q9. India’s space economy is likely to be of how much worth by 2025?
USD 5 billion
USD 5 trillion
USD 13 billion
USD 13 trillion
USD 13 billion
India’s space economy is likely to be worth nearly USD 13 billion by 2025, with the satellite launch services segment set to witness the fastest growth spurred by increasing private participation.
Q10. According to the Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index (CRII) 2022, India’s rank in the world for reducing inequality is
98
123
139
153
123
According to the latest Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index (CRII), India has been ranked 123 out of 161 countries from rank 129 in 2020.
Q11. Which organization has recently released the ‘Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2022’ Report?
International Monetary Fund
Asian Development Bank
World Bank
Niti Aayog
World Bank
The World Bank has released a report, titled “Poverty and Shared Prosperity 2022. Correcting Course” that provides the latest estimates and trends in global poverty and shared prosperity.
Q12. Which state has launched a ‘Mahatma Gandhi Rural Industrial Parks’ (MGRIP) scheme?
Rajasthan
Himachal Pradesh
Haryana
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh
Q13. Which state will host the 37th National Games in October 2023?
Sikkim
Puducherry
Goa
Kerala
Goa
The Indian Olympic Association has confirmed that Goa will host the 37th edition of the National Games in October next year.
Q14. Which state topped the Logistics Index in LEADS (Logistics Ease Across Different States) 2022 report?
Maharashtra
Karnataka
Uttar Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
The Union Commerce and Industry Ministry launched the LEADS (Logistics Ease Across Different States) 2022 report.
Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Gujarat are among the 15 States and UTs categorised as achievers in the logistics index chart 2022. The index is an indicator of efficiency of logistical services necessary for promoting exports and economic growth.
Q15. Who won the 2022 UN Refugee Award?
Kailash Satyarthi
Angela Merkel
Jacinda Ardern
Sanna Marin
Angela Merkel
Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel Wins UN Refugee Award 2022
Cabinet approved the scheme “Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE)
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently approved the Prime Minister’s development initiative for the North East region (PM-DevINE).
PM-DevINE was announced in the Union Budget 2022-23 to address development gaps in the North Eastern Region (NER).
Key Points
The PM-DevINE is a 100% Central Government funded plan and will be administered by the Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region (DoNER).
The PM-DevINE will be operational for the remaining four years of the 15th Finance Commission, from 2022-23 to 2025-26 and will have an outlay of Rs 6,600 crore.
PM-DevINE will be implemented by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), through the North Eastern Council or central ministries and agencies.
The PM-DevINE will lead to the creation of infrastructure, support industries, social development projects, and create livelihood activities for youth and women.
PMDevINE will provide support to infrastructure and social development projects which may be larger in size and will also provide an end–to-end development solution instead of isolated projects.
India’s first Slender Loris Sanctuary will be established in Tamil Nadu
The Tamil Nadu government has notified the country’s first Kadavur Slender Loris Sanctuary in Karur and Dindigul districts.
Key Points
The Kadavur Slender Loris Sanctuary will be covering 11,806 hectares in the Karur and Dindigul districts of the State.
The Kadavur slender loris sanctuary is to cover Vedasandur, Dindigul East and Natham taluks in Dindigul district and Kadavur taluk in Karur district.
The government notified ‘Kadavur slender loris sanctuary’ under Section 26 (A)(1)(b) of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
The species is considered endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
About Slender Loris
The slender lorises are a genus of loris native to India and Sri Lanka.
The genus comprises two species, the red slender loris found in Sri Lanka and the gray slender loris from Sri Lanka and India.
They are small nocturnal mammals that are arboreal in nature as they spend most of their life on trees, travelling along the tops of branches with slow and precise movements.
The species acts as a biological predator of pests in agricultural crops and benefits farmers.
The survival of the species depends on its habitat improvement, conservation efforts and mitigation of threats.
Prime Minister declared Modhera as India’s first solar-powered village
The Prime Minister declared Modhera, a village in the Mehsana district of Gujarat as India’s first solar-powered village.
