Current Affairs January 09th & 10th 2022| Current Affairs News

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CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Indian Oil s CSR initiative to help eliminate TB in Punjab & UP:

• IndianOil has committed to support the National TB elimination Program (NTEP) in India by providing an enabling environment through integrated and prioritised intervention with City Coordination Committees, District Health Societies, Technical support groups, etc., in each of the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh and 23 districts in Punjab.
• The program’s key objective will be to screen and test the entire population of UP & Punjab every year for the next three years.
• TB continues to be one of India’s severest health challenges.
• India has a large number of ‘missing’ cases every year that are not detected or reported.
• In 2018, Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India had given a clarion call to End TB in India by 2025, five years ahead of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of 2030.
• To fulfil the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, under the aegis of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, in collaboration with Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, is joining the “Jan Andolan” of “TB Mukt Bharat”.
• IndianOil, as a conscious corporate citizen, having a sizeable presence in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab has decided to play a vital role in connecting the dots of demand aggregation, supply-side strengthening, and enabling the environment.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

CGI, Guangzhou organizes promotional event for Indian Herbal/Ayurveda/Beauty Products in China:

• As part of its efforts to promote Indian Ayurveda and herbal products in South China, the Consulate General of India (CGI), Guangzhou organized a Webinar on “Promotion of Herbal/ Ayurveda/ Beauty Products in China”.
• More than 70 Indian exporters, representing Ayurvedic Medicine Manufacturers of India (AMMOI), Karnataka Soaps & Detergents Limited, Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), Basic Chemicals, Cosmetics & Dyes Export Promotion Council (Chemexcil), Ayurvedic Drug Manufacturers’ Association (ADMA) took part in the event.
• The webinar was organized by the CGI in cooperation with Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Ayush.
• CGI, Guangzhou has been very active in promoting Indian business interests in China.
• The event was held in a hybrid format saw a participation of more than 40 Chinese importers in-person and about 30 Indian Tea exporters through a virtual mode.
• In November, India’s former Ambassador to China, Vikram Misri inaugurated the India Store, which was an initiative of the Consulate General of India, Guangzhou to promote Indian products in China.

Indo US Trade- Commerce gets a fillip with improving Agri Market Access:

• 12th India – USA TPF meeting held, Department of Agriculture and farmer’s welfare (DAC&FW) and US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have signed a framework agreement for implementing the 2 Vs 2 Agri market access issues i.e inspection / oversight transfer for Indian mangoes & pomegranate and market access for pomegranate arils from India and market access for US cherries and U.S Alfalfa hay.
• Mango and pomegranate exports will start from Jan – Feb 2022 and pomegranate aril exports from Apr 2022.
• Exports of Alfalfa hay and cherries from USA will begin in Apr 2022.
• In addition, based on the ministerial discussions, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD) also conveyed its readiness to provide market access for U.S pork and requested the U.S side to share a signed copy of final sanitary certificate for finalizing the same.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

G Kishan Reddy flags off the first Janshatabdi express trains between Manipur and Tripura:

• The first Janshatabdi express trains connecting the states of Manipur and Tripura via Assam was flagged off by Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology and by G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Culture, Tourism And Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) through video link from Railway Board in the presence of Chief Minister of Manipur Shri Nongthombam Biren Singh and Chief Minister of Tripura, Shri Biplab Kumar Deb.
• The long-standing demand of the people of Manipur, Tripura and South Assam was fulfilled by inauguration of special trains Jan Shatabdi connecting Agartala – Jiribam – Agartala.
• The inaugural special trains were flagged off from Agartala and Jiribam railway stations simultaneously.

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi inaugurates two-day Training of Trainers programme for Haj 2022 at Haj House, Mumbai:

• Union Minority Affairs Minister Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi inaugurated a two-day Training of Trainers programme for Haj 2022 at Haj House in Mumbai.
• The programme is being attended by 550 trainers, virtually and physically, from different states.
• Keeping in view the COVID-19 pandemic challenges, the training programme is focused on health and hygiene.
• Officials from Haj Committee of India; Royal Consulate of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; Mumbai Municipal Corporation, Customs; Immigration, airlines and doctors will educate about the about “Do’s and Don’ts” to be followed during Haj.
• It includes information about transport, accommodation in Saudi Arabia and laws of Saudi Arabia.
• The trainers will in turn train the Haj pilgrims in training camps across the country.

