Current Affairs December 15th 2022| Current Affairs News

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CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

PM took part in a program commemorating Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary:

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi attended a function honoring Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birthday.
• Under the auspices of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Prime Minister released a commemorative coin and postal stamp in honor of Sri Aurobindo.
• He is well known as the yogi Rishi Aurobindo.
• He was a revolutionary, a nationalist, a poet, a teacher, and a philosopher.
• Shri Krishnadhan Ghosh gave birth to him on August 15, 1872, in Calcutta.
• His father was a wealthy Calcutta doctor.
• He was also a journalist, and his first philosophical magazine, Arya, came out in 1914.
• His many books include The Life Divine, The Synthesis of Yoga, and Savitri.

The Chief Justice of India inaugurates Digitization Hubs in ten Odisha districts:

• Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud virtually inaugurated ten district court digitization hubs (DCDH) in Odisha, stating that the judiciary needs to be modernized.
• With this inauguration, the state now has a total of 15 DCDHs, each serving a neighboring district and therefore covering all 30 district courts.
• The digitizing of all 30 districts in the state would be handled by the hubs in Angul, Bhadrak, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi, Keonjhar, Koraput, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Nayagarh, and Sonepur.
• Each DCDH will be tasked with digitizing the districts around it.
• On April 30, 2021, four District Court Digitization Centres (DCDC) were established on a trial basis in the districts of Cuttack, Ganjam, Sambalpur, and Balasore.
• He praised the Orissa High Court’s information and communication technology (ICT) policies implemented under the direction of Chief Justice S Muralidhar, saying, “Digitisation should be complemented with a drive for e-filing of cases.”
• Digitization facilitates authorized users’ access to records while also ensuring systematic information keeping, document and record security, and a reduction in the time required to locate documents.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

G7 nations establish an international climate club to fight global warming

• The Group of Seven (G7) leading economies have created an open, international climate club for countries that want to cooperate in the fight against global warming.
• This was announced by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
• Germany holds the presidency of the G-7 until the end of  2022 and then passes it on to Japan in 2023.

Key Highlights : 

• According to the German government, the climate club aims to support the rapid and ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreement, which seeks to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit).
• The club will work to help accelerate the industrial transition to cleaner forms of energy and to further develop emission-reduction measures
• Dec 12, 2022, marked the 7th anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Agreement.
• Germany increased its solar capacity by 10% in 2022, and the amount of additional wind power capacity it installed on land and at sea was only about 3%.
• The government aims to increase offshore wind power capacity from about 8 gigawatts to 20 gigawatts by 2030, but this year only 0.2 gigawatts of new capacity were added.

About G7 :

• The Group of Seven (G7) is an international forum consisting of the 7 nations with the largest advanced economies – Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States 
• The European Union has also represented at all G7 meetings.
• The presidency rotates each year.
• In June 2022, Germany hosted the G7 Summit 2022 at SchlossElmauin the Bavarian alps, Germany.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS          

PM Modi inaugurates the first phase of Mopa international airport in Goa

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the greenfield international airport at Mopain North Goa.
• The airport would be named Manohar International Airport after former Goa chief minister (late) Manohar Parrikar.

About the airport :

• The Mopa airport in North Goa is the second international airport in the coastal state apart from the existing airport at Dabolim, which is operated as a city enclave from Indian naval air station INS Hansa.
• The airport which was built at a cost of ₹2,870 croreswill begin its operations on 5 January 2023
• The foundation stone of the airport was laid by the Prime Minister in November 2016.
• Initially, phase I of the Airport will cater to around 4.4 million passengers per annum (MPPA), which can be expanded to a saturation capacity of 33 MPPA.
• It has been built on the theme of sustainable infrastructure and has solar power plants, green buildings, LED lights on the runway, rainwater harvesting, state of an art sewage treatment plants with recycling facilities, among other such facilities.
• It has adopted some of the best-in-class technologies like 3-D Monolithic Precast buildings, StabilRoad, Robomatic Hollow precast walls, and 5G compatible IT infrastructure.