Key Points
The Modhera village has a ground-mounted solar power plant, and over 1,300 rooftop solar systems with 1kW capacity have been installed on houses to generate electricity.
Modhera was well known for the Sun temple, now it will also be known as a solar-powered village.
The people in the village wouldn’t pay for electricity, rather they could start selling it and earn from energy produced by the solar panel by selling it to the government grid.
It will generate employment at the village level, and ultimately improve the standard of living.
The project will enhance the sustainable implementation of various welfare projects in the area. The people of the area will be able to save 60-100% of their electricity bills.
Jharkhand record country’s highest percentage of child marriage
According to the latest demographic sample survey by the Union Home Ministry, Jharkhand has recorded the highest percentage of underage girls getting married.
The Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report contains estimates of various demographic, fertility and mortality indicators based on the data collected through one of the largest demographic surveys in the world covering about 8.4 million sample population.
Key Points
According to the survey brought out by the office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, the percentage of girls getting married before attaining majority is as high as 5.8 in Jharkhand.
As per the survey, the percentage of females who got effectively married before reaching 18 years of age is 1.9 at the national level and varies from 0.0 in Kerala to 5.8 in Jharkhand.
In Jharkhand, child marriages accounted for 7.3% of marriages in rural areas and three per cent in urban areas.
Jharkhand and West Bengal are the only two States in the country where more than half of the women are married before attaining the age of 21 years.
In West Bengal 54.9 percent of girls are married before attaining the age of 21 years, while in Jharkhand is 54.6 percent as against the national average of 29.5 per cent.
Goa will host the 37th edition of the National Games in October 2023
The Indian Olympic Association has confirmed that Goa will host the 37th edition of the National Games in October next year.
The Goa state government has conveyed to the IOA its in-principle approval to host the next edition of the National Games.
Goa was set to host the 36th edition of the National Games but the IOA had to shift the venue to Gujrat, who agreed to conduct the event in a short span of time.
The Goa delegation may receive the IOA flag at the Closing Ceremony of the 36th National Games on 12th October 2022 in Surat, Gujarat.
The 35th National Games of India were held in Kerala in 2015.
Kerala’s Pullampara named first fully digital literate panchayat
The Pullumpara village panchayat in the Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala has become the first digitally literate panchayat in the country.
Digital literacy was imperative for the public to get government services as well as connect with the global knowledge network.
Key Points
The project was started on August 15, 2021 with the plans to impart digital literacy to all residents of the panchayats under the Digi Pullampara project.
The project mission is to achieve total digital literacy and empower the residents to get access to government services available through the online mode.
Full digital literacy was gained by Pullampara panchayat’s ‘DigiPullampara’ project.
The left democratic front (LDF) government in Kerala had announced to extend digital literacy to all the residents. The government has also created Kerala – Fibre Optic Network (K-FON) to provide an internet connection to all and to ensure its promise of making access to the internet a basic right.
World’s largest jungle safari park will be set up in Haryana
Chief Minister of Haryana, Manohar Lal Khattar announced that the world’s largest safari park will be set up in the state. The safari park will be spread across an area of 10000 acres in the Aravalli Mountain Range of Gurugram and Nuh District.
Key Points
Haryana’s Jungle Safari project will be a joint project of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India and the Government of Haryana. The central government will also help with the funds to Haryana for the project.
The proposed Aravalli Park will be 5 times the size and will include a large herbarium, an aviary, four zones for big cars, a large area for herbivores, an area for exotic animal/birds, an underwater world, natural trails, visitors, tourism zones, botanical garden, biomes, equatorial, tropical, coastal, desert, etc.
The Jungle safari scheme will not only boost tourism but also provide employment opportunities to local residents.
This project will be the largest such project in the world. Currently, Sharjah is the home to the largest curated safari park outside Africa, which covers an area of about 2,000 acres. The park was opened in February 2022.
Union Environment Ministry set up Cheetah task force
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has constituted a Task Force for monitoring Cheetah introduction in Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh and other suitable designated areas.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) would facilitate the working of the Cheetah Task Force and render all necessary help.
