Current Affairs January 29th 2022| Current Affairs News

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CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Ministry of Civil Aviation notifies drone certification scheme:

• The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has notified a drone certification scheme to ensure minimum safety and quality requirements so as to boost indigenous manufacturing.
• The drone certification scheme was notified on January 26.
• The drone certification scheme notified on January 26, 2022, under Rule 7 of the liberalized Drone Rules, 2021 will help in simpler, faster and transparent type-certification of drones.
• Combined with the liberalized drone rules, airspace map, the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme and the single window DigitalSky Platform, the segment is expected to see a boost in manufacturing.
• The MoCA has already approved a PLI scheme for unmanned aircraft systems (drones) and drone components with an allocation of ₹120 crore spread over three financial years.
• The objective of this certification scheme is to provide safety and security criteria and requirements for drones, evaluate their certification, among others.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to present Union Budget 2022-23 on 1st Feb in paperless form:

• Union Budget 2022-23 will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1st of next month in paperless form.
• The Budget would also be available on the Mobile App after the completion of Budget presentation process.
• A Union Budget Mobile App was also launched for hassle-free access of budget documents by Members of Parliament and the public.
• The mobile App allows complete access to 14 Union Budget documents, including the Budget Speech, Annual Financial Statement is commonly known as Budget, and Demand for Grants.
• The mobile app is available on both Android and iOS platforms. The App can also be downloaded from the Union Budget Web Portal: www.indiabudget.gov.in
• The budget documents will also be available for download by the general public on Union Budget Web Portal: www.indiabudget.gov.in
• In a historic move, the Union Budget of 2021-22 was delivered in paperless form for the first time.

Air India officially handed over to Tata Sons as disinvestment process completes:

• Air India has been officially handed over to the Tata Sons Limited.
• The Tata Group takes over the management and control of the airline.
• The transaction cover three entities, Air India, Air India Express and AI SATS.
• Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, it is indeed noteworthy that the disinvestment process of Air India has been brought to a successful conclusion in a time-bound manner.
• This proves the Government’s ability and the resolve to carry out disinvestment effectively in non-strategic sectors in the future.
• Tata Group acknowledged Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to reform and faith in India’s entrepreneurship spirit saying that this commitment made this historic transition possible.
• The Tata Group agree with the Prime Minister’s vision for the aviation sector of making it affordable and boosting Ease of Living for the citizen.
• Talace is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons. In October last year, the Government approved Air India disinvestment.
• The Air India strategic disinvestment transaction has been completed with Government receiving a consideration of two thousand 700 crore from the Talace Private Limited.

BEL signs $73 million contract with US-based Hyperion Global:

• Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Hyperion Global Group, LLC, a United States based infrastructure telecommunication distribution company, have entered into a contract to develop, manufacture and supply Internet of Things (IoT) devices for the US market.
• BEL will manufacture and supply IoT devices worth $73 million to Hyperion during the first year of commencement of supply with a provision to negotiate and supply upgrades of the products, worth $365 million, in the next five years.
• The contract was signed on January 21, 2022, by BEL’s New York Regional Office and Hyperion in the presence of MV Rajasekhar, Director R&D, BEL, Nick Studebaker, CEO, Hyperion Group, Prabha Goyal, GM (BEL-Panchkula) and other senior officials of BEL and Hyperion.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India, Philippines signs 375-million-dollar deal for the sale of BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles:

• India and Philippines has signed the 375 million dollar deal for the sale of BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles to the Philippines Navy.
• Defense Secretary of Philippines Delfin Lorenzana and Indian Envoy to Philippines Shambhu Kumaran signed the contract in Manila.
• The development is a major shot in the arm for India’s efforts to become an exporter of defence hardware.
• BrahMos Aerospace, an India-Russian joint venture produces the supersonic cruise missile BrahMos that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or from land platforms.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND ECONOMY

TerraPay partners with NPCI International to boost cashless transactions for Indian customers:

• TerraPay, a leading global payments infrastructure company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the International arm of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• This association with NIPL will allow Indians with an active UPI ID to receive real-time, international payments into their bank accounts via TerraPay’s adaptive and secure payments technology.
• Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is an instant real-time payment system developed by NPCI facilitating inter-bank peer-to-peer and person-to-merchant transactions.
• Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has ended calendar year 2021 (CY21) with record high transactions, both in volume and value terms.
• According to the data released by the NPCI, for 2021, UPI recorded 38.74 Billion transactions, worth USD 954.58 Billion, making it the best performing real-time payment eco-system in the world.
• The intended collaboration will now further empower UPI users to leverage TerraPay’s agile interoperable payments infrastructure to receive payments on a fully regulated, secure, scalable, and efficient channel.