About Goa :

• Governor: P. S. Sreedharan Pillai
• Chief minister: PramodSawant
• Capital : Panaji (Panjim)
• National Park: Mollem National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuary: BhagwanMahaveer Sanctuary, Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary

 Assam’s unique theatre festival ‘Under the Sal Tree’ to begin on Dec 15

• The 12 th edition of the ‘Under the Sal Tree’ theatre festivalwill start onDecember 15, 2022, for 3 days at BadungduppaKalakendra at Rampur in lower Assam’s Goalpara district.
• This unique theatre festival is held every year in the middle of the Sal tree plantation.
• It is organized completely innatural settings, with no artificial devices, not even a microphone to enhance the voice of the actors.
• In 2022, the festival got support from the Chief Minister of Assam, RabhaHasong Autonomous Council, Indian Oil Limited Corporation, and Bongaigaon Refinery.

Key Highlights :

• The organizers use only bamboo and straw to build the stage and the sitting arrangements for the spectators.
• In 2022, 7 plays will be displayed in the three-day festival & One play is from Sri Lanka while the rest are from different parts of India.
• In the earlier editions of the festival, theatre groups from South Korea, Brazil, Poland, and neighboring Bangladesh also participated in the festival.
• It is organized to spread the message of the importance of co-existing with nature and establishing a symbiotic relationship.

About the ‘Under the Sal Tree’ theatre festival  :

• The festival started in 2008.
• Late SukracharjyaRabha gets international recognition for the open-air theatre festival titled under the Sal Tree. 
• SukracharjyaRabha is one of the acclaimed theatre personalities of the region.

 About Assam :

• Governor : JagdishMukhi
• Chief minister: HimantaBiswaSarma
• Capital: Dispur
• National Park: Kaziranga National Park, Manas National Park, Raimona National Park, Nameri National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuaries: Amsang Wildlife Sanctuary, Nambor Wildlife Sanctuary, SonaiRupai Wildlife Sanctuary

First-ever festival for persons with disabilities – Purple Fest Goa held in January 2023

• The Purple Fest: Celebrating Diversity, the first-ever inclusive festival in the state for persons with disabilities (PwDs), will be organized in Panjim, Goa, from January 6-8, 2023.
• The 3-day festival aims to show all how to bring inclusivity in our society, and how to support one another.
• It will be hosted by the Goa State Commission for Persons with Disabilities in association with the Directorate of Social Welfare and Entertainment Society of Goa.

About The Purple Fest :

• Purple Fest will be free for Goan delegates and students with disabilities.
• The registration fee for the festival is INR 1,000 for the rest of the delegates.
• Music concerts, dance, Fun live performances, and stand-up comedy will be the main attractions of the festival.
• Sporting events, blind car rallies, birdwatching, and exhibitions will also be part of the festival.
• The latest aids and products developed for PWDs will also be displayed during the festival.
• Live art camps will also be organized.

Why was the purple color chosen for this event?

• Recently, the colorpurple is popularly associated with disability.
• It symbolizes an emerging positive narrative about the contributions made by persons with disabilities in the workforce as well as in society.
• Purple is being used by campaigners, charities, and governments to refer to the power of disabled people.

Arunachal Pradesh launches SevaApkeDwar 2.0’ Camp Hosted At Gossang Village

• Arunachal government launched the 7th edition of the ‘SevaAapkeDwar 2.0’ campaign at Gossang village in Upper Siang District, Arunachal Pradesh.

Aim :

• To ensure that the benefits of government schemes and services reach the doorsteps of people living in Arunachal Pradesh.
• It was organized by the Upper Siang District Administration.
• The decision to initiate the camp was undertaken during a recent e-Pragati meeting with the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of all the districts.

About ‘SevaAapkeDwar 2.0 :

• ‘SevaAapkeDwar 2.0’ is the second edition of the Sarkar ApkeDwar (SAD) program.
• SevaAapkeDwar 2.0 is different from the SAD program as it is based on the actual needs of villagers.
• Sarkar ApkeDwar was passed in the 2018-19 budget of the state.
• It aimed at delivering all government services to citizens- e-ILP, Scheduled Tribe certificates, Residence certificates, Aadhar enrolment, income certificates, driving licenses, renewal of arms licenses, and other government schemes.