Key Points
According to the ministry the task force has been constituted for a period of 2 years.
The Task Force has been constituted to review, progress and monitor the health status of Cheetah.
It will also look over the upkeep of the quarantine & soft release enclosures, protection status of the entire area, adherence to the defined protocols by forest & veterinary officials.
It will suggest and advise on development of tourism infrastructure in the fringe areas of Kuno National Park and other Protected Areas.
The Task Force regularly interacts with Cheetah mitras and local communities for their awareness raising and also involvement in protection of Cheetahs in particular & area in general.
In addition to these, the task force will also be responsible for monitoring hunting skills and adaptation of Cheetahs to the habitat of Kuno National Park.
Cheetah restoration is part of a prototype or model for restoration of original cheetah habitats and their biodiversity, which aimed at putting a check to degradation and rapid loss of biodiversity.
Pankaj Advani wins gold at IBSF World Billiards Championships in Kuala Lumpur
India’s Pankaj Advani has won a gold medal at the 2022 IBSF World Billiards Championship in Kuala Lumpur. This is Pankaj Advani’s 25th world title.
He defeated compatriot Sourav Kothari by ‘4-0’ in the 150-up billiards final at the World Championships in Kuala Lumpur. This is Advani’s title for the fifth time in a row.
Advani’s last world title came over 12 months ago in Qatar where he won the IBSF 6-Red Snooker World Cup.
RBI Releases Concept Note On Central Bank Digital Currency
The Reserve Bank of India has released a Concept Note on Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The purpose of this Concept Note is to create awareness about CBDCs in general and the planned features of the digital Rupee, in particular.
It is a sovereign currency issued by Central Banks in alignment with their monetary policy.
Key Points
The Reserve Bank defines CBDC as the legal tender issued by a central bank in a digital form.
It is substantially not different from banknotes, but being digital it is likely to be easier, faster and cheaper.
It also has all the transactional benefits of other forms of digital money.
It’s a digital bearer instrument that can be stored, transferred, and transmitted by all kinds of digital payment systems and services.
The concept note also discusses key considerations such as technology and design choices, possible uses of Digital Rupee, issuance mechanisms, etc.
It examines the implications of the introduction of CBDC on the banking system, monetary policy, financial stability, and analyses privacy issues.
AFSPA extended in Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh for six months
The Central government has extended the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act — known as AFSPA for another six months in 12 districts of Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
It has also been extended in certain parts of five other districts of the two northeastern states to facilitate the armed forces to continue the anti-insurgency operations.
The AFSPA will be extended for six months in nine districts of Nagaland: Dimapur, Niuland, Chumoukedima, Mon, Kiphire, Noklak, Phek, and Zunheboto and and 16 police stations areas in four other districts — Kohima, Mokokchung, Longleng, and Wokha.
Nagaland has 16 districts while Arunachal Pradesh has 26 districts. This was announced in a notification by the Home Ministry.
About the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA)
The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), passed by the Indian Parliament in 1958 to the Indian Armed Forces to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”.
The Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act of 1976 states that once an area is designated as “disturbed,” it must remain that way for at least six months.
One such law, which was passed on September 11, 1958, applied to the Naga Hills, which were then a part of Assam. It gradually expanded to the other Seven Sister States in northeastern India during the next decades.
Indian-origin Vivek Murthy is appointed as US representative on WHO executive board
US President Joe Biden has nominated Indian-origin Dr. Vivek Murthy to serve as the country’s representative on the executive board of the World Health Organisation.
Dr Murthy will serve as the US Representative on WHO Executive Board alongside his continued duties as the US Surgeon General.
Key Points
In March 2021, he was confirmed by the US Senate to serve as the 21st Surgeon General of the country.
Previously, he served as the 19th Surgeon General under President Barack Obama.
He is the Vice Admiral of the US Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.
He commands a uniformed service of over 6,000 dedicated public health officers, serving the most underserved and vulnerable populations.
He is also the first Indian-origin Surgeon General of the US, he was raised in Miami and graduated from Harvard, the Yale School of Medicine, and the Yale School of Management.
