Current Affairs

17^th November 2022

Top 18 Daily Current Affairs: National & International News

Here is the Daily Current Affairs of the 17th November 2022 covering the following news headlines: National Epilepsy Day, World COPD Day, World Philosophy Day, Brazilian F1 GP 2022, Paris Olympics 2024, Artemis-1 mission, Climate Change Performance Index.

National News

1.3 Indian Cities Among Largest Data Centre Markets in Asia-Pacific

According to a report by Knight Frank, Indian cities, namely – Hyderabad, Chennai and New Delhi, have emerged as three of the top data centre markets in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

The report further noted that the data centre industry in India has been on a high growth trajectory, partly driven by government policies, including easier access to credit and other incentives to boost data centre investment.

A data center is a facility composed of networked computers, storage systems and computing infrastructure that organizations use to assemble, process, store and disseminate large amounts of data. A business typically relies heavily on the applications, services and data contained within a data center, making it a critical asset for everyday operations.

2.India Becomes the World’s Second Largest Producer of Steel

India has emerged as the second-largest producer of crude steel by replacing Japan. The biggest steel producing country is currently China, which accounted for 57% of world steel production.

In order to support the domestic steel industry, the Government of India has notified the National Steel Policy, 2017, and the Policy for Providing Preference to Domestically Manufactured Iron and Steel (DMI & SP) in the case of state procurement. These policies have helped create a favorable environment to improve domestic production and consumption of steel.

International News

3.India-Russia-Iran Holds Trilateral Meet on Afghanistan on Sidelines of Moscow Format

India participated in the fourth Meeting of the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan, which was held in Moscow on November 16. Special envoys and senior officials from Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan also participated in the meeting.

It was introduced in 2017 on the basis of the six-party mechanism for consultations among special representatives from Russia, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Iran and India.

The Moscow format meeting’s main objective is to facilitate the national reconciliation process in Afghanistan and secure peace in that country as soon as possible.

4.US Imposes $1.4 mn Fine on Air India Over Delay in Refunds

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has fined Air India $1.4 million (around Rs 11.3 crore) for delaying refunds worth $121.5 million (around Rs 985 crore) to passengers whose flights were cancelled during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Air India is among the six airlines that were probed by the US government. Totally, over $600 million in refunds were paid and $7.25 million penalties imposed against six airlines for “extreme delays in providing refunds,” the US DOT said. Other airlines facing the DOT action include Frontier Airlines, TAP Portugal, Aeromexico, El Al Airlines and Avianca.

Under US law, airlines and ticket agents have a legal obligation to refund consumers if the airline cancels or significantly changes a flight to, from and within the US, and the passenger does not wish to accept the alternative offered.

Appointments News

5.PFRDA named Suraj Bhan as chairman of NPS Trust

Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority has appointed Suraj Bhan as the chairman of the National Pension System Trust (NPS Trust), responsible for managing funds under the National Pension System (NPS).

Bhan has been a Trustee on the Board of NPS Trust since 2018. He joined the Indian Economic Service in 1983 and retired as Director General of Labour Bureau, Chandigarh, in January 2018. He has varied experience across several sectors with the government and public sector undertakings in the areas of economic policy, business, industry and finance.

Important Takeaways For All Competitive Exams:

Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority Founded: 23 August 2003;

Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority Headquarters: New Delhi;

Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority Chairperson: Supratim Bandyopadhyay.

6.Ex-Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Virmani named as full-time member of NITI Aayog

Former Chief Economic Advisor, Arvind Virmani has been appointed as a full time member of NITI Aayog. The other existing Members of NITI Aayog are VK Saraswat, Ramesh Chand and VK Paul. While Suman Bery is the Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, Parameswaran is the incumbent CEO of the think tank.

The Prime Minister has approved the appointment of Shri Arvind Virmani, Founder, Chairman, Foundation for Economic Growth & Welfare as Full-Time Member, NITI Aayog with immediate effect and until further orders, on the same terms and conditions as are applicable to Full-Time Members of NITI Aayog.

Virmani was Chief Economic Advisor in the Finance Ministry from 2007-09. He was Executive Director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) till end 2012. He served as a member of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on monetary policy from February 2013 to August 2016.

Important Takeaways For All Competitive Exams:

NITI Aayog Vice Chairman: Suman Bery;

NITI Aayog CEO: Parameswaran Iyer.