About Arunachal Pradesh :

• Governor: B. D. Mishra
• Chief Minister : Pema Khandu
• Capital: Itanagar
• National Park: Namdapha National Park, Mouling National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuary: Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary, Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary,Sessa Orchid Sanctuary

NIIFL Signs Agreement with Tamil Nadu for Renewable Energy Projects

• The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIFL) announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu Infrastructure Development Board (TNIDB). 
• The MoU to help attract commercial capital into infrastructure opportunities in the state, under the public-private project (PPP) model.

About the MoU :

• Work has been initiated on 7 projects across departments that have the potential to attract private investment of Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 crore.
• The NIIFL’s Strategic Initiatives and Policy Advisory (SIPA) team provide strategic advice to the Central and State Governments.
• TNIDB will receive support from NIIFL in identifying private-sector investment opportunities. 
• This includes asset recycling and the development of greenfield and brownfield infrastructure projects. 
• These projects include sectors such as renewable energy, roads, waste management,and tourism. 

About NIIFL :

• Founded: February 2015
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra,India
• The Governing Council is chaired by Hon’ble Finance Minister of India NirmalaSitharaman.
• NIIF is India’s first infrastructure-specific investment fund or a sovereign wealth fund.

About TNIDB :

• Headquarters: Chennai, Tamil Nadu
• Chairperson: MK Stalin (CM of Tamil Nadu)

About Tamil Nadu :

• Governor: R. N. Ravi
• Chief minister: M. K. Stalin
• Capital: Chennai
• Dance : Bharatnatyam, Karakattam
• National Park: Mudumalai National Park, Guindy National Park, Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park
• Wildlife Sanctuaries: Kalakad Wildlife sanctuary, Karikili Bird Sanctuary, Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary
• Tiger Reserve: Anamalai Tiger Reserve
• Biosphere Reserve: Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING & FINANCE

Canara HSBC Life Insurance Launches Non-Participating ‘Guaranteed Fortune Plan’

• Canara HSBC Life Insurance launched a new “Guaranteed Fortune Plan” a non-linked, non-participating individual savings scheme offering life cover and a lump sum amount on outliving the policy term.
• The product offers two plan options:

1. Guaranteed Savings Option
2. Guaranteed Cash Back Option.

About Guaranteed Fortune Plan :

• According to the Canara HSBC Life Insurance, the 1st option provides a lump sum on outliving the policy term. 
• The 2nd option offers customers guaranteed cash back at the end of every 5th policy year, with an opportunity to defer the amount till maturity or withdraw it earlier.
• In addition to cashback, the 2nd option also gives policyholders a lump sum payment at the end of the policy term.
• The plan also includes a unique feature called CARE (Claims Accelerated for Relief & Ease) Pay Benefit. 
• This in-built benefit pays 100% of total premiums paid (excluding underwriting extra premiums and taxes) on intimation of death.

About Canara HSBC Life Insurance :

• Founded: 2008
• Headquarters: Gurugram, Haryana
• MD & CEO: AnujMathur
• It was a joint venture between Canara Bank (51%), HSBC Insurance (Asia Pacific) Holdings Limited (26%),and Punjab National Bank (23%).

HDFC Bank partners with Startup India to launch 6th ParivartanSmartUp Grants

• Private Sector lender HDFC Bank in partnership with the Government of India’s flagship initiative ‘Start-up India’ launched its sixth ParivartanSmartUp Grants, the annual grants program for social start-ups 

Aim : 

• To identify start-ups working in the social impact space and support them through monetary grants to their incubators.
• The grants have been offered under the aegis of Parivartan, the umbrella name for the bank’s social initiatives.

Key Highlights :

• The bank has been enabling start-ups through its state-of-the-art Smart-Up program, which provides specialized banking and value-added services to entrepreneurs.
• So far, the bank has disbursed over Rs 30 crore to more than 45 incubators which supported over 165 start-ups working in areas like environment, agri-business, ed-tech, waste management, healthcare, and skill development sectors.
• The bank will also focus on building capacities of incubators and startups working in tier-II & III cities. 