J&K Govt signs MoU with Century Financial for 100 million investments:

• In its ongoing efforts to strengthen the Hospitality & Tourism Industry in Jammu & Kashmir, the Union Territory government has signed a MoU with UAE’s pioneering financial services company, Century Financial that will invest 100 million dollars in the UT.
• Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, Global business & industry are waking up to the vistas of opportunity in J&K and despite challenges of global pandemic, the pace of economic and policy reforms and the implementation of key infrastructure projects is going on smoothly in the UT.
• As responsive administration they will continue to respond to business’s concerns.

ECI withdraws appointment of Sonu Sood as state icon for Punjab:

• Election Commission of India (ECI) has withdrawn the appointment of Actor Sonu Sood as a state icon for Punjab.
• Punjab Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dr S Karuna Raju confirmed that ECI has withdrawn the appointment of Actor Sonu Sood as a state icon of Punjab on January 4, 2022.

Andhra Pradesh announces increase in retirement age of State govt employees from 60 years to 62 years:

• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S . Jagan Mohan Reddy has announced an increase in the retirement age of state government employees from 60 years to 62 years.
• The Chief Minister also announced a fitment of 23 percent, when the new pay scales shall come into force from January 2022.
• The monetary benefits will be applied from 1-4-2020 and the enhanced pay scale along with pending DAs will be effective from January 2022.
• The decision shall put an additional burden of Rs 10,247 crore on the State treasury. Also, all the pending arrears like PF, GLI, leave encashments will be cleared by April 2022.
• Considering employees’ experience as an asset to the state, the Chief Minister announced the decision to raise the retirement age from 60 years to 62 years to make better use of their services, which will be implemented from this January.
• Kishan Reddy virtually inaugurates PRASHAD projects at Govardhan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh:
• Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Shri G. Kishan Reddy along with Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath and Minister of State for Tourism and Defence Shri Ajay Bhatt inaugurated various components developed at the Govardhan Bus Stand under the project “Development of Govardhan, Mathura” under PRASHAD Scheme of the Ministry of Tourism virtually.
• Under the leadership of Prime minister India has achieved the historic feat of administering 150 crore vaccinations.
• The Minister also reminded the stakeholders that Covid has not yet ended, and requested all to follow all necessary protocols and precautions to stay safe and healthy.
• When we remove the soul from our body, there is nothing remaining, similarly the spiritual heritage and culture of our country needs to be protected for the nation to thrive and Hon’ble Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi has been leading from the front on this.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND ECONOMY

KVG Bank joins hands with Mecwin Tech to finance solar pump-sets for farmers:

• Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), the Dharwad-headquartered regional rural bank, and the Bengaluru-based Mecwin Technologies Ltd, which is involved in the manufacture and supply of solar-powered pump-sets for farmers, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to introduce farmer-friendly solar-powered pump-sets using bank finance.
• The MoU will benefit farmers since Mecwin Technologies Ltd is specialised in the production and management of solar irrigation pump-sets.
• Apart from this, the bank has the largest branch network in rural areas
• KVGB, which was the first bank to introduce solar loan schemes, has been in the forefront in financing solar lights and sustainable energy solutions to underserved households and businesses in association with SELCO for the last 25 years.

Indias Gross Domestic Product estimates to rise 9.2 per cent in current fiscal:

• India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to rise 9.2 per cent in the current fiscal as compared to a contraction of 7.3 per cent in the financial year 2020-21.
• This was stated by the Statistics and Programme Implementation Ministry in its First Advance Estimates of National Income for the financial year 2021-22.
• It has also been stated that real GDP or GDP at Constant Prices in the current fiscal year is estimated at 54 lakh crore rupees as against the Provisional Estimate of GDP for the year 2020-21 of 135.13 lakh crore rupees.
• Second Advance Estimates of National Income for the year 2021-22 and quarterly GDP estimate for the quarter October-December, 2021 will be released next month.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

India’s TS Tirumurti assumes new chair of UN Counter-Terrorism Committee

• TS Tirumurti, India’s permanent representative to the United Nations was named the new Chair of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) for 2022.
• Prior to this, In May 2020, Tirumurti served as Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, handling the Economic Relations portfolio (which included, inter alia, the Gulf and the Arab World, Africa, and India’s Development Partnership).

