15th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

15 January 2022
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15th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

Here is the Daily GK Update of 15th January 2022 covering the following news headlines: North East on Wheels Expedition, 20th Dhaka International Film Festival, Global Women’s Health Tech Awards, Indian Army Day, BrahMos cruise missiles.

Daily GK updates are incorporated with the important news that made the current affairs headlines for banking or other competitive exams. Daily GK Update is the complete bag of the important news that is held all day long. One should have complete knowledge about banking terms, current affairs news, etc. So, here is the GK update of 15th January 2022 to help you prepare the Current affairs part. After reading this section, you can successfully attempt Current Affairs Quiz.

Top 10 Daily GK Updates: National & International News

Here is providing below the top 10 important Daily General Knowledge GK 2021 updates with national & international news.

National News

1. 'North East on Wheels Expedition’ launched to promote Culture of Northeastern States

• Minister of State for Culture, Meenakashi Lekhi has launched the 'North East on Wheels Expedition’ in New Delhi to promote the Culture of Northeastern States. The Bike Expedition is scheduled between 8th to 16th April this year to mark the celebrations of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• 75 Bikers participating in this expedition will be selected from all over the country and will cover about 9000 km in the North East Region in 6 groups.
• The expedition will also promote the Dekho Apna Desh initiative of the Ministry of Tourism. The Riders will also carry the message of the importance of Road Safety.

International News

2. India give support to Sri Lanka to overcome forex crisis

• India has announced financial assistance of USD 900 million loans to Sri Lanka to help the island nation in building up its depleted foreign reserves and for food imports. It must be noted that Sri Lanka is currently facing a shortage of almost all essential commodities due to a shortage of dollars to pay for the imports.
• India is extending its support through the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay met Cabraal and expressed India's strong support to Sri Lanka in the wake of RBI extending over USD 900 million facilities.
• These comprise deferment of Asian Clearing Union settlement of over USD 509 million and currency swap of USD 400 million.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Sri Lanka Capitals: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte; Currency: Sri Lankan rupee.
• Sri Lanka Prime Minister: Mahinda Rajapaksa; Sri Lanka President: Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

3. Daniel Ortega sworn in as President of Nicaragua for 5th term

• Nicaraguan President José Daniel Ortega Saavedra, leader of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN), was sworn in for a new presidential term. This marks his 5th term and 4th consecutive term as the President of Nicaragua.
• He will remain in the office until January 2027. He received the presidential sash from Gustavo Porras, head of the National Assembly. Ortega's first stint in power ended in 1990 and upon returning as president in 2007, he quickly set about gaining control of key state institutions.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Nicaragua Capital: Managua;
• Nicaragua Currency: Nicaraguan córdoba.

Agreements News

4. Indifi tie-up with GPay to offer instant digital credit to SMEs

• Small businesses-focused online lending platform Indifi Technologies has collaborated with Google Pay to provide instant loans to eligible medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs) merchants through the Google Pay platform.
• The borrowing process is entirely digital and eligible merchants on the Google Pay for the Business app can click on loan offerings from Indifi and submit an application online. The loans will be in the range of Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 lakh.
• With a 35 per cent share of monthly UPI volumes, Google Pay has been growing its financial services play over the past year like other payments leaders in India. It already provides loans and short-term credit to individuals and small merchants in tie-ups with IIFL Loans, CASHe, and ZestMoney, among others.

Banking News

5. Paytm Payments Bank became most preferred UPI beneficiary bank in India

• Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) became the largest and fastest-growing UPI beneficiary bank in India. It becomes the first beneficiary bank in the country to achieve the landmark of over 926 million UPI transactions in a single month.
• Beneficiary banks are the banks of the account holder who is receiving money. Paytm Payments Bank has also gained rapid traction as a remitter bank for UPI payments.
• While State Bank of India (SBI) topped the chart of being the biggest remitter in December 2021, according to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). State Bank of India followed PPBL as the second-largest beneficiary with 664.89 million transactions.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Chairman of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd: Vijay Shekhar Sharma;
• MD and CEO of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd: Satish Kumar Gupta;
• Paytm Payments Bank Ltd Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

Defence News

6. Philippines to purchase BrahMos cruise missiles from India

• Philippines has become the first foreign country to place an order for the purchase of the BrahMos Shore-Based cruise Missile System for its navy. This agreement will give a big boost to India’s defence manufacturing system.
• The estimated deal cost is worth $374,9 million. The BrahMos Aerospace Pvt Ltd will supply the missile, under the Shore-Based Anti-Ship Missile System Acquisition Project, for Philippine Navy.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Philippines Capital: Manila;
• Philippines Currency: Philippine peso;
• Philippines President: Rodrigo Duterte.

