Current Affairs

14^th October 2022

Top 17 Daily GK Updates: National & International News

Here is the Daily GK Update of the 14th October 2022 covering the following news headlines:  World Standards Day, International E-Waste Day 2022, World Sight Day, 36th National Games 2022, Maa Bharati Ke Sapoot.

National News

1.India May See 20Bn $ FDI In Climate-Tech

India may see up to $20 billion worth of investments in climatetech sector by 2030, said Enzia Ventures, a new-age, mid-market venture capital firm focused on healthcare, education and environment.

Co-founder and partner Namita Dalmia said Indian entrepreneurs, over the next decade, would lead the way and build new products for the global market. India needs USD 20 billion (about RS 1.53 lakh crore) worth of investments each year to achieve its climate targets and fund its green transition, according to a report.

The white paper by Ficci and Trilegal highlights that the country needs a large budget allocation, international finance from bilateral and multilateral sources and green private investments.

International News

2.Israel and Lebanon Agreed to ‘Historic Agreement’ on the Maritime Dispute

Lebanon and Israel have reached a “historic” deal to end a long-running maritime border dispute in the gas-rich Mediterranean Sea, according to negotiators from the two countries.

Lebanon’s deputy speaker Elias Bou Saab said, after submitting the United States-brokered final draft of the deal to President Michel Aoun, that an agreement had been reached that satisfies both sides.

While limited in scope, an agreement may ease security and economic concerns between the two countries. The deal would resolve a territorial dispute in the eastern tip of the Mediterranean Sea in an area where Lebanon aims to explore for natural gas, and near waters where Israel has already found commercially viable quantities of hydrocarbons.

3.Beijing Witnesses A Protest Against President Xi

Just days before the key 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, a rare protest reportedly took place in China against President XI Jinping and his zero-Covid policy, the toughest in the world.

Various photos circulating on social media showed posters and banners on Sitong Bridge overpass in Beijing against the authoritarian rule of Jinping, who is set to get the record third term during the National Congress starting this Sunday, October 16.

State News

4.Meghalaya: 5th edition of Megha Kayak Festival 2022 begins

Meghalaya is all set to host the four-day long mega global adventure sports spectacle, ‘Megha Kayak Festival, 2022’ starting October 13 at the picturesque Umtrew River at Umtham Village.

The 2022 edition of the festival will witness over 100 participants from close to 20 countries across the globe, featuring some of the best-known athletes.

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.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Meghalaya Capital: Shillong;

Meghalaya Chief Minister: Conrad Kongkal Sangma;

Meghalaya Governor: D. Mishra (additional charge).

5.Nation’s first slender loris habitat in Karur, Dindigul districts of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu government has notified the country’s first Kadavur slender loris sanctuary covering 11,806 hectares in Karur and Dindigul districts of the State, Chief Minister M K Stalin.

The species, listed as endangered as per the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), acts as a biological predator to pests of agricultural crops and benefits farmers. The survival of the species depends on its habitat improvement, conservation efforts and mitigation of threats.

The government of Tamil Nadu is committed to conserving the endangered slender loris species,” Supriya Sahu said in a release here. Accordingly, forest areas measuring 11,806 hectares in Karur and Dindigul districts have been identified as important habitats for slender loris in Tamil Nadu.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

International Union for the Conservation of Nature Headquarters: Gland, Switzerland;

International Union for the Conservation of Nature Founded: 5 October 1948, Fontainebleau, France;

International Union for the Conservation of Nature Founder: Julian Huxley;

International Union for the Conservation of Nature CEO: Bruno Oberle;

International Union for the Conservation of Nature Motto: United for Life and Livelihoods.

6.PM Modi inaugurated 4th Vande Bharat Express in Himachal Pradesh

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the fourth Vande Bharat Express Train of India. He also launched a slew of development projects in Himachal Pradesh.

PM Modi flagged off the inaugural run of the new Vande Bharat Express Train from Amb Andaura to New Delhi.  He also laid the foundation stone of Bulk Drug Park.