India emerges as the world’s largest producer and consumer of sugar
India emerges as the world’s largest producer and consumer of sugar and world’s 2nd largest exporter of sugar.
Key Points
In Sugar Season (Oct-Sep) 2021-22, a record of more than 5000 Lakh Metric Tons (LMT) of sugarcane was produced in the country out of which about 3574 LMT of sugarcane was crushed by sugar mills to produce about 394 LMT of sugar (Sucrose). Out of this, 35 LMT sugar was diverted to ethanol production and 359 LMT sugar was produced by sugar mills.
During 2020-21, India made records with the highest exports of about 109.8 LMT with no financial assistance and earned foreign currency of about Rs 40,000 crore for the country.
Timely Government interventions since the last 5 years have been crucial in building the sugar sector step by step from taking them out of financial distress in 2018-19 to the stage of self-sufficiency in 2021-22.
During the Sugar season 2021-22, sugar mills procured sugarcane worth more than 1.18 lakh crore and released payment of more than 1.12 lakh crore with no financial assistance (subsidy) from Government of India.
Government has been encouraging sugar mills to divert sugar to ethanol and also to export surplus sugar so that sugar mills may make payment of cane dues to farmers in time and also mills may have better financial conditions to continue their operations.
SASTRA Ramanujan Prize for 2022
The SASTRA Ramanujan Prize for 2022 will be awarded to Yunqing Tang Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, USA.
Ms. Yunqing’s works “display a remarkable combination of sophisticated techniques, in which the arithmetic and geometry of modular curves and of Shimura varieties play a central role, and her results and methods are bound to have major impact on future research in this area.”
Tang’s latest joint work with Frank Calegari and Vesselin Dimitrov based on modular equations is of great significance and has connections with Ramanujan’s own work.
The prize will be awarded at the International Conference on Number Theory during December 20-22, 2022 at SASTRA University.
About SASTRA Ramanujan Prize
The award was instituted by the Shanmugha Arts, Science, Technology & Research Academy (SASTRA) in 2005.
The award includes a cash prize of $10,000 and it is presented annually to individuals aged 32 and below, who made an outstanding contribution to the field of mathematics.
Ajay Bhadoo has been appointed as the Deputy Election Commissioner
Ajay Bhadoo has been appointed as the Deputy Election Commissioner of the Election Commission of India.
Ajay Bhadoo is a 1999-batch Indian Administrative Officer (IAS) officer of the Gujarat cadre. He has been appointed as the deputy election commissioner until July 24, 2024 or till further order, whichever is earlier.
He was appointed as Joint Secretary to former President Ram Nath Kovind in July 2020. His two-month extension as Joint Secretary in the President’s Secretariat ended on September 25.
Earlier, he has also served as Gujarat’s Vadodara Municipal Commissioner.
Prime Minister will inaugurate sixth edition of India Mobile Congress
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will launch 5G services in the country and will also inaugurate the 6th Edition of India Mobile Congress 2022 (IMC-2022). The IMC 2022 is scheduled to be held from 1st to 4th October with the theme of “New digital Universe”.
Key Points
The cumulative economic impact of 5G on India is estimated to reach USD 450 billion by 2035.
The 5G technology will provide seamless coverage, high data rate, low latency, and highly reliable communications.
The 5G service is expected to unleash new economic opportunities and societal benefits, serving as a transformational force for Indian society.
The 5G to be launched by the Prime Minister in select cities will progressively cover the entire country over the next couple of years.
Srishti Bakshi wins ‘Changemaker’ award at the UN SDG Action Awards
Srishti Bakshi, a women’s rights activist from India, was honoured with the ‘Changemaker’ award at the UN SDG Action Awards held at a ceremony in Bonn, Germany.
The activist has traveled 3,800km around the country in less than a year to raise awareness on gender-based violence and inequality. She was awarded for “confronting gender-based violence and advocating for safe access to public spaces.”
The other award winners are ‘SUPvivors say NO MORE’ in the Mobilise category, ‘The Masungi Story’ in the Inspire category honouring youth rewriting the future of forgotten watersheds at Masungi Geosreserve in the Philippines and ‘CyprusInno in the Connect category’.
