Current Affairs

24^th December 2022

Top 15 Daily Current Affairs: National & International News:

Here is the Daily Current Affairs of the 24th December 2022 covering the following news headlines: International Monetary Fund, Veer Guardian 23, Kolkata International Film Festival, BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2022, VinFuture Special Prize 2022.

International News

1. Spain passes new transgender law, anyone above 16 can change their gender

Spain passes new transgender law: The lower house of the Spanish Parliament approved a measure allowing individuals over the age of 16 to change their legally recorded gender without the need for medical supervision.

According to the law, drafted by the center-left coalition government, minors between the ages of 14 and 16 must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians and those between the ages of 12 and 13 will require a judge’s permission to make the move.

Spain: Important Takeaways

Capital of Spain: Madrid

Monarch of Spain: King Felipe VI

Prime Minister of Spain: Pedro Sanchez

2. IMF decreases FY23 India’s GDP growth forecast to 6.8%

IMF decreases FY23 India’s GDP growth forecast: In light of lower-than-anticipated output in the second quarter and more sluggish external demand, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reduced India’s growth prediction for FY23 from 7.4% forecasted in July to 6.8%. India’s growth projection for FY23 has undergone three decreases, starting from 9% in January of this year.

According to the IMF’s premier World Economic Outlook (WEO), which was published in Washington, DC, India’s growth is predicted to further decelerate in FY24, reaching 6.1%.

IMF: Important Takeaways

IMF Headquarters: Washington DC, USA;

IMF Managing Director: Kristalina Georgieva.

3. NSE Gets Sebi Nod to Set up Social Stock Exchange

One of the leading stock exchanges in India – The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) received in-principle approval from the capital markets regulator Securities Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to set up a Social Stock Exchange (SSE) as a separate segment.

First floated by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget speech for the financial year 2019-20, SSE is a novel concept in India and the framework for this was notified in July this year based on the recommendations of a working group and technical group constituted by Sebi.

It is meant to serve the private and non-profit sectors by availing more capital to them. The union government issued a gazette notification declaring a new security ‘zero coupon zero principal‘ under the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956.

4. CCEA Increases the Minimum Support Prices for Copra for 2023 Season

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs(CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for copra for 2023 season.  The approval is based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices and views of major coconut growing states.The MSP for Fair Average Quality of milling copra has been fixed at Rs. 10860/- per quintal and for ball copra at Rs. 11750/- per quintal for 2023 season. 

This is an increase of Rs. 270/- per quintal for milling copra and Rs. 750/- per quintal for ball copra over the previous season. 

This would ensure a margin of 51.82 percent for milling copra and 64.26 percent for ball copra over the all India weighted average cost of production.

Business News

5. Jio to Acquire Reliance Infratel for Rs 3,720 Crore

Reliance Projects and Property Management Services — a subsidiary of telecom major Reliance Jio — has deposited Rs 3,720 crore in an SBI escrow account to acquire mobile tower and fibre assets of Reliance Infratel.

Reliance Infratel has fibre assets of about 178,000 route kilometres and 43,540 mobile towers across the country. The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) gave an approval to Jio for the acquisition of Reliance Infratel (RITL).

Banking News

6. HDFC borrows USD 400 million from IFC for financing green affordable housing

HDFC borrows USD 400 million from IFC: As part of their efforts to promote climate goals, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) has provided a loan to mortgage giant HDFC in the amount of USD 400 million for the financing of green, affordable housing units.

In separate statements released, HDFC and IFC claimed that the loan would increase green housing, help close the urban housing gap, increase access to affordable climate-smart homes, and support the country’s transition to a more sustainable growth path while also generating jobs and ensuring long-term business growth.

HDFC and IFC: Important Takeaways

HDFC Headquarters: Mumbai, India

HDFC Chairman: Shyamala Gopinath

IFC Headquarters: Washington D.C., USA

Defence News

7. India-Japan to conduct 1st bilateral air combat exercise “Veer Guardian 23” in 2023

Veer Guardian 23: Indian Air Force (IAF) and Japanese Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) are set to hold their maiden bilateral air exercise, “Veer Guardian 23”, from January 16 to 26 at Hyakuri air base and Iruma air base in Japan.

The IAF is fielding four Su-30MKI fighters from No. 220 squadron under the Western Air Command and one IL-78 mid-air refueller, along with a contingent of around 150 personnel who will be transported by two C-17 transport aircraft. The JASDF would be fielding four F-15s and four F-2 fighter jets for the exercise.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: 

Indian Air Force Headquarters:New Delhi;

Indian Air Force Founded: 8 October 1932, India;

Indian Air Force Chief of Defence Staff (CDS): General Anil Chauhan.

