Current Affairs

27^th December 2022

Top 17 Daily Current Affairs: National & International News:

Here is the Daily Current Affairs of the 27th December 2022 covering the following news headlines: 30th Ekalabya Puraskar, Elite National Women’s Boxing Championships, International Day of Epidemic Preparedness.

National News

1. Piyush Goel Launched Right to Repair Portal for Consumers

Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal launched a host of new initiatives, including the right to repair portal and an NTH mobile app and opened new premises of National Consumer Helpline centre in the national capital. A memorandum of understanding was also signed between the Consumer Affairs Department and IIT (BHU), Varanasi as well launched a capacity building programme of consumer commissions.

On the ‘right to repair’ portal, manufacturers will share the manual of product details with customers so that they can either repair by self, by third parties, rather than depend on original manufacturers. Initially, mobile phones, electronic, consumer durables, automobile and farming equipments will be covered.

International News

2. Former Maldivian President Abdulla Yameen Sentenced to 11 Years

The Maldives criminal court sentenced former president Abdulla Yameen to 11 years in prison and fined him $5 million after finding him guilty of corruption and money laundering charges related to receiving kickbacks from a private company.

Yameen has denied any wrongdoing. Since his release, Yameen, the half-brother of former dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, has returned to active politics with a campaign against Indian influence in Maldives, raising concerns in New Delhi. Situated close to strategic shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean, Maldives is a focal point for competition between India and China over influence in the region.

3. Antarctica’s Biodiversity at risk, Emperor Penguins could be extinct by 2100

Antarctica’s Biodiversity new research has indicated that more has to be done to safeguard Antarctic ecosystems, and if we don’t make a change, up to 97% of Antarctic species with land-based populations might go extinct by the year 2100.

The study, which was just released, also discovered that ten crucial techniques to lessen threats to Antarctica’s biodiversity may be implemented with just USD 23 million annually.

4. First case of deadly brain-eating amoeba infection reported in South Korea

Brain-eating amoeba infection reported in South Korea: For the first time ever, a rare and potentially fatal brain-eating amoeba has been discovered in South Korea. Primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) is a rare and serious infection caused by the amoeba naegleria fowleri, which is commonly found in warm freshwater and soil.

The 50-year-old affected person has passed away, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) reports. The man had returned to Korea following a four-month sojourn in Thailand.

State in News

5. Madhya Pradesh Govt to build Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s grand memorial in Gwalior

Madhya Pradesh government: According to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, a huge statue of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be installed and a research centre will be built as part his grand memorial in Gwalior.

On December 26 at the ‘Gwalior Gaurav Diwas’ function to mark the late leader’s 98th birth anniversary. The event was also attended by Union Ministers Jyotiraditya Scindia and Narendra Singh Tomar. Vajpayee was born in Gwalior on December 25, 1924.

The Madhya Pradesh government has allotted nearly 4,050 hectares of land in Sirol area of Gwalior to build a memorial of Vajpayee, according to Gwalior Divisional Commissioner Deepak Singh.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: 

Madhya Pradesh Capital: Bhopal;

Madhya Pradesh Governor: Mangubhai C. Patel;

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister: Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Appointments News

6. Anil Kumar Lahoti named as next railway board chairman and CEO

Anil Kumar Lahoti has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Railway Board. The former General Manager of Central Railway was appointed as Member (Infrastructure) of the board a week ago, and will be taking over the chairmanship from Vinay Kumar Tripathi on January 1.

Lahoti belongs to the 1984 batch of Indian Railway Service of Engineers (IRSE), and his appointment is a part of an overhaul at the top management of the railway board. Over the past months, no full-time appointments for the member positions were made in the railway board, as it was transitioning to a new integrated service – Indian Railway Management Service.

7. Ganji Kamala V Rao Appointed as Chief Executive Officer at FSSAI

Shri Ganji Kamala V Rao IAS has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). Shri Ganji Kamala V Rao IAS is currently serving as the Managing Director of Indian Tourism Development Corporation Ltd.

Shri Ganji Kamala V Rao IAS is a Kerala cadre officer of the 1990 batch. He has served as the Chairman and Managing Director of India Tourism Development Corporation Ltd in the rank and pays Of Additional Secretary by the Appointment Committee of Cabinet. He has also served as the Principal Secretary of, the General Administration Department, Government of Kerala in Trivandrum.

8. Santosh Kumar Yadav Appointed as Chairman of NHAI, Subhasis Panda VC of DDA

Santosh Kumar Yadav, the senior bureaucrat, was appointed as the Chairman of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). Santosh Kumar Yadav is a 1995-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre. He is currently serving as the additional secretary in the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education.

An order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) confirms that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Mr. Santosh Kumar Yadav under the Ministry of Road and Transport & Highways in the rank and pay of additional secretary to the Government of India.

Economy News

9. India to Become $10-Trillion Economy by 2035: CEBR

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), which is a UK-based economics consultancy, predicted that India will become the third-largest economy by 2037. 14th edition of the report noted that over the next five years, the annual rate of GDP growth is expected to average 6.4%. After that, the growth is expected to average 6.5% in the subsequent nine years.As per the report, India seems “unstoppable in its momentum” to become the third economic superpower. The report has predicted that in 2035, India will become the third $10 trillion economy.