In Chamba district, he laid the foundation stone of two hydropower projects and launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana-III in Himachal Pradesh.

Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh Jai Ram Thakur highlighted the ninth visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Himachal Pradesh in five years.

The Vande Bharat Express Train launched in Himachal Pradesh is much lighter and capable of reaching higher speeds in a shorter duration.

Appointments News

7.Odisha MP Aparajita Sarangi elected to IPU panel

Lok Sabha member from Bhubaneswar, Aparajita Sarangi has been elected as a member to the executive committee of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

The Parliamentarian from Odisha bagged 12 out of the total of 18 available votes in the election to the post held at Kigali, Rwanda. Sarangi will represent India at the 15-member executive committee of the union.

Notably, this will be the first time in 20 years, that India will have her representative in the international committee.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Inter-Parliamentary Union  Founded: 1889;

Inter-Parliamentary Union  Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland;

Inter-Parliamentary Union  President: Saber Hossain Chowdhury;

Inter-Parliamentary Union  Secretary General: Martin Chungong.

Agreements News

8.Tata Power partnered with 75F Smart Innovations for energy-efficiency solutions

Tata Power Trading Company (TPTCL) has signed an agreement with 75F Smart Innovation India to jointly promote automation and energy efficiency solutions in the commercial building space. This will include industry verticals like IT/ITeS, BFSI hospitality, healthcare, education, government, and retail.

The collaboration of TPTCL and 75F will offer solutions in the space of HVAC optimization and smart building automation powered by the finest technology like cloud, IoT, and AI.

Defence News

9.Rajnath Singh is set to launch ‘Maa Bharati Ke Sapoot’ website

Defence Minister of India, Rajnath Singh will be launching the ‘Maa Bharati Ke Sapoot’ (MBKS) website for the Armed Forces Battle Casualties Welfare Fund (AFBCWF) during a function at the National War Memorial Complex in New Delhi.

The AFBCWF is a Tri-service fund utilised to grant immediate financial assistance of ex-gratia to the next of kin and dependents of Battle Casualties. Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan to be the ‘Goodwill Ambassador’.

10.Indian Navy Conducts Offshore Security Exercise, ‘Prasthan’

‘Prasthan’ an Offshore Security Exercise was conducted by the Eastern Naval Command in the Offshore Development Area (ODA) off Kakinada.

‘Prasthan’ is a half-yearly exercise that was conducted in the KG basin to validate SOPs, address various contingencies and strengthen the command and control organization toward Maritime security. Prasthan was a two-day offshore security exercise.

The Prasthan exercise is conducted every six months and it is an important element of ensuring offshore security as per the Defence Ministry.

The exercise was conducted onboard Drill rigs Platinum Explorer and DDKG of ONGC and RIL located about 40 nm south of Kakinada.

Contingencies performed during the exercise include terrorist intrusion, bomb explosion, casualty evacuation, search and rescue, man overboard, major fire, oil spill, and mass evacuation.

Business News

11.Cabinet Extends Rs 22,000 Cr as one time grant to Oil PSUs to Cover Losses in Domestic LPG

The government will extend a one-time grant of Rs 22,000 crore to three state-owned fuel retailers to cover for the losses they incurred on selling domestic cooking gas LPG below cost in the last two years, I&B Minister Anurag Thakur said.

The Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a meeting, approved the one-time grant to three oil marketing companies – Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL).

The grant will be for covering the losses they incurred on selling LPG below cost to consumers from June 2020 to June 2022. The three firms sell domestic LPG at government-regulated prices to consumers.

Bankings News

12.Paytm tie-up with Jana Small Finance Bank for deployment of card devices

Paytm brand has partnered with Jana Small Finance Bank to deploy card machines to further drive digitisation among merchants across the country. This partnership will enable Jana Small Finance Bank to extend Paytm’s All-in-one EDC machines to its existing and potential customers, providing a one-stop solution for all their digital payment needs.

With over 4.5 million devices deployed, Paytm remains the market leader in offline payments. Paytm’s EDC devices and All-in-One POS devices have revolutionised digital payments in India with their flexibility of accepting multiple payment methods.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

MD and CEO of Paytm: Vijay Shekhar Sharma;

Paytm Founded: August 2010;

Paytm Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India.