About HDFC Bank : 

• Founded: August 1994
• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
• MD & CEO : SashidharJagdishan

Trucknetic partners with DBS Bank India to provide trucking solutions

• India’s Uber for Trucks, Trucknetic, has partnered with DBS Bank as a logistics partner on their BusinessClass platform.

Aim :

• To offer comprehensive digital banking, logistics, value-added services,and deals to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) across the country.
• Trucknetic’s partnership with DBS Bank for its SME platform will help accelerate its mission to provide world-class, reliable, and cost-effective logistical solutions to small businesses and the Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in India.

About Trucknetic :

• Founder : ArhamPratap Jain
• Trucknetic is India’s first digital platform to book all kinds of trucks, including EVs.
• It makes use of superior expertise like AI, ML, and knowledge analytics to provide environment-friendly and cost-effective logistical solutions. 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

Retail inflation fell below 6% in November for the first time since 2022:

• Retail inflation in India has been reduced from 6.77% in October to 5.88% in November 2022.
• It is the first time in this fiscal year that the inflation rate has fallen below the RBI’s tolerance band of 2 to 6%.
• Food costs, which make up over 40% of the CPI basket, fell to 4.67% in November from 7.01% in October.
• Since January, retail inflation has remained beyond the Reserve Bank of India’s 2%-6% tolerance level, prompting a 225 basis point increase in interest rates, bringing it to 6.25%.
• Core inflation, excluding volatile food and energy components, is expected to be between 6% and 6.26% in November, according to three experts, up from 5.9% to 6.3% in October.
• The RBI recently sent a letter to the government outlining its reasons for failing to keep inflation within the target zone for three consecutive quarters.
• So far, the letter has not been made public.

In November, WPI inflation fell to a 21-month low of 5.85%:

• In November, wholesale price-based inflation fell to a 21-month low of 5.85 percent due to lower food, fuel, and manufactured-goods prices.
• After lingering in the double digits for 19 months, wholesale price index (WPI) inflation fell to 8.39% in October.
• In November 2021, inflation was 14.87 percent.
• The decrease in the rate of inflation in November 2022 is mostly due to lower prices for food, basic metals, textiles, chemicals & chemical products, and paper & paper products compared to the previous year’s corresponding month.
• A lower level of inflation was last observed in November 2022, when WPI inflation was 4.83 percent in February 2021.
• In November, food inflation was 1.07 percent, compared to 8.33 percent the previous month.
• Vegetable inflation was (-) 20.08 percent in November, compared to 17.61 percent in October.
• In November, inflation in the ‘Fuel and power’ basket was 17.35%, while it was 3.59% in manufactured goods.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOUR

Predictions for Oscar Nominations in 2023 for Best Actor, Actress, and Picture

• The Oscar nominations for 2023 will be announced, and they will include Best Actors, Actresses, and Films.
• The school will also issue ten categories before December 21st, 2022.
• Documentary Features, International Features, Makeup & Hairstyling, Visual Effects, and the three shorts are the other Oscar Nominations in the 2023 categories (Animated, Documentary, and Live action).
• From 1957 to 2022, India nominated various films for the Oscars; however, only two films were nominated.
• “Salam Bombay!” Both “Lagaan” by Ashutosh Gowariker in 2002 and “Mira Nair” by Mira Nair in 1988 received Oscar nominations.
• India has been nominated for an Oscar nomination in 2023 for the Gujarati film “Chhello Show,” directed by Pan Nalin.

OVERVIEW:

Event	95th Academy Awards 2022
Dates	12th March 2023
Venue	Dolby Theatre, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U. S
Directed by	Glenn Weiss
Produced by	Glenn Weiss Ricky Kirshner

 

Rank	Best Actor Nominees	Film
1	Brendan Fraser	The Whale
2	Colin Farrell	The Banshees of Inisherin
3	Hugh Jackman	The Son
4	Austin Butler	Elvis
5	Bill Nighy	Living
6	Tom Cruise	Top Gun: Maverick
7	Diego Calva	Babylon
8	Jeremy Pope	The Inspection
9	Jonathan Majors	Devotion
10	Tom Hanks	A Man Called Otto