Economy News

7. India’s forex reserves declines by $878 mn to $632.7 bn

• As per the weekly Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, the foreign exchange reserves of India declined by $878 million to USD 632.736 billion in the week ended January 7, 2022. In the previous week ended December 31, India’s reserves dropped by $1.466 billion to $633.614 billion.
• The decline was mainly due to a fall in gold reserves and foreign currency assets (FCA). In the reporting week, FCAs decreased by $497 million to $569.392 billion. Gold reserves declined by $360 million to $39.044 billion.
• The special drawing rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell by $16 million to $19.098 billion. India’s reserve position with the IMF dipped by $5 million to $5.202 billion.

Awards News

8. NIRAMAI & InnAccel received Global Women’s Health Tech Awards

• DBT-BIRAC supported start-ups, NIRAMAI Health Analytix Pvt Ltd, and InnAccel Technologies Pvt Ltd have received World Bank Group and Consumer Technology Association’s Global Women’s Health Tech Awards.
• The award recognizes innovative startups that leverage tech to improve women’s health and safety. NIRAMAI Health Analytix was selected for early-stage breast cancer medical device. InnAccel was selected for Fetal Lite, AI-powered fetal heart rate (FHR) monitor.

Important Days

9. Indian Army Day observed on 15 January

• The Army Day in India is celebrated on 15 January every year, to salute the valiant soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect the country and its citizens. This year marks the 74th Indian Army Day.
• The day is marked to commemorate the day when General (later Field Marshal) KM Carriappa took over the command of the Army from General Sir FRR Bucher, the last British Commander-in-Chief in 1949 and became the first Commander-in-Chief of Indian Army post Independence.

Miscellaneous News

10. 20th Dhaka International Film Festival begins

• The 20th Dhaka International Film Festival begins at Dhaka, Bangladesh. The festival will showcase 225 films from 70 countries under 10 categories will be screened across various venues in Dhaka between 15-23 January.
• The film festival is being organized in a hybrid mode with many films being streamed online during the festival. The DIFF will also organise the 8th edition of the ‘Women in Cinema’ international conference, as well as the 4th edition of the ‘West meets East’ screenplay lab during the festival.
• The Indian entries to the 20th DIFF include films like Koozhangal directed by P S Vinothraj, Avijatrik directed by Subhrajit Mitra, Mayar Jonjal directed by Indranil Roychowdhury, and Aandaal directed by Shareef Easa among the 35 entries.

All the Best BA’ians for the Bank exam!

11th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

11 January 2022
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11th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

Daily GK updates are incorporated with the important news that made the current affairs headlines for banking or other competitive exams. Daily GK Update is the complete bag of the important news that is held all day long. One should have complete knowledge about banking terms, current affairs news, etc. So, here is the GK update of 11th January 2022 to help you prepare the Current affairs part. After reading this section, you can successfully attempt Current Affairs Quiz.

Top 15 Daily GK Updates: National & International News

Here is providing below the top 15 important Daily General Knowledge GK 2021 updates with national & international news.

States News

1. Uttar Pradesh Govt Declares 4 Villages Near Nepal Border as Revenue Villages

• Uttar Pradesh government declared four villages located near the Nepal border in the district as revenue villages. District Magistrate of Bahraich, Dinesh Chandra Singh said the decision was taken before the announcement of the general elections to the UP Legislative Assembly.
• These four villages are Bhavanipur, Tedhia, Dhakia and Bichhia located in Mihinpurwa tehsil of the district. All these villages are Vantangiya villages. The Vantangiya' community comprises people brought from Myanmar during the colonial rule to plant trees. There are around 225 families in these four villages consisting of over 1,500 members.
• A revenue village is a small administrative region with defined borders. One revenue village may contain many hamlets. A village administrative officer is the head officer of a revenue village. The people of these villages will now get the benefits of all the schemes of the government.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Uttar Pradesh Capital: Lucknow;
• Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath;
• Uttar Pradesh Governor: Anandiben Patel.