About TS Tirumurti :

• Tirumurti was born on 7 March 1962 in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
• He is an Indian civil servant who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1985.

Various Posts of TS Tirumurti :

• Tirumurti has previously served at the Embassy of India to Egypt, in Cairo
• At The Permanent Mission of India to the UN in Geneva
• Tirumurti was the first Representative of India to the Palestinian National Authority.
• As the Counselor in the Embassy of India to the United States, in Washington
• As a Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of India to Indonesia in Jakarta
• As the High Commissioner of India to Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur
• Tirumurti served as the Under Secretary (Bhutan)
• Director (Office of the Foreign Secretary)
• Joint Secretary (Bangladesh, Myanmar, Maldives and Sri Lanka)
• Joint Secretary (UN Economic and Social Council) during his service in the External Affairs Ministry.

Note :

• India is currently a non-permanent member of the 15-nation Security Council and its 2-year term will end this year on December 31.

About UN Counter-Terrorism Committee :

• The Counter-Terrorism Committee is a subsidiary body of the United Nations Security Council.
• The CTC, established by Resolution 1373 (2001) in September 2001 in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York.
• It comprises all 15 members of the Security Council – the five permanent members as well as India, Vietnam, Norway, Nigeria, and Tunisia among others.
• In 2021, India has been asked to Chair three important Committees of the Security Council, which include the Taliban Sanctions Committee, Counterterrorism Committee, and the Libyan Sanctions Committee.

LLC appoints cricketer Jhulan Goswami as ambassador

• Legends League Cricket (LLC) has appointed cricketer Jhulan Goswami as an ambassador to the All Women Match Official Team.

Purpose :

• To promote women’s empowerment initiatives of the LLC and to increase participation of women in cricket.
• LLC also announced an ‘All Women Match Official Team’.
• This is for the first time in Cricket that an all-women Match Officials team would be officiating an entire men’s league.
• The League will have ICC empaneled Female Umpires and Match Referees from all across the world.
• Shandre Frtiz from South Africa will be the match referee for the entire League while Shubdha Bhosle Gaikwad, the youngest female umpire in India, Lauren Agenbag from South Africa, Humaira Farah from Pakistan, and Renee Montgomery from Hong Kong will be officiating umpires.

Note :

• Legendary Amitabh Bachchan has recently joined Howzat Legends League Cricket as its Ambassador and will be promoting the League.
• The League also has former India Head Coach, Ravi Shastri as its Commissioner.

About Jhulan Goswami :

• Jhulan Nishit Goswami is an Indian international cricketer and the former captain of India national women’s cricket team.
• Goswami is the highest wicket taker in Women’s One Day International cricket.
• She is regarded as one of the greatest women fast bowlers of all time and one of the fastest bowlers in the history of women’s cricket, and the fastest contemporary bowler following the retirement of Cathryn Fitzpatrick.
• In August 2018, Goswami announced her retirement from WT20Is.

Awards & Honors :

• 2007 – ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year
• Captain of Indian Women’s Cricket Team (2008–2011)
• 2010 – Arjuna Award
• 2012 – Padma Shri

About Legends League Cricket :

• It is the professional cricket league for retired cricketers played among three power-packed teams.
• The first season of Howzat Legends League Cricket is scheduled to be held at Oman Cricket Stadium, Muscat between the India Maharajas, Asia Lions and World Giants from 20th to 29th January 2022.