Ranks	Best Actresses Nominees	Film
1	Michelle Yeoh	Everything Everywhere All at Once
2	Cate Blanchett	TAR
3	Danielle Dead Wyler	Till
4	Viola Davis	The Woman King
5	Michelle Williams	The Fabelmans
6	Olivia Colman	Empire of Light
7	Zar Amir Ebrahimi	Holy Spider
8	Ana de Armas	Blonde
9	Emma Thompson	Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
10	Margot Robbie	Babylon

 

Rank	Best Director Nominees	Film
1	Baz Luhrmann	Elvis
2	Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert	Everything Everywhere All at Once
3	Darren Aronofsky	The Whale
4	Gina Prince-Bythewood	The Woman King
5	Sam Mendes	Empire of Light

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING AND INDEX

UIDAI topped the Grievance Redressal Index for the fourth time in a row:

• For the fourth month in a row, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) topped the grievance redressal index among all group A ministries, departments, and autonomous bodies for the resolution of public concerns in November.
• The Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances Department (DARPG) issued the report.
• According to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, UIDAI has moved toward a centralized grievance-handling procedure via its Open-Source customer relationship management system.
• The new open-source CRM (customer relationship management) system from UIDAI has improved user experience and service delivery to citizens.
• Aadhaar Mitra, UIDAI’s Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning-based Chatbotsare also gaining popularity, and the number of daily interactions will soon exceed 50,000.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

WHO appoints Dr. Jeremy Farrar as chief scientist to replace SoumyaSwaminathan

• Wellcome Trust director Dr. Jeremy Farrar will become the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Chief Scientist in the second quarter of 2023.
• He will be replacing SoumyaSwaminathan, who departed in November 2022 ahead of a broader shakeup at the health agency.

Roles & Responsibilities : 

• As WHO’s Chief Scientist, Dr. Farrar will oversee the Science Division, bringing together the best brains in science and innovation from around the world to develop and deliver high-quality health services to the people who need them most, no matter who they are and where they live.

About Dr. Jeremy Farrar : 

• Farrar is a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences UK, the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO), the National Academies USA, and a Fellow of The Royal Society.
• He spent 17 years as director of the clinical research unit at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Viet Nam.
• Currently, he is serving as the Director of Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation that supports science to solve urgent health challenges.

Other Appointments :

• Meanwhile, Dr. Amelia LatuAfuhaamangoTuipulotuwill become WHO’s Chief Nursing Officer at the start of 2023.

About Dr Amelia LatuAfuhaamangoTuipulotu : 

• From 2014 to 2019, she served as Tonga’s Chief Nursing Officer.
• In 2019 Dr.Tuipulotu became the Kingdom of Tonga’s first female Minister for Health, serving until December 2021.
• She was the first Tongan to receive a Ph.D. in Nursing.
• From May 2020 to December 2022, Dr.Tuipulotu was a member of the WHO Executive Board; she was elected EB Rapporteur in 2020.

About WHO :

• Established: 7 April 1948
• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
• Director General : Dr TedrosAdhanomGhebreyesus
• The WHO is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health.

Bhupendra Patel takes oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for 2nd consecutive time

• The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shri Bhupendra Patel takes oath as the 18th Chief Minister (CM) of Gujarat for the second consecutive time at a function held at the Helipad Ground, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
• Patel broke his record and once again won from the Ghatlodia constituency by a margin of 1,91,000 votes in the 2022 election.
• BJP has won 156 seats in the 182-member House.
• He was sworn in as Chief Minister of Gujarat for the first time in September 2021.

Key Highlights : 

• The BJP secured its 7th straight triumph in Gujarat after previous victories in 1995, 1998, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017.
• Besides Patel, BJP MLAs Kanubhai Desai (Pardi), Rushikesh Patel (Visnagar), Raghavji Patel (Jamnagar Rural), and Balwantsinh Rajput (Siddhpur) took oath as Cabinet ministers. 
• BJP leaders KunwarjiBavaliya, MulobhaiBera, KuberDindor, and BhanubenBabariyaalso took oaths as ministers.
• BJP’s Harsh SanghaviPurshottam Solanki, BachubhaiKhabad, Mukesh Patel, PrafulPanseriya, BhikhusinhParmar, KunwarjiHalpati, and JagdishVishwakarma also took oath as cabinet ministers.

