Daily Current Affairs 6th January, 2022

Daily Current Affairs 6 January 2022 for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.

NATIONAL NEWS

Odisha’s Ganjam District declared as Child Marriage Free
Odisha’s Ganjam has declared itself a child marriage free district, the first in the State.

• The district administration has been able to stop as many as 450 child marriages and video-record 48,383 marriages in two years — 2020 and 2021.
• After verification, the Ganjam administration declared it a child marriage free district. Sarpanchs and task force committee members had sent recommendations that no child marriage had taken place in their respective areas.

Ayush Minister Sarbananda Sonowal lays foundation stone for Heartfulness International Yoga academy
The Union Ayush Minster Sarbananda Sonowal laid the foundation stone for the Heartfulness International Yoga academy at Hyderabad. The Academy will  set new benchmarks in yoga training.

• The Heartfulness International Yoga Academy comprises Yoga halls that can accommodate 100 Yoga students in each hall, therapeutic Yoga rooms for consultation, one to one training spaces or small group classes; pre-natal Yoga rooms; a lecture hall with  200 sitting capacity; a full-fledged recording studio with editing suites for pre-recorded wellness programs; a recording Yoga hall fully equipped for Live online Yoga Classes; a Yoga library with books from every Yoga Institutions and access to Yoga research articles

Govt launches six brands developed as part of ‘One District-One Product’ approach under PMFME scheme
Food Processing Industries Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras launched six brands developed as part of the ‘One District-One Product’ approach under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises Scheme in New Delhi.

• The products are Amrit Phal, Cori Gold, Kashmiri Mantra, Madhu Mantra, Somdana, and Whole Wheat Cookies of Dilli Bakes.
• The Ministry has signed an agreement with NAFED for developing ten brands of selected One District One Product under the branding and marketing component of the scheme. According to NAFED, all the products come in unique and attractive packaging to ensure a longer shelf life of the product and keeping it fresh.

Gujarat CM launches Student Start-ups and Innovation Policy for next 5-years
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has launched Student Start-ups and Innovation Policy (SSIP-2.0) for the next five years.

• This policy has a provision of setting up of active innovation and incubation centres in all universities in the state. It intends to cover 50 lakh students across One thousand higher education institutes and 10 thousand schools of innovation and entrepreneurship.
• The new Student Start-ups and Innovation Policy intends to give assistance to 10 thousand proof of concepts and prototypes developed by the students. It also proposes to give assistance to 1 thousand proof of concepts developed by school children. It has a provision of 5 thousand rupees assistance for filing of students’ creation of a strong pre-incubation support system in minimum 500 educational institutes and universities.

Akshaya Patra, WFP to enhance effectiveness of PM POSHAN scheme
The Akshaya Patra Foundation (TAPF) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in India have entered into a partnership to enhance the effectiveness of the Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (formerly mid-day meal scheme).

• The partnership is a strategic force multiplier bringing deep work and experience together. India was strategically important for School Meals Coalition that was launched in 2020 with WFP as a coordinating body, as it implemented the largest school feeding programme in the world.
• A steering committee formed between these organisations would plan, discuss and mobilise financial resources to implement various activities.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Sri Lanka, India to Jointly Develop Strategic Trincomalee Oil Tank Complex
Sri Lanka has agreed to implement a joint project with India to redevelop the strategic World War II-era oil tank farm in the eastern port district of Trincomalee, the island nation’s government announced.

• The Lankan government said that after reviewing the three existing agreements with the Indian government regarding the strategic Trincomalee Oil Tank Complex, commonly known as the Trinco Oil Tank Farm, the two sides have reached an agreement to implement a joint development project.
• The Cabinet has approved the proposal to allocate 24 and 14 oil tanks of Trincomalee Oil Tank Complex to Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and the local operators of the Indian Oil Company (LIOC) respectively while remaining 61 oil tanks are to be developed under Trinco Petroleum Terminal Pvt. Ltd, with shares of CPC (51%) & LIOC (49%). Joint Cabinet Spokesperson (Minister) Udaya Gammanpila said this joint venture will be for a lease period of 50 years.

Antigua & Barbuda becomes 102nd member of International Solar Alliance
Antigua and Barbuda becomes the 102nd country to join International Solar Alliance.

• With 102 Member countries in the global collective, the ISA is working towards creating a multi-stakeholder ecosystem where sovereign nations, multilateral organizations, industry, policymakers and innovators are coming together to promote the common and shared goal of meeting energy demands of a secure and sustainable world.