Legends League Cricket 2022 Teams

1- India Maharajas

2- Asia Lions

3- World Giants

Chinas veteran diplomat Zhang Ming appointed as new Secretary General of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)

• Veteran Chinese diplomat, Zhang Ming, has taken over as the new secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
• Zhang has taken charge from Vladimir Norov, former Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan from January 1 for a three-year term.
• Earlier he served for four years as the head of the Chinese mission to the European Union.
• For the first time, India will assume the presidency of SCO, after Uzbekistan, for the period 2022-2023 which will culminate with the SCO Summit to be hosted by the Indian side in 2023.
• The SCO Summit is the meeting of the Council of Heads of States (HOS) and along with the Council of Heads of Government (HOG) makes two most important dialogue mechanisms among SCO member states.

About SCO :

• The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), also known as the Shanghai Pact, is an Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance.
• It is the world’s largest regional organization in geographic scope and population.
• Headquarters: Beijing, China
• Founded: 15 June 2001
• Secretary-General: Vladimir Norov
• The SCO comprises eight member states: India, Kazakhstan, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
• Observer States (4) : Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Mongolia
• Dialogue Partners (6) : Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri lanka, Turkey
• India and Pakistan became its permanent members in 2017.

Maria Elisa Quinteros elected new President of Chilean constitutional convention

• Chile’s Constitutional Assembly elected Maria Elisa Quinteros as new president for Chile’s constitutional convention.
• María Elisa Quinteros Cáceres born on 20 December 1981 is a Chilean professor who was elected as a member of the Chilean Constitutional Convention.
• She will be the successor to Elisa Loncon in the presidency of the Constitutional Convention.
• The 155-member organization chose Quinteros, a dentist and researcher, as its new head in the ninth voting round after more than 15 hours of debate.

About Constitutional Convention (Chile) :

• Constitutional Convention (Chile) is the constituent body of the Republic of Chile in charge of drafting a new Political Constitution of the Republic after the approval of the national plebiscite held in October 2020.
• The Convention must draft and propose the text of the new Political Constitution of the Republic within a period of nine months, and it may be extended only once for 3 months.

About Chile :

• President: Sebastián Piñera
• Currency: Chilean peso
• apital: Santiago

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SUMMITS & CONFERENCES

19th Meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) held

• The 19th Meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) was held under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change Shri Bhupender Yadav.
• Hon’ble Members of Parliaments Smt. Diya Kumari, Shri Rajeev Pratap Ruddy, & Shri Harshvardhan Singh Dungarpur, Secretary Smt. Leena Nadan & DGF Shri Chandra Prakash Goyal were present among others.
• The 5th cycle of All India Tiger Estimation which is currently underway will help in taking correct policy decisions.
• The minister stated that currently 51 Tiger Reserves in India & more than 35 rivers originate from these areas which are crucial for water security.
• At the meeting the environment minister unveiled the Action Plan for introduction of Cheetah in India, that has become extinct in independent India.
• The Prime Minister is keen on protection and conservation of 7 major big cats including Cheetah numbering 50 over a period of 5 years will be introduced in various parks.
• During the course of the meeting Shri Yadav also informed that ‘India for Tigers: A Rally on Wheels’, organized under the aegis of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
• The union minister also released a Water Atlas, mapping all the water bodies in the tiger bearing areas of India.
• Landscape wise information has been outlined in this water atlas which include, the Shivalik Hills and Gangetic plain landscape, Central Indian Landscape and Eastern Ghats, Western Ghats landscape, North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra flood plains and Sundarbans.
• The Minister also informed that 14 Tiger Reserves have been accredited under CA|TS and NTCA is working on getting other Tiger Reserves evaluated for CA|TS accreditation.

About NTCA :

• Founded: December 2005

About Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change :

• Union Minister : Bhupender Yadav
• Minister of State : Ashwini Kumar Choubey

Union Minister Jitendra Singh inaugurates 24th Conference on e-Governance 2020-21 in Hyderabad

• On Jan 07, 2021, The Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the 24th National Conference on e-Governance in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• The 24th Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) 2020-21 will be conducted from 7th – 8th January 2022.
• The theme of the two-day Conference is ‘India’s Techade: Digital Governance in a Post Pandemic World’.
• The conference has been organized by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), in association with the State Government of Telangana.