Asha Parekh will be honoured with 52nd Dadasaheb Phalke award
Veteran actress Asha Parekh has been declared the recipient of the 2020 Dadasaheb Phalke award. The award will be presented at the National Film Award ceremony in New Delhi.
The jury for the selection of 52nd Dadasaheb Phalke award consisted of five members from the film industry.
Ms Asha Parekh is a renowned film actress, director and producer and an accomplished Indian classical dancer. She was conferred the Padma Shri in 1992.
About the Dadasaheb Phalke Award
The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India’s largest laurel in cinema.
The award was first presented in 1969 by the Indian Government to honor Dadasaheb Phalke’s contribution to Indian film.
It is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals, an organisation set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Dadasaheb Phalke award winners are given in the form of a Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) medallion, a shawl, and a cash prize of ₹1,000,000.
The first recipient of the award was actress Devika Rani, who was honoured at the 17th National Film Awards.
SC-ST hub conclave organized by Ministry of MSME in Gujarat
The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises has organized a national SC-ST hub conclave in Gujarat to spread awareness about the National SC-ST Hub (NSSH) Scheme and other Schemes of the Ministry.
Key Points
More than 300 SC-ST entrepreneurs participated in the event. The conclave provided a platform for aspiring and existing SC-ST entrepreneurs to interact with CPSEs, lending institutions, GeM, RSETI, TRIFED etc.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Solanki said more SC-ST entrepreneurs from Gujarat State should take benefits available under the NSSH Scheme.
He also urged the bankers present in the audience to prioritize credit support to the SC-ST entrepreneurs so that they may not face any difficulty in augmenting their business capacities.
He stressed upon Prime Minister’s vision of becoming job providers instead of job seekers and emphasized the participation of SC-ST entrepreneurs in strengthening the Indian Economy.
About NSSH scheme
The ministry of MSME launched the National Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribe Hub (NSSH) scheme to promote an inclusive economy and entrepreneurship among SC/ST communities.
It has been set up to provide professional support to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Entrepreneurs to fulfil the obligations under the Central Government Public Procurement Policy for Micro and Small Enterprises Order 2012.
The hub leverages the Stand Up India programme.
The President of India presented the Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022
The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, presented the Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022 at a function held in New Delhi.
Key Points
Indore has been adjudged India’s cleanest city for the sixth time in a row,
Surat and Navi Mumbai were named as the 2nd and 3rd cleanest cities respectively.
Madhya Pradesh secured the first position, followed by Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra in the category of best performing states in ‘Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022’.
Haryana was in the second position while Tamil Nadu was third.
Among smaller states and Union territories, Andaman and Nicobar secured the first position followed by Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu and Sikkim.
Telangana won the first prize under the large states category under the Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG) 2022 which looks into the sanitation status of rural areas.
In the category of cities having population fewer than one lakh, Maharashtra’s Panchgani was ranked number one, followed by Chhattisgarh’s Patan (NP) and Maharashtra’s Karhad.
Haridwar was adjudged the cleanest Ganga town in the category of more than 1 lakh population, followed by Varanasi and Rishikesh.
Bijnor was ranked the first among Ganga towns with fewer than one lakh population. followed by Kannauj and Garhmukhteshwar respectively.
In to the survey, Maharashtra’s Deolali was adjudged the country’s cleanest Cantonment Board.
Q1. FIFA has released a three-episode series on the life and career of which Indian football player?
Sunil Chhetri
I.M. Vijayan
Bhaichung Bhutia
Jeje Lalpekhlua
Sunil Chhetri
World football governing body FIFA has released a three-episode series on the life and career of talismanic Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri in recognition of his achievements and goal-scoring exploits. FIFA announced that the three episodes are available on FIFA+, its streaming platform.
Q2. Pullampara has recently become the first digitally literate gram panchayat. It is located in which state?
Tamil Nadu
Kerala
Tripura
Karnataka
Kerala
Pullampara in Thiruvananthapuram has become the first digitally literate gram panchayat in Kerala.