Ensure advisory board’s recommendations are taken in fraud cases of over Rs 3 crore: CVC

• The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has asked all public sector banks and insurance companies to ensure that they seek recommendations from its advisory board regarding all cases of fraud involving Rs 3 crore and more.
• At the time of approaching the commission for advice in respect to any prosecution sanction case, the chief vigilance officer (CVO) should mention whether the case is eligible to be referred to the advisory board along with the date of reference besides details of the recommendation given by it.
• The probity watchdog had issued an order in this regard to the chief executives and CVOs of all public sector banks and insurance companies on January 21.
• A CVO acts as an extended arm of the CVC to deal with corruption cases.
• The CVC had on January 6 expanded the ambit of the Advisory Board for Banking and Financial Frauds (ABBFF), which conducts first level examination of large bank frauds, to cover all such cases involving amounts of Rs 3 crore and above besides examining the role of all levels of officials.
• The board, headed by former vigilance commissioner and the then chairman and managing director (CMD) of Indian Bank T M Bhasin, was reconstituted for two years with effect from August 21 last year.

AIDWA demands withdrawal of ‘anti-women’ SBI guidelines:

• The All-India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) has demanded the withdrawal of the “anti-women” SBI guidelines.
• State Bank of India has, in a recent circular, revised its guideline pertaining to appointment of pregnant women.
• As per the revised guideline, candidates who are pregnant three months and above will be considered temporarily unfit and will be allowed to join within four months after delivery of child.
• According to the present guideline, candidates upto six months of pregnancy can be appointed, provided the candidate furnishes a certificate from a gynaecologist that her taking up bank’s employment at that stage is in no way likely to interfere with her pregnancy or the normal development of the fetus.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Wipro appoints Badrinath Srinivasan as Managing Director for Southeast Asia

• Wipro Limited, a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, announced the appointment of Badrinath Srinivasan (Badri) as the Managing Director for Southeast Asia.
• Badri will focus on Wipro’s vision for business growth, revenue expansion, client and influencer relationships, talent development and brand building.
• He will also strengthen the key markets of Southeast Asia focusing on large deals and strategic transformational engagements.
• He was the Asia leader for the Financial Services and Insurance verticals at Infosys.
• Over his nearly 20-year tenure with the company, Srinivasan has held multiple leadership positions in sales and consulting across the United States, Europe, and Asia-Pacific markets and partnered with customers across industry verticals steering their digital transformation agendas.
• He led strategic initiatives in Asia including driving mergers and acquisitions, creating joint ventures, and establishing strategic partner ecosystems.

About Wipro :

• Founded: 29 December 1945
• CEO: Thierry Delaporte
• Founder: M.H. Hasham Premji
• Owner: Azim Premji
• Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

Pushp Kumar Joshi to be new chairman and MD of HPCL

• Pushp Kumar Joshi is set to be the next Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), a Maharatna PSU under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG).
• He has been recommended for the post by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) panel.
• He will replace Mukesh Kumar Surana, who superannuates on April 30 this year.
• The recommendation will now go to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• Joshi is a Doctorate in Human Resource Management, Post Graduate in Human Resource Management from XLRI, Jamshedpur and Bachelor of Law from Andhra University.
• He has been serving as Director (HR) since August 1, 2012.
• Prior to this, he was holding key portfolios in Human Resources functions viz. Executive Director – HRD and Head – HR of Marketing Division.
• Joshi will be Chief Executive of the corporation and will be accountable to the Board of Directors and Government.
• He will also be responsible for the efficient functioning of the company for achieving its corporate objectives and performance parameters.