BANKING & FINANCE

RBI cancels authorisation certificates of two payment system operators
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cancelled the authorisation certificates of Muthoot Vehicle and Asset Finance Ltd and Eko India Financial Services Private Ltd for non-compliance with regulatory requirements.

• Both the Payment System Operators (PSOs) had authorisation for issuance and operation of prepaid payment instruments.
• However , customers or merchants having a valid claim, if any, on these companies as PSOs, can approach them for settlement of their claims within three years from the date of cancellation.

Airtel Payments Bank gets scheduled bank status from RBI
Airtel  Payments Bank said it has been categorised as a scheduled bank by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

• With this, Airtel Payments Bank can now pitch for government-issued Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and primary auctions and undertake both central and state government business, besides participating in government-operated welfare schemes.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Airtel partners with Hughes Communication to offer satellite broadband services in India
Hughes Communications India Private Ltd and Bharti Airtel have formed a joint venture to provide satellite broadband services in India, the companies said.

• The combined India VSAT operations of both companies will offer a range of satellite and hybrid network solutions to business and government customers.
• The JV combines the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) businesses of both companies to offer flexible and scalable enterprise networking solutions using satellite connectivity for primary transport, back-up and hybrid implementation.

SPORTS

Sri Lanka batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa retires at 30 
Sri Lanka batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa announced his retirement from international cricket, citing family obligations.

• Rajapaksa represented Sri Lanka in five ODIs and 18 T20Is, scoring a total of runs 409 across formats which included three fifties. He was part of Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup 2021 squad and finished as the third-highest run-scorer for his team with 155 runs from eight matches.

AFI Postpones National Youth Athletics Championships
The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) announced that the National Youth Championships, scheduled to be held in Bhopal from January 27-29, has been shelved indefinitely following the postponement of the Asian Championships due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

• The National Youth Championships was to serve as selection trials for the Asian Athletics Championships to be held in Kuwait from March 1-4.

APPOINTMENTS

RBI appoints Ajay Kumar Choudhary and Deepak Kumar as new Executive Directors
Deepak Kumar and Ajay Kumar Choudhary have been promoted as executive directors of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the central bank said.

• Prior to being promoted as ED, Kumar was heading the Department of Information Technology of the RBI, while Choudhary was Chief General Manager-in-Charge, Department of Supervision.
• As executive director, Kumar will look after the Foreign Exchange Department, Department of Communication and Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the RBI.
• Choudhary will look after the Fintech Department, Risk Monitoring Department and Inspection Department.

AWARDS

JC Chaudhry achieves the first Guinness World Record on Numerology, first of 2022
The first-ever Guinness World Record in Numerology and the first world record of 2022 was achieved by one of India’s top numerologists JC Chaudhry educating about ancient science to around 6000 participants, enthusiasts of numerology joined from USA, UK, Middle East, and India.

• The initiative was organised by CNPL (Chaudhry Nummero Pvt Ltd) and the Indian Institute of Numerology to create awareness regarding numerology, which was prevalent across ancient cultures like Greece, Egypt, China, Chaldea and India.

OBITUARIES

Social worker, Padma Shri awardee Sindhutai Sapkal passes away 
Renowned social worker and Padma Shri recipient Sindhutai Sapkal passed away at a hospital in Pune. He was 74.

• Sindhutai Sapkal, who was also referred to as ‘Mai’, ran an orphanage in Pune where she had adopted more than 1000 orphan children. In 2021, Sapkal was conferred with the Padma Shri award for her significant contribution to society.
• For her work, Spakal has been honoured with more than 700 awards. She also used the award money to buy land to make a home for orphaned children.

Neil Nongkynrih, founder of Shillong Chamber Choir passes away
Shillong Chamber Choir founder Neil Nongkynrih passed away in Mumbai after a brief illness.

• The 51-year-old musician was awarded with Padma Shri, country’s fourth highest civilian award in 2015.
• Nongkynrih’s musical genres included classical, pop, Jazz, Hindustani, folk and opera. The Choir’s repertorie includes works of western classical music, hits by rock group Queen and Khasi folk song of his own state Meghalaya. The coir, now having 25 members, including 15 singers, and other musicians and soloists have so far performed in Britain, Poland, Switzerland, Italy, Sri Lanka and in Indian cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.

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