About Gujarat :

• Governor: Acharya Devvrat
• Chief minister: Bhupendrabhai Patel
• Capital: Gandhinagar
• National Park: Gir National Park,
• Wildlife Sanctuary: Girnar Wildlife Sanctuary, NalSarovar Birds Sanctuary, Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE NEWS

MoS Defence Ajay Bhatt unveils bust of India’s first CDS late Gen BipinRawat in New Delhi 

• Minister of State for Defence Shri Ajay Bhatt unveiled a bust of India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) late General BipinRawat at the United Service Institution of India (USI) in New Delhi to commemorate his first death anniversary.
• The Armed Forces and the USI have taken the initiative to institute a Chair of Excellence and a Memorial Lecture in memory of General BipinRawat at the Institution.
• General BipinRawat, who died tragically in a helicopter crash in December2021 was India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and longest-serving general.
• During his illustrious service, India’s first CDS was conferred with PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM,and Padma Vibhushan (posthumously).
• He was a visionary leader and a scholar soldier, known for his professionalism, principles, conviction, and decisiveness.
• He followed the Indian Army’s motto of ‘Service before Self’ as a guiding principle throughout his Army career.

About Ministry of Defence :

• Union Minister: Rajnath Singh
• Minister of State: Ajay Bhatt
• Defence Secretary: GiridharAramane

 CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

 Japanese startup launches historic Moon mission

• A Japanese startup’s spacecraft was launched to the Moon, the country’s first-ever lunar mission and the first of its kind by a private company.
• The launch was carried out by Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) in Cape Canaveral in the United States (US) state of Florida after two postponements for additional pre-flight checks.
• The spacecraft, produced by Tokyo-based startupispace, blasted off aboard a Falcon 9 rocket live footage of the launch showed.
• The ispace mission is the first of a program called Hakuto-R, which means “white rabbit” in Japanese.
• So far only the United States, Russia,and China have managed to put a robot on the lunar surface.

Key Highlights :

• The lunar lander was expected to touch down on the visible side of the Moon in April 2023, the year of the rabbit in Japan.
• Measuring just over 2 by 2.5 meters, the spacecraft has a payload that includes a 10-kilogram rover built by the United Arab Emirates.
• Hakutowas one of five finalists in Google’s Lunar XPrize competition to land a rover on the Moon before a 2018 deadline, which ended without a winner.
• The ispace craft aims to put a small NASA satellite into lunar orbit to search for water deposits before touching down in the Atlas Crater, which lies in the northeastern section of the Moon’s near side and measures more than 87 km (54 miles) across and just over 2km (1.2 miles) deep.
• The Gulf country is a newcomer to the space race but recently sent a probe into Mars’ orbit in 2021. 
• If the rover, named Rashid, successfully lands, it will be the Arab world’s first Moon mission.
• Also, the ispace lunar lander is carrying two robots produced by Japan’s space agency and a disc with the song “SORATO” by Japanese rock band Sakanaction, which was originally written in support of the Google competition.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS NEWS

Divya TS won gold in the women’s air pistol National Shooting Championship 2022:

• Divya T.S of Karnataka won her maiden women’s 10m air pistol national title in the 65th National Shooting Championship Competitions in Pistol events in Bhopal.
• In the gold medal match, she defeated Sanskriti Bana of Uttar Pradesh 16-14, and Rhythm Sangwan of Haryana took the bronze.
• Divya, 27, won the second stage with 254.2 points, beating out a slew of great shooters including Rhythm Sangwan, Esha Singh, and Manu Bhaker. Manu Bhaker, an Olympian, won the junior women’s air pistol after defeating Esha Singh (Telangana).
• In the Youth division, Rhythm Sangwan won the gold medal.