About HPCL :

• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• CEO: Mukesh Kumar Surana
• Chairperson: Mukesh Kumar Surana
• HPCL is a subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation which is under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of the Government of India.
• HPCL is a subsidiary of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
• It is the nation’s third largest oil refining and fuel marketing company.

About Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas :

• Union Minister : Hardeep Singh Puri
• Minister of State : Rameswar Teli

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

TVS Motor acquires 75% stake in e-bike maker Swiss E-Mobility

• TVS Motor Company announced the acquisition of a 75% stake in Switzerland’s largest e-bike player Swiss E-Mobility Group (SEMG) for consideration of $100 million (about Rs 752 crore).
• Further TVS Motor plans to acquire the remaining 25 percent in the company soon.
• This is TVS Motor’s second acquisition in Switzerland for FY22.
• In September 2021, it had acquired 80 percent stake in EGO Movement for $17.9 million.
• The acquisition has been made in an all-cash deal through TVS Motor’s Singapore Subsidiary TVS Motor (Singapore) Pte Ltd.
• It will help expand our e-mobility presence in the remaining countries of Europe and in India.
• SEMG is a market-leading provider of e-mobility solutions within the DACH region.
• The DACH region refers to the three Central European countries of Germany (D- Deutschland(German name of Germany), Austria (A), and Switzerland (CH).
• The company is planning to launch SEMG brands : Cilo, Simpel, Allegro, and Zenith in India by the end of 2022.
• SEMG has two online platforms and 31 physical stores.

About TVS Motor Company :

• CEO: K. N. Radhakrishnan
• Joint Managing Director : Sudarshan Venu
• Headquarters: Chennai, TamilNadu
• Founder: T. V. Sundram Iyengar
• Founded: 1978

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

Decommissioned INS Khukri to be handed over to Diu admin

• As the nation celebrates its 73rd Republic Day, INS Khukri will be handed over to the Diu administration in a ceremonial event at the Khukri Memorial.
• INS Khukri, the lead ship of the Indian Navy’s Khukri class corvettes, is an indigenous surface-to-surface missile fitted vessel that has had the distinction of being part of both the Western and Eastern Fleets.
• The ship is planned to be developed as a full-scale museum.
• The ship has been in service for more than 32 years.
• It has participated in all forms of naval operations & it was decommissioned in a solemn ceremony on December 23, 2021.
• The Ship was Built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders & was commissioned on 23 August 1989 in Mumbai by Krishna Chandra Pant, the then defence minister, and Sudha Mulla, wife of late captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, MVC.
• The first ship with the same name was lost during the 1971 Indo-Pak war off the coast of Diu.
• The ship commenced her last journey undertow by Indian Navy ships from Visakhapatnam and arrived at Diu on January 14, 2022.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BOOKS & AUTHORS

New book titled A Little Book of India: Celebrating 75 years of Independence authored by Ruskin Bond    

• A New Book Titled A Little Book of India: Celebrating 75 years of Independence authored by Ruskin Bond.
• The book is Published by Penguin Random House India (PRHI).

About the Book :

• The book, an amalgamation of the “physical and spiritual” attributes of India, promises to take readers on a journey filled with nostalgia and devotions.
• The book highlights the last 75 years of India’s progress to maturity as a nation.

About Ruskin Bond :

• Ruskin Bond was Born in Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) and grew up in Jamnagar, Dehradun, New Delhi and Shimla.
• His first novel, The Room on the Roof, received the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize in 1957.

Notable Works :

• The Room on the Roof
• Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra
• A Flight of Pigeons
• The Blue Umbrella
• He has also written over 500 short stories and articles that have appeared in magazines and anthologies.

Awards & Honors :

• He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1992 for Our Trees Still Grow in the Dehra, his novel in English. Bond has written hundreds of short stories, essays, novels and books for children.
• He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1999 and Padma Bhushan in 2014.

Rohan J Alva authors a New Book Titled Liberty After Freedom

• A New book titled Liberty After Freedom: A History of Article 21, Due Process and the Constitution of India authored by Rohan J Alva.
• The Book is published by HarperCollins.

About the Book :

• The book provides a comprehensive and fascinating account of the origins and evolution of the most important fundamental right – the right to life and personal liberty – as enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution.