Awards News

8. Kura Pokkhir Shunye Ura and Upon Entry Awarded Best Film at KIFF

Kura Pokkhir Shunye Ura (The Golden Wings of Watercocks) of Bangladesh and Upon Entry of Spain won the Best Film Award at the 28th Kolkata International Film Festival.

Upon Entry is a film from Spain which is a story about the unexpected interrogation of a couple from Barcelona that has to go through after landing in New York with pre-approved immigration visas. Kura Pokkhir Shunye Ura is a Bangladeshi Film that revolves around the journey of a peasant who is affected by the fury of nature.

The best film at the International Film Festival gets the Golden Royal Bengal Tiger Award and prize money of ₹51 lakh.

Virna Molina and Ernesto Ardito of Argentina won the Best Director Award for the film Hitler’s Witch.

9. Beth Mead Awarded BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2022 Award

Beth Mead has been awarded the BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 2022 as she was the player of the tournament and top scorer at Euro 2022.

Beth Mead defeated Germany in the finals at Wembley to win England’s first major women’s football trophy. The 27-year-old competed against Ben Stokes and Ronnie O’Sullivan for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year for 2022 award.

10. Indian Scientist Prof. Thalappil Pradeep Awarded VinFuture Special Prize 2022

Professor Thalappil Pradeep, Indian Scientist, India Institute of Technology, Madras received VinFuture special Prize on 20th December 2022 in Hanoi. Prof Thalappil Pradeep was awarded for the innovation of a low-cost filtration system to remove arsenic and other heavy metals from groundwater.

Thalappil Pradeep is an Indian scientist and professor of chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He has received the Padma Shri award in 2020 for his distinguished contribution to the field of science and technology.

He received the Nikkei Asia Prize in 2020, The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) Prize in 2018, and the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology in 2008.  Thalappil Pradeep was born on 8th July 1963 in Panthavoor, Kerala.

11. PRAKASHmay: NHPC Won Best Globally Competitive Power Company of India Award

NHPC Limited has been awarded as the winner of the ‘Best Globally Competitive Power Company of India-Hydropower and Renewable Energy Sector’ at PRAKASHmay 15th Enertia Awards 2022.

On the behalf of NHPC, Shri U.S. Sahi, Executive Director (EMS/CC/CSR) received the award. The event was held at the New Delhi Institute of Management, New Delhi on 22nd December 2022.

PRAKASHmay 15th Enertia Awards 2022 aims to recognize Hydropower projects as major renewable energy assets that enable sustainable development goals through renewable energy portfolio growth.

The 15th Enertia Awards 2022 was organized by the ENERTIA Foundation and supported by the Renewable Energy Promotion Association and the New Delhi Institute of Management.

12. Sudeep & Shobhana won Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize 2021-22

Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize: The Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize has been jointly won by Sudeep Sen for his genre and formbender Anthropocene: Climate Change, Contagion, Consolation (Pippa Rann Books & Media, 2021) and Shobhana Kumar for her haibun collection A Sky Full of Bucket Lists (Red River, 2021).

The winners, awarded $10,000 and a Rabindranath Tagore statuette, were picked from a shortlist of 11 at India International Centre, with the Tagore Prize for social achievement going to Sanjoy K Roy, producer of the Jaipur Literature Festival.

Schemes News

13. LG Manoj Sinha Launched 3 New Schemes for J&K

Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha announced three New Schemes- Holistic Development of Agriculture & Allied Sectors, Aspirational Towns, and Aspirational Panchayat for J&K Union Territory. The projects which have now been approved by the administrative council, have an outlay of 5013 crore rupees. 

Over the next five years, these projects would transform the agriculture economy of J&K putting it on a new trajectory of growth with doubling the output of the sectors and making them sustainable and commercially viable.  Lt. Governor said, this will herald a new phase of farmer prosperity and rural livelihood security in J&K.

Sports News

14. Sam Curran Breaks IPL Auction Records and Become Most Expensive Cricketer

Sam Curran breaks all the records and became the most expensive cricketer ever to be bought by any franchise of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Sam Curran is a 24-year-old English Cricketer who was bought by Punjab Kings on the first day of the IPL auction for ₹18.5 crores. The IPL auctions for the 2023 season are being held in Kerala.

Important Days

15. National Consumer Rights Day 2022: 24 December

Every year on December 24, India observed the National Consumer Day or Bharatiya Grahak Diwas. This day is used to make all consumers aware of their powers and rights.

This day was made under the Consumer Protection Act, which came to power in 1986 to create awareness and save consumers from market exploitation like defective products or expensive pricing. World Consumer Rights Day is celebrated on March 15 every year.

The day marks an opportunity to urge that all consumers’ rights be recognised and safeguarded, as well as to protest market abuses and social injustices that jeopardise those rights.