Banking News

7.RBI Chooses 5 Banks for Retail Digital Currency Pilot

State bank Of India(SBI), ICICI Bank, IDFC First Bank, HDFC Bank and Yes Bank are among a shortlist of at least five lenders that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has roped in to work on the retail pilot project of the central bank digital currency (CBDC).

The report said, citing people familiar with the matter, that the Reserve Bank of India could add more banks to run the pilot, which is expected to launch soon. “Five banks have been shortlisted to run the pilot along with the help of NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) and RBI. Some customer and merchant accounts will be chosen to roll out the retail digital rupee pilot soon,”

Ranks and Reports News

8.Climate Change Performance Index 2023: India ranked 8th in the list

The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2023 released which was published by three environmental non­governmental organizations viz. Germanwatch, NewClimate Institute and the Climate Action Network (CAN) International.

India rose two spots to rank eighth out of 63 countries in the Climate Change Performance Index 2023 (CCPI). In the Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Energy Use categories, the country was rated “high”. In the Climate Policy and Renewable Energy categories, it earned a “medium” rating.

In the overall standings, no country ranked first, second or third on the index. Denmark, with a score of 79.61, ranked fourth, followed by Sweden with 73.28 points. India scored 67.35 points.

India’s ranking in categories: In GHGs, it ranked 9 , Renewable Energy (24 ), and Energy Use (9 ), and on Climate Policy (8 ).

It should be noted that India ranked at top in the grouping of top 10 emitters. It is followed by Germany and Japan at 2 and 3 positions of this grouping.

The worst performers in the overall ranking are Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan. They are particularly weak in renewables and heavily reliant on oil.

9.India Set to Become World’s Most Populous Country in 2023: UN Report

India is projected to surpass China as the world’s most populous country in 2023, with each counting more than 1.4 billion residents this year, according to the 27th edition of the United Nations’ World Population Prospects, 2022.

The world’s population, estimated to reach 8 billion by Nov. 15 this year, could grow to 8.5 billion in 2030, and 10.4 billion in 2100, as the pace of mortality slows, said the report released on World Population Day.

The world’s population was growing at its slowest pace since 1950, having fallen below 1% in 2020, UN estimates showed.

In 2021, the average fertility of the world’s population stood at 2.3 births per woman over a lifetime, having fallen from about 5 births in 1950. Global fertility is projected to decline further to 2.1 births per woman by 2050.

10.5G may Contribute up to 2% to India’s GDP by 2030

The launch of 5G services will strengthen India’s position as an economic and technology powerhouse globally and is expected to boost 2% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), amounting to approximately $180 billion by 2030, according to a new report by industry body Nasscom.

The report titled, “5G — Unfolding India’s era of digital convergence” was released on the side lines of Nasscom Tech Innovation Conclave (NTIC) 2022, added that “5G is expected to create new value through hyper-connectivity and become a catalyst for digital transformation across industries”.

India currently has the second-highest number of telecom users in the world, with 1.1 billion users, of which 740 million are 4G customers. However, with the launch of 5G in the country, the shift is expected to offer rapid up-gradation of customer experience.

Schemes and Committees News

11.National Commission for Women Launched Digital Shakti 4.0

The National Commission for Women (NCW) launched the fourth phase of the Digital Shakti Campaign, a pan-India project on digitally empowering and skilling women and girls in cyberspace.

Digital Shakti started in June 2018 to help women across the nation to raise the awareness level on the digital front, to build resilience, and fight cyber-crime in the most effective ways.

The Digital Shakti 4.0 is focused on making women digitally skilled and aware to stand-up against any illegal/inappropriate activity online.

NCW launched the campaign in collaboration with CyberPeace Foundation and Meta.

Through this project, over 3 Lakh women across India have been made aware of cyber safety tips and tricks.

It is helping women in reporting & redressal mechanisms, data privacy and usage of technology for their benefits.

Science and Technology News

12.Blackstone launches its Asian Data center business from India

Global asset manager Blackstone Group has forayed into the data center business in Asia with a planned capacity across two large hyperscale data centers in India. It plans to increase it to 600 MW over the next two years through presence in five locations in the country.

Blackstone launched its data center platform Lumina CloudInfra on 15 November 2022. Initially the data center will be set up in Mumbai and Chennai, and later on it will be set up in Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad and Pune.