While commenting on the Chinese economy, the report said that despite modest output performance in 2022, inflation was at an anticipated 11.6%. The Chinese economy, therefore, faces a potential stagflationary trade-off between growth and price rises.

Business News

10. Reliance Jio launches 5G in Andhra Pradesh with Rs 6,500-cr investment

Reliance Jio announced it has launched True 5G services in Andhra Pradesh. The 5G services were launched in Tirumala, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, and Guntur districts. Apart from their existing investment of Rs 26,000 crore, additionally Jio has invested over Rs 6,500 crore for deploying 5G network in Andhra Pradesh.

By December 2023, Jio True 5G services will be made available in every town, taluka, mandalam and village of Andhra Pradesh. Jio demonstrated the benefits of 5G in the field of healthcare, through Jio Community Clinic medical kit, and the revolutionary AR-VR device, Jio Glass.

These benefits will bring phenomenal changes in the lives of people in Andhra Pradesh. The launch of Jio’s True 5G services will open doors to growth opportunities in the areas of e- governance, education, healthcare, IT and SME business.

Banking News

11. CIBIL, SIDBI, Online PSB loans launch MSME Rankings

With the intent of deepening credit flow to small businesses and also helping lenders avoid loan losses on such bets, credit information company TransUnion Cibil launched a ranking system for MSME borrowers.

The ‘FIT Rank’ launched by TransUnion Cibil in association with Online PSB Loans, will rate the over 6 crore micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by drawing inputs from their current accounts, income tax returns and also Goods and Service Tax (GST) returns to arrive at a score between 1-10 to rate a borrower after taking consent to draw the relevant data.

The ranking will give lenders an idea about the capacity of an enterprise to pay, its creditworthiness and also intention to pay from past experience.

Ranks and Reports News

12. India’s Cuisine Ranked Fifth in the list of best Cuisines of the World

Cuisines of the World: India is ranked fifth on the global list of the best cuisines for 2022, according to Taste Atlas. The ranking is based on audience votes for ingredients, dishes, and beverages.

Italy’s food came in first place followed by Greece and Spain. India received 4.54 points and the best rated foods of the country include “garam masala, malai, ghee, butter garlic naan, keema”, the rating said. It has a total of 460 items in the list.

Furthermore, the best restaurants to try Indian cuisine are Shree Thaker Bhojanalay (Mumbai), Karavalli (Bengaluru), Bukhara (New Delhi), Dum Pukht (New Delhi), Comorin (Gurugram) and 450 others, according to the list.

Awards News

13. Indian Cyclist Swasti Singh gets 30th Ekalabya Puraskar

Ekalabya Puraskar: Indian cyclist Swasti Singh has been honoured with the prestigious 30th Ekalabya Puraskar for the year 2022.

The award is instituted by IMFA’s charitable wing, IMPaCT. Swasti received a cash award of Rs 5 lakh along with a citation at the Ekalabya Puraskar function held in Bhubaneswar. She has bagged two gold and as many silver medals at the national level.

Swasti, who has represented the State in several national events and was credited with the best individual brilliance from April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2022, emerged as the clear winner this year.

Sports News

14. Nikhat Zareen & Lovlina Borgohain win gold medals at the Elite National Women’s Boxing Championships

Telangana Boxing star and the reigning world champion, Nikhat Zareen, and Lovlina Borgohain, the bronze medalist from the Tokyo Olympics, both won gold medals in their separate finals in the Elite Women’s National Boxing Championships.

The Railway Sports Promotion Board won the team trophy with ten awards in the 6th Elite Women’s National Boxing Championships in Bhopal.

Lovlina of Assam defeated Arundhati Choudhary of the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) 5-0 in the 75kg final, while Nikhat endured a hard test from Anamika of the RSPB in the 50kg final before the 26-year-old Telangana pugilist won 4-1 to defend her championship.

Important Days

15. International Day of Epidemic Preparedness 2022 celebrates on 27 December

International Day of Epidemic Preparedness on December 27 serves the purpose of creating awareness about epidemics.

This day encourages every individual, every institution, and every government to prepare its citizens in an appropriate manner and in accordance with national contexts and priorities, through education and awareness-raising activities, in order to highlight the importance of the prevention of, preparedness for, and partnership against epidemics.

In its 75th session and 36th plenary meeting on December 7, 2020, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed a resolution which declared December 27 as the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness. The decision is part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Obituaries News

16. England 1966 World Cup winner George Cohen passes away

England’s 1966 World Cup-winning right back, George Cohen has passed away, his former club Fulham announced. He made his international debut in 1964 and went on to represent his country 37 times, playing a key role in England’s only World Cup triumph when it beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time at Wembley in the final.

He was one of only three surviving members of that World Cup-winning squad, along with Bobby Charlton and Geoff Hurst. He spent the whole of his club career with one team, Fulham, making 459 appearances for the west London side.

Miscellaneous News

17. FSSAI gives five-star rating to UP’s Bulandshahr prison for food quality

The Bulandshahr prison of Uttar Pradesh was awarded a five-star rating and the tag ‘Eat Right Campus’ by the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI).

The FSSAI team inspected the kitchen’s food quality, storage and hygiene on stringent measures, based on which the Bulandshahr prison was given a five-star rating, the ‘Eat Right Campus’ tag in addition to the remark of ‘Excellent’ by the FSSAI. Bulandshahr Jail is the second prison after Farrukhabad jail to get this tag from Uttar Pradesh.