Q3. Recently, Adani Green commissioned the largest 600 MW wind-solar plant in which state?
Tamil Nadu
Rajasthan
Haryana
Bihar
Rajasthan
Adani Green commissions the largest 600 MW wind-solar plant in Rajasthan.
Q4. Who has been appointed as the new CEO of the Data Security Council of India?
Vinayak Godse
Nakul Jain
Rajarshi Gupta
Mukul Bhandarkar
Vinayak Godse
Data Security Council of India (DSCI), a leading industry organisation founded by NASSCOM, promoted senior vice president Vinayak Godse and named him the organization’s new CEO.
Q5. The All India Football Federation has launched a grassroots football development (GFD) scheme in which state?
Assam
Mizoram
Odisha
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
The All India Football Federation has launched a grassroots football development (GFD) scheme in Arunachal Pradesh.
Q6. India’s current account deficit widens to what percent of GDP in Q1FY23?
6%
4%
2.8%
1.4%
2.8%
India’s current account deficit widens to 2.8% of GDP in Q1FY23.
Q7. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recently launched 5G services at India Mobile Congress 2022 in which city?
Indore
Bangalore
New Delhi
Hyderabad
New Delhi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched 5G services at India Mobile Congress 2022 in New Delhi.
Q8. The only Indian to be included in the Time’s 100 emerging leaders’ list?
Gautam Adani
Akash Ambani
Ankit Agarwal
Ghazal Alagh
Akash Ambani
Jio Telecom head Akash Ambani is the only Indian on Time’s 100 emerging leaders’ list.
Q9. What is India’s rank in the Global Innovation Index Ranking?
14th
19th
32nd
40th
40th
India ranked 40th for the first time in the Global Innovation Index Ranking.
Q10. Who was recently honoured with the ‘Changemaker’ award at UN SDG Action Awards?
Garvita Gulhati
Anisha Malik
Srishti Bakshi
Akhilesh Anil Kumar
Srishti Bakshi
Indian women’s rights activist, Srishti Bakshi was honoured with the ‘Changemaker’ award at UN SDG Action Awards.
Q11. Swachh Bharat Diwas is celebrated on which date in India?
October 1
October 2
October 8
October 9
October 2
October 2 is celebrated as Swachh Bharat Diwas across India. Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), which organises Swachh Bharat Diwas-2022, implements two programmes -Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen (SBM-G) and Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).
President of India Droupadi Murmu confers the awards for Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG) 2022, Swachhta Hi Sewa 2022, Sujlam 1.0 and 2.0, Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) Functionality Assessment, Har Ghar Jal certification and Start-up Grand Challenge.
Q12. Which city is adjudged as the cleanest city in the country for the sixth time in a row, as per the Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022?
Bangalore
Bhopal
Indore
Tiruchirappalli
Indore
As per the results of Swachh Survekshan Awards 2022, Indore was adjudged the cleanest city, followed by Surat and Navi Mumbai.
Q13. Which country became the largest producer and second-largest exporter of sugar in the world?
China
Australia
India
Russia
India
India became the largest producer and second-largest exporter of sugar in the world.
Q14. Which country won the Women’s Basketball World Cup 2022 title?
UK
India
USA
China
USA
Q15. As per RBI regulation, the tokenization of card-based payments to be implemented from which date?
October 01, 2022
October 04, 2022
December 31, 2023
January 01, 2023
October 01, 2022
As per the regulatory guidelines of RBI, with effect from 01st October, 2022, Banks introduce tokenization facility for all the card users of both Debit and Credit card holders of RuPay/VISA/Master card to enhance online transaction security.
Senior advocate R Venkataramani has been appointed as the new Attorney General of India
Senior advocate R. Venkataramani has been appointed as the new Attorney General of India for a period of three years from the 1st of October.
Mr Venkataramani will replace current Attorney General KK Venugopal whose term ends on September 30, 2022.
About R Venkataramani
R Venkataramani was registered as a lawyer with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu in 1977 and joined the chambers of PP Rao, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court in 1979.