The government data center has been set up and managed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).The first Data Centre was launched in Hyderabad in 2008, followed by NDC Pune in 2010, NDC Delhi in 2011 and NDC Bhubaneswar in 2018.

13.US space agency NASA launches Artemis-1 rocket on a mission to the moon

The United States space agency NASA has launched its Artemis-1 mission from Kennedy Space Centre, Florida. About eight minutes after launch, the core stage’s engines cut off and the core stage separated from the rest of the rocket.

After this, the Orion spacecraft was propelled by the Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS). NASA also deployed the four solar arrays of the Orion spacecraft. After completing “translunar injection”, Orion separated itself from the ICPS and is now on its way to lunar orbit.

For the first time in 50 years since the end of the Apollo program, the launch of Artemis 1 is an ambitious US mission to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon.

The Artemis 1 launch will also be the first flight of NASA’s 21st century moon-exploration program.

With Artemis 1 on the surface of the Moon, NASA aims to demonstrate new technologies, business approaches and capabilities that are essential for future explorations, including Mars. The launch aims to further aid in the study of the Moon, its origin and history.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

NASA administrator: Bill Nelson;

Headquarters of NASA: Washington D.C., United States;

NASA Founded: 1 October 1958.

Sports News

14.Paris Olympics 2024: Phrygian cap chosen as Paris 2024 mascot

The Phrygian cap, the symbol of the French republic but wearing sneakers as a nod to the present, was unveiled as the mascot for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Olympic Phryge ((pronounced fri-jee-uhs) is a bit smaller, the Paralympic Phryge is a bit slimmer and has a blade on his right leg because it is a Phyrge with an impairment.

The mascots were unveiled in a press conference in Paris by Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet, Beijing 2008 wheelchair tennis men’s doubles champion Michael Jeremiasz and Gwladys Epangue, a bronze medallist in taekwondo from Beijing 2008.

15.Formula-1 Racing: Mercedes’ George Russell won Brazilian F1 GP 2022

Mercedes’ George Russell has won his maiden F1 race in Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo. Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton & Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz came at the second and third positions respectively.

With Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finishing fourth. It was also Mercedes’ maiden win in the F1 2022 season. The 2022 season’s final race will be held in Abu Dhabi from November 18 to 20 at Yas Marina Circuit.

Important Days

16.World Philosophy Day 2022 is observed on 17 November

World Philosophy Day is commemorated on the third Thursday of November every year. This year it will fall on November 17. The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) proclaimed it an International day in 2005.

However, that was not always the case. World Philosophy Day was first celebrated on November 21, 2002. UNESCO aimed to raise public awareness about philosophy and how vital it is, not only to connect the world today but to the past and present, as well as for a better understanding of the future.

The theme for the 2022 World Philosophy Day is ‘The Human of the Future’. UNESCO along with Le Fresnoy – National Studio of Contemporary Arts has organized a symposium and exhibition.

17.World COPD Day 2022 observed on 16 November

On the third Wednesday in November World COPD Day is observed. This year World COPD Day is observed on November 16. The day aims to create awareness about the condition and ways to reduce the burden of COPD worldwide.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death worldwide. Its aim is to raise awareness, share knowledge, and discuss ways to reduce the burden of COPD worldwide. The 2022 theme for World COPD Day will be “Your Lungs for Life” and takes place on November 16th. This year’s theme aims to highlight the importance of lifelong lung health.

The first World COPD Day was held in 2002. Each year organizers in more than 50 countries have carried out activities, making the day one of the world’s most important COPD awareness and education events.

18.National Epilepsy Day Observed On 17 November

Each year, on November 17, National Epilepsy Day is marked in India to raise awareness of the condition. National Epilepsy Day 2022 is observed to raise public awareness of epilepsy. To raise awareness of the causes and symptoms of epilepsy, numerous governmental and non-governmental organisations will mark National Epilepsy Day in 2022. A persistent brain illness called epilepsy is marked by periodic “fits” or “seizures.”

International Epilepsy Day is observed every year on the Second Monday of February across the world. In 2022, International Epilepsy Day falls on February 14, 2022.

According to the Epilepsy Foundation, the theme of National Epilepsy Awareness Month (NEAM) 2022 is “There is no NEAM without ME”.