Appointments News

2. Former RBI Governor Urjit Patel Appointed as Vice President of AIIB

• Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor, Urjit Patel has been appointed as Vice President of the multilateral funding institution Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) for a period of three years.
• He will be one of the five Vice Presidents of the AIIB. He is expected to take charge from February 2022.
• He will succeed outgoing Vice President D J Pandian, who is in charge of sovereign and non-sovereign lending of the AIIB in South Asia, the Pacific Islands and South-East Asia.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank: Jin Liqun.
• Headquarters of AIIB: Beijing, China.
• AIIB established: 16 January 2016.

Banking News

3. RBL Bank tie-up with Google to advance next-gen customer experience

• RBL Bank and Google announced a strategic collaboration to fuel the Bank’s customer experience strategy. Through this, the bank will expand its value proposition to serve its rapidly growing customer base through the digital platform, Abacus 2.0.
• It will enable better customer data management, and analytics, enabling effective cross-selling within the Bank’s large customer base. RBL Bank currently has over 4 million urban retail asset and liability customers.
• This collaboration will enable better customer data management, and analytics, enabling effective cross-selling within the Bank’s large customer base and subsequently reducing the cost of customer acquisition, significantly.
• Through Abacus 2.0, the Bank aims to provide a superior and holistic one-stop solution to its existing and new customers, to seamlessly deliver its different product offerings across channels.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• RBL Bank Founded: 1943;
• RBL Bank Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra;
• RBL Bank CEO & MD: Rajeev Ahuja;
• RBL Bank Tagline: Apno Ka Bank.

Economy News

4. Finance Ministry: Deposits in Jan Dhan accounts cross Rs 1.5 lakh crore

• According to the finance ministry, the deposits in bank accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) scheme have crossed Rs 1.5 lakh crore mark. The total balance in accounts under the Jan Dhan scheme was recorded at Rs 1,50,939.36 crore as of December-end 2021.
• The data revealed that over 44.23 crore accounts have been opened under the scheme. Of this, 34.9 crore accounts were opened with the public sector banks, 8.05 crore with regional rural banks, and the remaining 1.28 crore with private sector banks. RuPay Debit Cards were issued to 31.28 crores PMJDY beneficiaries under this scheme.

Summits and Conferences News

5. Bhupender Yadav chaired 19th Meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority

• The 19th meeting of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) was held under the chairmanship of the union minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change Bhupender Yadav.
• Currently, there are 51 Tiger Reserves in India and more than 35 rivers originate from those areas which are crucial for water security.
• The environment minister launched an action plan for the reintroduction, protection and conservation of 7 major big cats in India including the cheetah, which has become extinct in independent India.
• Under the action plan, 50 of these big cats will be introduced in the next 5 years in various parks.
• He announced that 14 Tiger reserves across India have received accreditation of the global Conservation Assured Tiger Standards (CA|TS). He underlined the need to meetings of NTCA in the first week of April, August & December every year.

Awards News

6. ‘Kerala Arts and Crafts Village Organization’ won ‘International Craft Award 2021

• Kerala Arts and Crafts Village Organization (KACV) from Kovalam, Kerala was awarded the ‘International Craft Award for 2021’ for the best craft village in the world by the World Crafts Council International.
• It is the only award India received in the non-individual category. The KACV was established by the Uralungal Labour Contract Cooperative Society (UL CCS) for the State Tourism Department of Kerala. In 2021, the Village of the Year award was won by ‘Kraf Komuniti Ku’ in Malaysia.

Other Awardee's:

Category of the award	Winners
Craft Icon of the Year	Chandramali Liyangane of the National Crafts Council, Sri Lanka.
Sustainable Development & Social Inclusion in the Handicrafts Sector	Malaysian Prison Department
Craft Persons of the Year	Shahrbanoo Arabian (Iran) and Dalavayi Kullayappa (India)
Craft Designers of the Year	Zohra Said  (Morocco) and Ismario Ismael (Mexico)
Next Generation Craft Designers of the year	Qiling Zhang (China) and Mubin Khatri (India)
The Master Artisans	Amita Sachdeva (India) and Mubarik Khatri (India)

7. Golden Globe Awards 2022 announced

• The Golden Globe Awards 2022 ceremony was held to recognise excellence in film, both American and international, and American television.
• This was the 79th edition of the annual event, which honoured the best in American television, as well as film in 2021 as chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Two of the films namely The Power of the Dog and the West Side Story, won the most number of awards with 3 each.