Discussions will be held on six sub-themes in Plenary session during the Conference:

• AatmaNirbhar Bharat: Universalization of Public Services
• Innovation – Platformization, Emerging Technologies
• Presentations by Gold Awardees (Centre / State)
• Ease of living through Technology Interventions for Good Governance
• Government Process Re-engineering and Citizen’s participation in Government processes
• India’sTechade – Digital Economy (Digital Payments-Building Citizen’s Confidence)

About the Conference :

• The Conference would provide considerable momentum to the e-Governance initiatives across the country, providing opportunities for civil servants and industry captains to showcase their successful interventions in e-Governance in improving end to end service delivery.
• Delegates from 28 States and 9 Union Territories along with academia, Research Institutions, IT Industry would be participating in the conference through Virtual Mode.
• During the event, National Awards for e-Governance 2021 will be presented under 6 categories to 26 e-Governance initiatives at Central, State and District levels and also to Academic and Research Institutions and Public Sector Undertakings.
• This includes 12 Gold, 13 Silver and 1 Jury Award.

About Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions :

• Minister Responsible : Narendra Modi
• Minister of State : Jitendra Singh

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

India and five other nations begin anti-submarine exercise Sea Dragon 22 with US

• India is among the six Indo-Pacific nations participating in a multilateral anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Pacific Ocean.
• The US Navy’s seventh fleet stated that the Sea Dragon 22 exercise began on January 5 along with the navies of India, Australia, Canada, Japan and South Korea.
• India, Japan, Australia and America are also part of the Quad, and also participate in the Malabar exercise.
• The two US Navy P-8A Poseidon aircraft from the Golden Swordsmen and The Tridents will join the forces from the five other nations.
• The P-8 Poseidon Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft with Patrol Squadron (VP) Forty-Seven and Twenty-Six traveled to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam.
• The Golden Swordsmen of VP-47, part of Commander Task Force 72, are stationed in Whidbey Island, Washington, and are currently deployed to Misawa Air Base in Aomori, Japan.
• The Tridents of VP-26, part of Commander Task Force 72, are stationed in Jacksonville, Florida, and are currently deployed to Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan.
• Throughout the deployment, they will be conducting maritime patrol and reconnaissance and theater outreach operations within the seventh fleet’s area of operations.

About Sea Dragon 22 exercise :

• Sea Dragon 22 focuses on anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training and excellence.
• It culminates in over 270 hours of in-flight training, ranging from tracking simulated targets to the final problem of tracking a live US Navy submarine.
• The nation with the greatest overall point total will be awarded the coveted Dragon Belt.
• In 2021 champion was the Royal Canadian Air Force.

About US :

• President: Joe Biden
• Capital: Washington, D.C.
• Currency: United States Dollar

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

China’s ‘Artificial Sun’ hits new high in clean energy boost

• A new record has been set by the Chinese ‘artificial sun‘ or the experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST) has accomplished the continuous high-temperature plasma operation as it ran at 70 million°C for 1,056 seconds, which is over 17 minutes.
• The achieved temperature is almost five times hotter than the real Sun, which hits a temperature of 15 million°C at its core.
• The continuous high-temperature plasma operation is the longest time of operation of its kind in the world.

About EAST :

• Location: Hefei, China

Aim :

• To create nuclear fusion like the Sun, using deuterium to provide a steady stream of clean energy.

About China :

• Currency: Renminbi
• Capital: Beijing
• President: Xi Jinping

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

Nodirbek Abdusattorov wins the World Rapid Championship 2021

• The 17-year-old Uzbek GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov won the event with 5/13 in the Swiss tournament, after winning the second tiebreak blitz game against GM Ian Nepomniachtchi.
• He also won a prize of 60,000 USD.
• He became the youngest Rapid World Champion in history and the youngest World Champion overall in any of the three recognized time control formats.
• Meanwhile, GM Alexandra Kosteniuk won the women’s world rapid title convincingly with 9/11,& IM Bibisara Assaubayeva, who is also 17 years old, finished in second place and GM Valentina Gunina came third.