Women: 10m air pistol

1. Divya TS
2. Sanskriti Bana
3. Rhythm Sangwan
4. Esha Singh

25m center fire pistol: Men

1. Vijay Kumar
2. Anish Bhanwala
3. Gurpreet Singh

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARIES

Olympian & Asian Games medallist Kenneth Powell passes away

• Olympic sprinter& a member of the 1970 Asian Games bronze medal-winning 4x100m relay team Kenneth Powell, passed away at the age of 82  in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

About Kenneth Lawrence Powell :

• Powell was born on 20 April 1940 in Kolar, in present-day Karnataka, India.
• He was an Indian track and field athletefrom the state of Karnataka.
• He was popularly known as “the Gentleman Sprinter“
• Powell was one of India’s top athletes in the 1960s.
• He represented India in the 100m, 200m,and 4x100m relay events at Tokyo 1964
• He represented Karnataka in the National Handball Championship in 1970.
• He also won the silver medal for the 40–44 agegroup in the 100m event at the Asia Masters Athletics Championshipsin Singaporein 1981.
• He also represented India in the 45-49 age group at World Masters Championships in Melbourne.

Awards &Honors : 

• He was a recipient of the Government of India’s Arjuna Award in 1965& he was the first sportsperson from Karnataka to win the award.
• He was a recipient of the Government of Karnataka’s Rajyotsava Awardin 2018

Daily CA on December 15:

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi attended a function honoring Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birthday.
• Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud virtually inaugurated ten district court digitization hubs (DCDH) in Odisha, stating that the judiciary needs to be modernized.
• Retail inflation in India has been reduced from 6.77% in October to 5.88% in November 2022.
• In November, wholesale price-based inflation fell to a 21-month low of 5.85 percent due to lower food, fuel, and manufactured-goods prices.
• The Oscar nominations for 2023 will be announced, and they will include Best Actors, Actresses, and Films.
• For the fourth month in a row, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) topped the grievance redressal index among all group A ministries, departments, and autonomous bodies for the resolution of public concerns in November.
• Divya T.S of Karnataka won her maiden women’s 10m air pistol national title in the 65th National Shooting Championship Competitions in Pistol events in Bhopal.

• The Group of Seven (G7) leading economies have created an open, international climate club for countries that want to cooperate in the fight against global warming.
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the greenfield international airport at Mopain North Goa& it would be named Manohar International Airport after former Goa chief minister (late) Manohar Parrikar.
• The 12th editionof the ‘Under the Sal Tree’ theatre festivalwill start onDecember 15, 2022, for 3 days at BadungduppaKalakendra at Rampur in lower Assam’s Goalpara district.
• The Purple Fest: Celebrating Diversity, the first-ever inclusive festival in the state for persons with disabilities (PwDs), will be organized in Panjim, Goa, from January 6-8, 2023.
• Arunachal government launched the 7th edition of the ‘SevaAapkeDwar 2.0’ campaign at Gossang village in Upper Siang District, Arunachal Pradesh.
• The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIFL) announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu Infrastructure Development Board (TNIDB). 
• Canara HSBC Life Insurance launched a new “Guaranteed Fortune Plan” a non-linked, non-participating individual savings scheme offering life cover and a lump sum amount on outliving the policy term.
• Private Sector lender HDFC Bank in partnership with the Government of India’s flagship initiative ‘Start-up India’ launched its sixth ParivartanSmartUp Grants, the annual grants program for social start-ups 
• India’s Uber for Trucks, Trucknetic, has partnered with DBS Bank as a logistics partner on their BusinessClass platform.
• Wellcome Trust director Dr. Jeremy Farrar will become the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Chief Scientist in the second quarter of 2023 &he will be replacing SoumyaSwaminathan
• The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shri Bhupendra Patel takes oath as the 18th Chief Minister (CM) of Gujarat for the second consecutive time at a function held at the Helipad Ground, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
• Minister of State for Defence Shri Ajay Bhatt unveiled a bust of India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) late General BipinRawat at the United Service Institution of India (USI) in New Delhi to commemorate his first death anniversary.
• A Japanese startup’s spacecraft was launched to the Moon, the country’s first-ever lunar mission and the first of its kind by a private company.
• Olympic sprinter& a member of the 1970 Asian Games bronze medal-winning 4x100m relay team Kenneth Powell, passed away at the age of 82  in Bengaluru, Karnataka.