In 1982, he had set up an independent practice in the Supreme Court and was designated as Senior Advocate of the SC in 1997.
He has specialised in Constitutional law, Law of Indirect Taxes, Human Rights Law, Civil and Criminal Law.
He had also served as a member of the Law Commission of India in 2010 and 2013.
About Attorney-General of India
The Attorney General for India is the Indian government’s chief legal advisor, and is its chief advocate in the courts.
The Attorney-General of India is appointed by the President of India under Article 76(1) of the Constitution and hold office during the pleasure of the President.
They must be a person qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court. Hence, they must have been a judge of a high court for five years or an advocate of a high court for ten years, or an eminent jurist in the opinion of the President.
India ranks 40 in Global Innovation Index of World Intellectual Property Organization
India ranks 40 in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2022 rankings released by World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
India has leapfrogged to 40th position on the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2022 from the 81st spot in 2015.
India continues to lead the world in ICT services exports and holds top rankings in other indicators, including venture capital receipt value, finance for start-ups and scale-ups, graduates in science and engineering, labour productivity growth and domestic industry diversification.
Switzerland is the most innovative economy in the world in 2022 – for the 12th year in a row – followed by the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
About Global Innovation Index
The Global Innovation Index is an annual ranking of countries by their capacity for, and success in, innovation, published by the World Intellectual Property Organization.
It was started in 2007 by INSEAD, Cornell University, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), along with other institutions.
The index is based on both objective and subjective data compiled from various sources including the World Bank, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and the International Monetary Fund.
Samantha Cristoforetti becomes first European woman to command International Space Station
Samantha Cristoforetti has been appointed as the first woman to command the International Space Station. She succeeded Russian Cosmonaut Oleg Artemyev.
Samantha will be the fifth and first woman European commander of the International Space Station.
The International Space Station is a multinational collaborative project that consists of five participating space agencies including NASA, JAXA, CSA, Roscosmos, and ESA. The authority and use of the space station are established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements.
Suella Braverman has been named winner of the first-ever Queen Elizabeth II Woman of the Year award
Britain’s Indian-origin Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been named winner of the first-ever Queen Elizabeth II Woman of the Year award.
She has been recently appointed as Home Secretary by British Prime Minister Liz Truss.
She was the Attorney General for England and Wales from 2020 to 2022. She has been a member of parliament for Fareham in Hampshire since 2015.
Other Indian-origin winners lists:
Broadcaster Naga Munchetty in the media category.
Chairman and CEO of celebrated visual effects firm DNEG Namit Malhotra in the Arts and Culture category.
Captain Harpreet Chandi in the Uniformed and Civil Service category for her solo expedition across the Antarctic to the South Pole earlier this year.
Professor Sir Shankar Balasubramanian was named Professional of Year for his pioneering DNA sequencing discovery.
Karenjeet Kaur Bains won Sports Personality of the Year as the first female Sikh powerlifter to represent Britain on the global stage.
Sherry Vaswani won Entrepreneur of the Year.
Restaurateur brothers Shamil and Kavi Thakrar were named Business Persons of the Year as the founders of the successful Dishoom chain of restaurants.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Kartar Lalvani, the founder of the UK’s well-known health supplements brand Vitabiotics.
Odisha releases India’s first tribal community-based encyclopedia
Odisha became the first state in India to publish an encyclopedia based on tribal communities. The “Encyclopedia of Tribes in Odisha” was unveiled by state chief minister Navin Patnaik.
Key Points
The encyclopedia documents the unique and old-age traditions and culture of Odisha.
Schedule Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute (SCSTRTI) and Odisha State Tribal Museum published the encyclopedia.
Tribes, as per 2011 census, constitute 22.85% of the population in Odisha. A total number of 62 tribal communities live in the state.
Odisha is home to the third largest tribal population of India, but it is the most diverse indigenous communities found in the country.
The encyclopedia consists of five edited volumes. It has 418 research articles on the tribals, including 13 particularly vulnerable groups.
The encyclopedia is of 3800 papers contributed by its own research personnel.