About Nodirbek Abdusattorov :

• He qualified for the grandmaster title at the age of 13 years, 1 month, and 11 days.
• In 2011 Abdusattorov won the Under 8 division of the World Youth Chess Championships in Maribor, Slovenia.
• FIDE awarded him the title in April 2018.
• In 2021, Abdusattorov won in the first group of the PNWCC Super G60.

UNION GOVERNMENT SCHEME

Mission solar charkha:

Launched on:

The Solar Charkha Mission was launched during June 2018.

Ministry involved :

The scheme is under administrative control of ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises.

Current MSME minister – Narayan Rane.

Objectives :

To ensure inclusive growth by generation of employment, especially for women and youth, and sustainable development through solar charkha clusters in rural areas.

To boost rural economy and help in arresting migration from rural to urban areas.

To leverage low-cost, innovative technologies and processes for sustenance

Eligibility :

A) Existing Khadi and Village Industry Institution (KVI) could apply for setting up Such a Cluster. However, the following parameters must be fulfilled:

KVI having a positive balance sheet and assets in favour of the institution.

KVI having an artisan base of not less than 200.

KVI having a sales turnover of not less than Rs. One Crore in each of the preceding three financial years.

Should have an ince=rease in number of new artisans in the last three years.

B) Other Institutions such as SPV, Society, Trust, Section 8 Company or LLP under Companies Act, 2013 registered under respective statutes could also apply for setting up a new Solar Charkha Cluster, with the Following criteria:

Vision and Mission

Board and Governing Structure with sufficient experience.

Proper Management Information System (MIS).

Financial resources-equity and debt.

Financial Performance for last three years-profitability and IRR.

1. C) First Timers who want to join the village industry movement through solar charkha clusters could apply for a new cluster, with the following criteria:

Highest Commitment to the cause of Social and rural upliftment

Funding commitment from Scheduled Commercial Banks/NBFC/Venture Capital Fund/Private Equity funds.

Proper Management Information System (MIS).

Any other criteria to be approved by governing council.

The scheme would cover three types of Interventions, namely-

Capital subsidy for individual and for Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV):

2000 Solar Charkhas at the maximum price of Rs.45,000/- per charkha and a subsidy of Rs.15,750/- per charkha works out to a cumulative subsidy of Rs.3.15 crore for 1000 spinners.

One unit of two Solar Charkhas would produce 2.0 kg of yarn on an average per day, resulting in a production of 2.0 tons per 2000 charkhas. Thus, 500 Solar Looms would be required to convert the yarn into fabric at the maximum price of Rs.1,10,000/- per loom and subsidy @35% at Rs.38,500/- per loom and the cumulative subsidy works out to Rs.1.93 crore for 500 weavers.

Capital cost of construction of workshed with a minimum space of 20,000 sq.ft with 100% subsidy at the maximum rate upto Rs.1.20 crore per cluster for the SPV.

Capital cost of Solar Grid of 50 KW capacity with 100% subsidy at the maximum rate upto Rs.0.40 crore per cluster for the SPV.

One-time Capital Cost Subsidy for the SPV @35% works out to maximum of Rs.0.75 crore per Cluster for the purchase of twisting machines, dying machines and stitching machines (500 in number) for making the unit self-sustainable and for value addition.

Interest subvention for Working Capital:

It is proposed to have a ceiling of 8% of interest subvention on working capital irrespective of the interest rates being charged by the Banks/Financial Institutions for a period of six months. Recurring Working Capital cost for a period of six months at the rate of interest subvention of 8% works out to Rs.1.584 crore for one cluster including cost of roving, wages of spinners and weavers .

Capacity building:

The scheme envisages courses for the spinners/weavers and others involved in the garmenting unit at a total cost of Rs 0.595 cr per cluster for a period of two years.

Benefits :

The scheme envisages setting up of Solar Charkha Clusters which would mean a focal village and other surrounding villages in a radius of 8 to 10 kilometers. Further, such a cluster will have 200 to 2042 beneficiaries (spinners, weavers, stitches and other skilled artisans).