About Rohan J Alva :

• Rohan J. Alva is a counsel practicing in the Supreme Court of India.
• His writings have been published in internationally respected journals including Statute Law Review (Oxford University Press), and Hong Kong Law Journal.
• Prior to starting his counsel practice, he was a professor at Jindal Global Law School, where he was awarded the Excellence in Research Award.

MoS Culture Meenakashi Lekhi releases pictorial comic book ‘India’s Women Unsung Heroes’

• On Jan 27, 2022, Minister of State for Culture Meenakashi Lekhi released the pictorial comic book ‘India’s Women Unsung Heroes’ in New Delhi.
• The unique book has been prepared by the Ministry of Culture, Government of India in partnership with Amar Chitra Katha.

About the Book :

• The book portrays the tales of valor of our forgotten women freedom fighters.
• It contains stories of queens who battled imperialism and dedicated their lives for Maa Bharati.
• The book celebrates the lives of 75 unsung women freedom fighters of India, including Chakali Ilamma, Padmaja Naidu, Durgabhai Deshmukh, among others.

About Ministry of Culture :

• Cabinet Minister : Kishan Reddy
• Minister of State : Meenakshi Lekhi

New Book Titled Last among equals: Power, Caste and Politics in Bihar’s villages authored by MR Sharan

• A New Book Titled Last among equals: Power, Caste and Politics in Bihar’s villages authored by MR Sharan.

About the Book :

• The book is an account of the author’s field study in a group of villages in Bihar that he undertook as part of his PhD programme.
• The hero of this book is the little-known Sanjay Sahni, an immigrant from Bihar eking out a comfortable living as an electrician in Delhi.
• The book lays bare how the best of policies, crafted with the best of intentions, get subverted by local village-level power structures.
• The book ends with Sanjay Sahni’s valiant attempt to fight the Bihar Assembly elections as an independent in 2020.

About MR Sharan :

• R. Sharan is an Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland, studying questions centered around development economics and political economy.
• He obtained his PhD from Harvard University in 2020 and was previously at the Delhi School of Economics and Hansraj College.
• His novel Blue was published by HarperCollins in 2014.
• His writings have appeared across various publications, including the Economic and Political Weekly, The Hindu, The Times of India and The Economic Times.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

Tata Motors to be title sponsor for tennis tournament Maharashtra Open

• Tata Motors will continue to support the Tata Open Maharashtra tennis tournament, for the fourth consecutive year.
• The event will be held from January 31 to February 6, 2022 at the Balewadi stadium in Pune.
• The Tata Open Maharashtra, South Asia’s only ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) tournament and country’s oldest sporting international event, is a flagship and important association for Tata Motors.
• The prestigious IMG-owned tournament, organised by the Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association and licensed by Rise World, was supported by Tata also for a brief period from 2002-2004 when it was held in Chennai.

About Tata Motors :

• Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
• Founded: 1945
• Founder : Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata
• Chairman : Natarajan Chandrasekaran

About Association of Tennis Professionals :

• Founded: September 1972
• Headquarters: London, United Kingdom
• Chairperson: Andrea Gaudenzi
• CEO: Massimo Calvelli

CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES

Indian hockey legend and Olympics gold medallist Charanjit Singh passes away       

• On Jan 27, 2022, Captain of India’s 1964 Tokyo Olympics gold medal-winning hockey team, Charanjit Singh Passed away at the age of 92.

About Charanjit Singh :

• Charanjit Singh Born on 20 November 1929 in Una district, Himachal Pradesh.
• He would represent Panjab University and later Punjab Police.
• Charanjit served as Dean of student welfare at Punjab Agricultural University and Hisar Agricultural University before becoming a Director of Sports in the Himachal University.
• He was a part of the silver-winning side in the 1960 edition of the Games.
• He was also a member of the Indian hockey team which won a silver medal in the 1962 Asian Games.
• After his illustrious career in international hockey, he worked as the director of the physical education department in Himachal Pradesh University in Shimla.

Awards & Honors :

• He was honored with the Arjuna Award in 1963 and Padma Shri in 1964 for his remarkable contribution.