List of winners in the Motion Picture category:

Category	Winners
Best Film (Drama)	The Power of the Dog
Best Film (Musical or Comedy)	West Side Story
Best Actor (Drama)	Will Smith for King Richard as Richard Williams
Best Actress (Drama)	Nicole Kidman for Being the Ricardos as Lucille Ball
Best Actor (Musical or Comedy)	Andrew Garfield for tick, tick… BOOM! as Jonathan Larson
Best Actress (Musical or Comedy)	Rachel Zegler for West Side Story as María Vasquez
Best Supporting Actor	Kodi Smit-McPhee for The Power of the Dog as Peter Gordon
Best Supporting Actress	Ariana DeBose for West Side Story as Anita
Best Director	Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog
Best Screenplay	Kenneth Branagh for Belfast
Best Original Score	Hans Zimmer for Dune
Best Original Song	“No Time to Die” (Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell) – No Time to Die
Best Animated Feature	Encanto
Best Non-English Film	Drive My Car (Japan)

Ranks and Reports News

8. Chennai International Airport ranks 8th in Global List for 'On-Time Performance'

• The Chennai International Airport is one of the top 10 large international airports in the world that ensures 'on-time' departures.
• In a review conducted by Cirium, an organisation that specialises in offering aviation data to travel, finance, aerospace, and aviation industries, the airport has been ranked 8th for 'on-time performance' for the year 2021.
• According to the latest traffic figures of Chennai Airport, it has done recovery of 80 % in domestic traffic. It is the sixth busiest airport in India. Besides that, Chennai airport is the only Indian airport to figure in the top 10 positions of the list.
• The first three positions have been bagged by United State's Miami Airport, Fukuoka Airport, and Haneda Airport in Japan.

Sports News

9. Bharath Subramaniyam named India’s 73rd chess Grandmaster

• Tamil Nadu’s Bharath Subramaniyam became India’s 73rd chess Grandmaster. He secured the third and final Grandmaster norm at an event at Cattolica in Italy.
• He scored 6.5 points from nine rounds along with four others and finish seventh in the event. He secured his third GM norm here as well as touched the requisite 2,500 (Elo) mark.

Recent Indian Chess Grandmasters:

• 70^th: Raja Rithvik (Telangana)
• 71^st: Sankalp Gupta (Maharashtra)
• 72^nd: Mitrabha Guha (West Bengal)

10. Gael Monfils wins 2022 Adelaide International 1 tennis tournament

• French tennis player Gael Monfils beat Russia’s Karen Khachanov in the men’s singles event of the 2022 Adelaide International 1 to claim the 11th ATP title of his career.
• In the women’s category, World number one Australian star Ashleigh Barty beat Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan to win her second Adelaide International title. 2022 Adelaide International 1 was a combined ATP Tour 250 and WTA 500 tournament.

List of winners

1. Men’s single: Gaël Monfils (France)
2. Women’s single: Ashleigh Barty (Australia)
3. Men’s doubles: Rohan Bopanna and Ramkumar Ramanathan (India)
4. Women’s double: Ashleigh Barty and Storm Sanders (Australia)

11. Rafael Nadal wins 2022 Melbourne Summer Set tennis tournament

• World number six Rafael Nadal won the men’s singles tennis title at 2022 Melbourne Summer Set 1. Nadal beat American qualifier Maxime Cressy 7-6(6), 6-3 to earn his 89th career ATP title.
• In the women’s singles, Simona Halep beat Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova 6–2, 6–3 to win her 23rd career WTA title.
• Meanwhile in the Melbourne Summer Set 2 tennis tournament, American player Amanda Anisimova won the women’s singles tennis title, to earn her second career WTA title. American duo Bernarda Pera and Kateřina Siniaková won the women’s doubles tennis title.

Books and Authors News

12. Ratan Tata's biography ‘Ratan N. Tata: The Authorized Biography’ to be out in Nov 2022

• Tata Sons emeritus Chairman, veteran industrialist and philanthropist Ratan Tata’s authorized biography titled ‘Ratan N. Tata: The Authorized Biography’ is set to hit the stands in November 2022.
• The biography is penned by a former senior bureaucrat and retired IAS officer Dr Thomas Matthew. It will be published by HarperCollins. The book chronicles around the 84-year-old Ratan Tata’s childhood, college years, and early influences, among other things.