Each spinner will be given two charkhas of 10 spindles each. On an average, it is considered that such cluster will have about 1000 charkhas. A cluster with full capacity will provide direct employment to 2042 artisans.

Government of India has accorded approval to set up 50 such clusters with a budget of 550 Crore of 2018-19 and 2019-20.

The Scheme is envisaged to generate direct employment nearly to one lakh persons in the approved Fifty (50) Clusters.

Daily CA On Jan 09th & 10th :

• The Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in association with the State Government of Telangana organized the 24th Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) 2021 on 7th – 8th February 2022 at Hyderabad, Telangana.
• IndianOil has committed to support the National TB elimination Program (NTEP) in India by providing an enabling environment through integrated and prioritised intervention with City Coordination Committees, District Health Societies, Technical support groups, etc., in each of the 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh and 23 districts in Punjab.
• As part of its efforts to promote Indian Ayurveda and herbal products in South China, the Consulate General of India (CGI), Guangzhou organized a Webinar on “Promotion of Herbal/ Ayurveda/ Beauty Products in China”.
• 12th India – USA TPF meeting held, Department of Agriculture and farmer’s welfare (DAC&FW) and US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have signed a framework agreement for implementing the 2 Vs 2 Agri market access issues i.e inspection / oversight transfer for Indian mangoes & pomegranate and market access for pomegranate arils from India and market access for US cherries and U.S Alfalfa hay.
• The first Janshatabdi express trains connecting the states of Manipur and Tripura via Assam was flagged off by Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Railways, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology and by G Kishan Reddy, Union Minister for Culture, Tourism And Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) through video link from Railway Board in the presence of Chief Minister of Manipur Shri Nongthombam Biren Singh and Chief Minister of Tripura, Shri Biplab Kumar Deb.
• Union Minority Affairs Minister Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi inaugurated a two-day Training of Trainers programme for Haj 2022 at Haj House in Mumbai.
• In its ongoing efforts to strengthen the Hospitality & Tourism Industry in Jammu & Kashmir, the Union Territory government has signed a MoU with UAE’s pioneering financial services company, Century Financial that will invest 100 million dollars in the UT.
• Election Commission of India (ECI) has withdrawn the appointment of Actor Sonu Sood as a state icon for Punjab.
• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S . Jagan Mohan Reddy has announced an increase in the retirement age of state government employees from 60 years to 62 years.
• Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Shri G. Kishan Reddy along with Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath and Minister of State for Tourism and Defence Shri Ajay Bhatt inaugurated various components developed at the Govardhan Bus Stand under the project “Development of Govardhan, Mathura” under PRASHAD Scheme of the Ministry of Tourism virtually.
• Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), the Dharwad-headquartered regional rural bank, and the Bengaluru-based Mecwin Technologies Ltd, which is involved in the manufacture and supply of solar-powered pump-sets for farmers, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to introduce farmer-friendly solar-powered pump-sets using bank finance.
• India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to rise 9.2 per cent in the current fiscal as compared to a contraction of 7.3 per cent in the financial year 2020-21.
• TS Tirumurti, India’s permanent representative to the United Nations was named the new Chair of the UN Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) for 2022.
• Legends League Cricket (LLC) has appointed cricketer Jhulan Goswami as an ambassador to the All Women Match Official Team.
• Veteran Chinese diplomat, Zhang Ming, has taken over as the new secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
• Chile’s Constitutional Assembly elected Maria Elisa Quinteros as new president for Chile’s constitutional convention.
• The 19th Meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) was held under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change Shri Bhupender Yadav.
• On Jan 07, 2021, The Union Minister of Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the 24th National Conference on e-Governance in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• India is among the six Indo-Pacific nations participating in a multilateral anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Pacific Ocean.
• A new record has been set by the Chinese ‘artificial sun‘ or the experimental advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST) has accomplished the continuous high-temperature plasma operation as it ran at 70 million°C for 1,056 seconds, which is over 17 minutes.
• The 17-year-old Uzbek GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov won the event with 5/13 in the Swiss tournament, after winning the second tiebreak blitz game against GM Ian Nepomniachtchi.