Sports News

13.Indian discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur banned for 3 years

Indian discus thrower, Kamalpreet Kaur has been banned from competition for three years, starting March 29, 2022, due to a doping violation, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced on October 12.

The AIU, which is the independent body created by World Athletics that manages all integrity issues – including doping and age fraud, had provisionally suspended Kamalpreet in May this year for testing positive for the banned substance stanozolol, an anabolic steroid that is on the list of banned substances as per the World Athletics.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

WADA Headquarters: Montreal, Canada;

WADA President: Craig Reedie;

WADA Founded: 10 November 1999.

14.36th National Games 2022 Concludes: Check the winners list

The 36th National Games is coming to an end after a glorious display of sporting performance and sportsmanship spirit. In its 36th edition, Gujarat hosted the National Games for the first time in 2022.

The National Games 2022 was held across six cities, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot and Bhavnagar, in Gujarat. Almost 7,000 athletes from 28 Indian States, eight Union Territories and Services, the sports team of the Indian Armed Forces, competed for medals in 36 different sports.

Raja Bhalindra Singh Trophy to the hybrid contingent of Services for the fourth time in succession.

Maharashtra bagged the Indian Olympic Association’s Best State trophy for finishing second in the medals tally with the most medals amongst States and UTs.

Honourable Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel presented the Best Male Athlete to Sajan Prakash (5 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze)

Karnataka’s Hashika Ramchandra, barely 14 years old, appropriated the Best Female Athlete crown with 6 gold and 1 bronze.

Gujarat’s 10-year-old Shauryajit Khaire (Mallakhamb), who was a reluctant starter after losing his father just a few days back, emerged as the ‘viral star’ of the Games, becoming its youngest medal winner.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Indian Olympic Association Founded: 1927;

Indian Olympic Association Headquarters: New Delhi;

Indian Olympic Association President: Adille Sumariwalla;

Indian Olympic Association Secretary General: Rajeev Mehta.

Important Days

15.World Sight Day 2022 observed on 13 October

World Sight Day is observed every year on the second Thursday of October to raise awareness about vision impairment, vision care and other issues related to eyes. This year, the day is being observed today i.e. on 13 October.

This day is observed to increase awareness about the importance of eye health and to honour ophthalmologists – medical professional who diagnoses and treats human eye and vision problems – who work tirelessly around the globe to combat the issue.

Continuing the theme of last year, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) confirmed that this year’s theme will also be “Love Your Eyes”.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness CEO: Peter Holland;

International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness Founded: 1975;

International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness Headquarters Location: London, United Kingdom.

16.International E-Waste Day 2022 observed on 14 October

Each year, International E-Waste Day is held on 14 October, an opportunity to reflect on the impacts of e-waste and the necessary actions to enhance circularity for e-products. ​​​​

International E-Waste Day was developed in 2018 by the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment recycling (WEEE) Forum to raise the public profile of waste electrical and electronic equipment recycling and encourage consumers to recycle. 2022 is the fifth edition of International E-Waste Day.

This is why International E-Waste Day (#ewasteday) 2022 will be focusing on small items of e-waste, under the slogan “Recycle it all, no matter how small!”. #ewasteday will take place on 14 October 2022.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

International Telecommunication Union Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland;

International Telecommunication Union Founded: 17 May 1865;

International Telecommunication Union Secretary-General: Houlin Zhao.

17.World Standards Day celebrates on 14th October

World Standards Day is marked every year on October 14 to raise awareness about the importance of using standardised measurements, technologies, and industries. This day, also known as International Standards Day, strives to educate consumers, policymakers, and businesses about the value of standardisation.

The day is also used to commemorate the achievements of scientists for developing voluntary universal standards that can be used for various measurements.

Every year, the World Standards Event has a theme around which events and knowledge materials are created. The theme for World Standards Day 2022 is ‘Shared Vision for a Better World.’