Important Days

13. National Human Trafficking Awareness Day 2022: 11th January

• This year National Human Trafficking Awareness Day is observed on January 11, 2022, which is on Tuesday. The day aims at raising awareness of the plight of human trafficking victims, and promoting and protecting their rights.
• Though the entire month of January has already been recognized as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, this day is specifically dedicated to awareness and prevention of illegal practice.
• In 2007, the United States Senate ratified the resolution establishing January 11th as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. In 2010, President Obama dedicated the entire month of January to awareness and prevention of human trafficking. Today, there are over 50 established organizations that globally combat this illegal practice, and more awareness has been raised than ever before.

Obituaries News

14. Oscar and Grammy-winning lyricist Marilyn Bergman passes away

• Marilyn Bergman, the Oscar, Emmy and Grammy-winning American lyricist and songwriter has passed away. Bergman collaborated with her husband, Alan Bergman for song-writing.
• The renowned music-writing duo wrote the music and lyrics for numerous celebrated television shows, films, and stage musicals. The pair were nominated for Oscars 16 times and won three times.

Miscellaneous News

15. Kevadia railway station renamed as Ekta Nagar railway station

• The Ministry of Railways has approved the renaming of the Kevadiya railway station in the Narmada district of Gujarat, as Ekta Nagar railway station. The Statue of Unity’s Kevadiya railway station falls under the Vadodara division. The station code of Ekta Nagar railway station will be EKNR.
• The numerical code of the station will be 08224620. Last year, the Ministry of Railways had said tourists visiting the world’s tallest statue in Gujarat “Statue of Unity” will be able to experience the rich cultural history of the state at the Kevadiya railway station itself.
• Under the public-private partnership (PPP) initiative, the Vadodara Division of Western Railways had awarded first of its kind contract in the Indian Railways network for the development of an Art Gallery with a Souvenir shop at Gujarat’s Kevadiya Railway station.

 

9th and 10th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

10 January 2022
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9th and 10th January Daily Current Affairs 2022: Today GK Updates for Bank Exam

Daily GK updates are incorporated with the important news that made the current affairs headlines for banking or other competitive exams. Daily GK Update is the complete bag of the important news that is held all day long. One should have complete knowledge about banking terms, current affairs news, etc. So, here is the GK update of 09th and 10th January 2022 to help you prepare the Current affairs part. After reading this section, you can successfully attempt Current Affairs Quiz.

Top 20 Daily GK Updates: National & International News

Here is providing below the top 20 important Daily General Knowledge GK 2021 updates with national & international news.

National News

1. Rajnath Singh inaugurates Kalpana Chawla Centre For Research at Chandigarh University

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated Kalpana Chawla Centre for Research in Space Science and Technology (KCCRSST) at Chandigarh University.
• The Union Minister also launched Chandigarh University's Defence Scholarship Scheme, worth Rs 10 Crore, for the wards of Defence Personnel of the three services. Kalpana Chawla was the first woman of Indian origin to go to space.

2. PM declares December 26 to be observed as ‘Veer Baal Diwas’ annually

• Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi has declared that starting from the year 2022, December 26 will be observed as ‘Veer Baal Diwas’ every year.
• The day will be commemorated as a tribute to the courage of the 4 Sahibzades (the four sons of Guru Gobind Singh Ji), who attained martyrdom in the 17th century.
• The announcement was made by PM Modi on January 09, 2022, on the occasion of the Parkash Purab of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji, or the birth anniversary of the 10th guru of Sikhs and the founder of the Khalsa community.
• 26 December marks the day on which Sahibzada Zorawar Singh Ji and Sahibzada Fateh Singh Ji (younger pair of Sahibzade) attained martyrdom after being sealed alive in a wall, at the tender age of 6 and 9 years.
• Sahibzada Ajit Singh Ji and Sahibzada Jujhar Singh Ji (older pair of Sahibzade) attained martyrdom on December 21, 1705, fighting the enemy in battle at Chamkaur Sahib at the young age of 18 and 14 years.

International News

3. Australia & Japan signed defence agreement to counter China

• The leaders of Japan and Australia signed a “landmark” defence agreement that allows closer cooperation between their militaries and stands as a rebuke to China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region.
• Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida met in a virtual summit to sign the Reciprocal Access Agreement, the first such defence pact signed by Japan with any country other than the United States.
• The agreement follows more than a year of talks between Japan and Australia aimed at breaking down legal barriers to allow the troops of one country to enter the other for training and other purposes.
• Morrison called the pact a “pivotal moment for Australia and Japan and (for) the security of our two nations and our people.”