Renowned Kathakali artist & Padma Shri awardee Milena Salvini passes away

• Padma Shri winner and famous Kathakali artist Milena Salvini passed away at the age of 84.

About Milena Salvini :

• Milena Salvini was born in Milan, Kingdom of Italy.
• She played an important role in promoting Indian dance and music for over four decades in France.
• She joined Kerala Kalamandalam to learn the dance in 1965.
• Later she became an ambassador of Indian dance forms.
• Salvini and Filipuzzi opened the Mandapa Centre in Paris, France, in 1975 to teach classical dance.
• In 1980, she arranged for the Kalamandalam’s Kutiyattam troupe to travel to Europe with funding from UNESCO.

Awards & Honors :

• She was conferred with Padma Shri in 2019 by the Government of India for her contribution to the field of performing arts

Renowned author and social activist Anil Awachat passes away

• Renowned author and social activist Anil Awachat has passed away at the age of 78.

About Anil Awachat :

• Anil Awachat Born at Otur in Pune district, Maharashtra.
• Dr Awachat was the founder of a de-addiction center called Muktangan Rehabilitation Center in Pune in
• He was Known for his several books, including “Manasa”, “Swatahavishayi”, “Gard”, “Karyarat”, “Karyamagna” and “Kutuhalapoti”, Awachat regularly wrote articles in different Marathi magazines and other publications.
• Apart from writing, he was passionate about origami, wood carving, playing flute, cooking, painting and photography.
• In 2017, Dr. Awachat was honored with the prestigious Maharashtra Foundation (America) award, which is instituted by members of the Maharashtrian community residing in the U.S.

Daily CA On Jan 29 :

• The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has notified a drone certification scheme to ensure minimum safety and quality requirements so as to boost indigenous manufacturing.
• Union Budget 2022-23 will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1st of next month in paperless form.
• Air India has been officially handed over to the Tata Sons Limited. The Tata Group takes over the management and control of the airline.
• Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) and Hyperion Global Group, LLC, a United States based infrastructure telecommunication distribution company, have entered into a contract to develop, manufacture and supply Internet of Things (IoT) devices for the US market.
• India and Philippines has signed the 375 million dollar deal for the sale of BrahMos supersonic anti-ship cruise missiles to the Philippines Navy.
• TerraPay, a leading global payments infrastructure company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the International arm of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has asked all public sector banks and insurance companies to ensure that they seek recommendations from its advisory board regarding all cases of fraud involving Rs 3 crore and more.
• The All-India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) has demanded the withdrawal of the “anti-women” SBI guidelines.

• Wipro Limited, a leading global information technology, consulting and business process services company, announced the appointment of Badrinath Srinivasan (Badri) as the Managing Director for Southeast Asia.
• Pushp Kumar Joshi is set to be the next Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), a Maharatna PSU under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG).
• TVS Motor Company announced the acquisition of a 75% stake in Switzerland’s largest e-bike player Swiss E-Mobility Group (SEMG) for consideration of $100 million (about Rs 752 crore).
• As the nation celebrates its 73rd Republic Day, INS Khukri will be handed over to the Diu administration in a ceremonial event at the Khukri Memorial.
• A New Book Titled A Little Book of India: Celebrating 75 years of Independence authored by Ruskin Bond.
• A New book titled Liberty After Freedom: A History of Article 21, Due Process and the Constitution of India authored by Rohan J Alva.
• On Jan 27, 2022, Minister of State for Culture Meenakashi Lekhi released the pictorial comic book ‘India’s Women Unsung Heroes’ in New Delhi.
• A New Book Titled Last among equals: Power, Caste and Politics in Bihar’s villages authored by MR Sharan.
• Tata Motors will continue to support the Tata Open Maharashtra tennis tournament, for the fourth consecutive year & The event will be held from January 31 to February 6, 2022 at the Balewadi stadium in Pune.
• On Jan 27, 2022, Captain of India’s 1964 Tokyo Olympics gold medal-winning hockey team, Charanjit Singh Passed away at the age of 92.
• Padma Shri winner and famous Kathakali artist Milena Salvini passed away at the age of 84.
• Renowned author and social activist Anil Awachat has passed away at the age of 78.