States News

4. Sikkim celebrated Losoong (Namsoong) Festival

• Losoong (Namsoong) is annually celebrated across the Indian State of Sikkim on the 18th day of the 10th month of the Tibetan Lunar Calendar, which also marks the beginning of the harvest season.
• The Namsoong festival begins on the 1st day of the new moon phase Kurneet Lovo, as per the Lepcha lunisolar Calendar known as Dungkit Karchu.
• The losoong festival is celebrated as Sonam Losoong, by the Sikkimese Bhutia and as Namsoong by the Lepchas. The festival is also celebrated in Nepal and Bhutan.

Appointments News

5. GoI extends Navrang Saini’s term as interim chief of IBBI

• The Government of India has extended the tenure of Navrang Saini as interim Chairperson of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) for three more months till March 05, 2022.
• Mr. Saini, who is a Whole Time Member of IBBI, was assigned additional charge of Chairperson in addition to his existing duties in October 2021 for three months till January 13, 2022.
• The post of full-time Chairperson has been lying vacant after M.S. Sahoo retired upon completing a five-year tenure on September 30, 2021.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: 

• Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India Headquarters: New Delhi;
• Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India Founder: Parliament of India;
• Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India Founded: 1 October 2016.

Agreements News

6. Airtel Payments Bank tie-up with Park+ to offer FASTag-based Parking Solutions

• Airtel Payments Bank and Park+ have collaborated to offer FASTag-based smart parking solutions to marquee commercial and residential properties across India.
• This partnership will utilize the reach of Airtel Payments Bank to digitize the parking ecosystem using FASTag associated with the vehicle. Park+ is backed by Sequoia Capital and Matrix Partners and is engaged in automating parking spaces through FASTag.
• The collaboration aims to leverage the deep distribution reach and digital payments stack of Airtel Payments Bank to digitize the parking ecosystem using FASTag associated with the vehicle.
• Park+ will offer its entire suite of FASTag services including issuance, acquiring, recharge, and technology support to Airtel Payments Bank. Park+ access control systems are installed at over 1500 societies, over 30 malls, and over 150 corporate parks across the country.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

• Airtel Payments Bank’s MD and CEO: Nubrata Biswas.
• Airtel Payments Bank Headquarters: New Delhi.
• Airtel Payments Bank Founded: January 2017.

Banking News

7. RBI increased banks’ LCR maintenance on Funds received

• The Reserve Bank of India has increased the threshold limit for Banks to maintain the Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) on deposits and other ‘extension of funds’ received from non-financial small business customers from Rs 5 crore to Rs 7.5 crore.
• This is applicable on all Commercial Banks other than Regional Rural Banks, Local Area Banks, and Payments Banks.
• To better align RBI’s guidelines with the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) standard and enable banks to manage liquidity risk more effectively.
• LCR promotes the short-term resilience of banks to potential liquidity disruptions by ensuring that they have sufficient high-quality liquid assets (HQLAs) to survive an acute stress scenario lasting for 30 days.

8. RBI issues eligibility norms for entities harnessing credit bureau data

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued eligibility criteria for entities that harness data from credit information companies (CICs) or credit bureaus.
• These newly-formed guidelines said that a company's net worth must be at least Rs 2 crore and owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens to become a designated user with a credit bureau, which comes amid accusations of lending applications with Chinese ties functioning in India.

Economy News

9. SBI Ecowrap: India’s Real GDP projected to grow at around 9.5% in FY22

• The economic research team of the State Bank of India (SBI) released its Ecowrap report. In the report, SBI researchers have revised upwards the real GDP of India to around 9.5 per cent in 2021-22 (FY22) on a year-on-year (YoY).
• The report believes that though rising Covid infections could impact mobility, yet economic activity is not expected to get much affected.

10. RBI data: Forex reserves decline by USD 1.466 bn to USD 633.614 bn

• As per the latest Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, the foreign currency reserves of India declined by $1.466 billion to $633.614 billion, in the last week of 2021, which ended December 31, 2021.
• Gold reserves rose by USD 14 million to USD 39.405 billion. India’s forex touched a lifetime high of USD 642.453 billion in the week ended September 03, 2021. Forex reserves include foreign currency assets (FCAs), gold reserves, SDRs and the country’s reserve position with the IMF.

11. NSO projects Indian economy to grow 9.2% in FY22

• National Statistical Office (NSO) has estimated India’s GDP to grow at 9.2 per cent in the current fiscal, 2021-22.
• NSO released its first advance estimates of economic output on January 07, 2022. The GDP estimate for the 2020-21 fiscal was projected at a contraction of 7.3 per cent by NSO.
• In terms of figures, real GDP in 2021-22 is estimated at Rs. 147.54 lakh crore against the provisional estimate of GDP for the year 2020-21 at Rs 135.13 lakh crore.
• Nominal GDP for 2021-22 is estimated at Rs. 232.15 lakh crore, as against the Provisional
• Estimate of GDP for the year 2020-21 at Rs 197.46 lakh crore.
• The fiscal deficit target likely to be achieved is 6.8%.

Business News

12. Reliance acquires controlling stake of 73.37% in New York’s Mandarin Oriental hotel

• Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has announced the acquisition of a controlling stake of 73.37% in Mandarin Oriental New York, a premium luxury hotel in midtown Manhattan.
• RIL through its wholly-owned arm Reliance Industrial Investments and Holdings Limited has acquired the entire share capital of Cayman Islands-based Columbus Centre Corporation (Cayman), for an equity value of approximately $98.15 million (Rs 735 crore).
• Cayman is the parent company of Mandarin Oriental hotel. It had indirect ownership of a 73.37 per cent stake in the hotel. Reliance will also take over the hotel’s debt in excess of $115 million to take the entire deal value to around $270. The transaction is anticipated to close by the end of March 2022.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: 

• Reliance Industries Ltd CEO: Mukesh Ambani (31 Jul 2002–);
• Reliance Industries Ltd Founder: Dhirubhai Ambani;
• Reliance Industries Ltd Founded: 8 May 1973, Maharashtra;
• Reliance Industries Ltd Headquarters: Mumbai.

13. TCS bags phase 2 of Centre's passport plan

• The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has signed an agreement with Tata Consultancy Services Limited (TCS) for the second phase of the Passport Seva Programme (PSP-V2.0).
• TCS will be the service provider for the Passport Seva Project, which it has been for over 10 years. The PSP-V2.O envisages rolling out chip-enabled e-passports, increasing data security and ensuring the next level of customer experience with the use of biometrics, artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics and auto-response.
• In the next phase of the programme, TCS will refresh existing facilities and systems, and develop new solutions to enable the issuance of e-passports using technologies such as biometrics, artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, chatbots, auto-response, natural language processing, and the cloud.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams: 

• Tata Consultancy Services Limited CEO: Rajesh Gopinathan (21 Feb 2017–);
• Tata Consultancy Services Limited Founded: 1 April 1968;
• Tata Consultancy Services Limited Headquarters: Mumbai.

Awards News

14. Satish Adiga gets ICMR national award “Dr Subhas Mukherjee Award”

• A professor in the clinical embryology department at Kasturba Medical College (KMC), under Manipal Academy of Higher education (MAHE), Dr Satish Adiga has been selected by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for its national award.
• He will receive Dr Subhas Mukherjee Award from ICMR in recognition for his outstanding contribution to the field of in-vitro fertilization (IVF). He has contributed significantly to both clinical IVF and fertility research.

15. Forensic Science Laboratory won SKOCH award for combating crime against children

• The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) won SKOCH Award in the Silver category for its work towards combating Crime and Violence against Children. The award was given out at the 78 SKOCH Summit.
• The "State of Governance" was the theme of the summit. Deepa Verma, the Director of the Rohini-based lab, has accepted the award on behalf of the lab.
• FSL is a scientific department and a participant in the criminal justice system whose mission is to investigate incidents of crime and violence against children who have suffered physical, sexual, financial, or emotional harm.

Committees News

16. Sudhir Kumar Saxena committee constituted to enquire security lapses during PM Punjab visit

• Ministry of Home Affairs has constituted a committee to enquire into the serious lapses in the security arrangements during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Punjab. It is a three-member committee and will be headed by Sudhir Kumar Saxena, Secretary (Security), Cabinet Secretariat. It also comprises Balbir Singh, Joint Director, IB and Suresh, IG, SPG.
• The committee has been asked to inquire about the alleged lapses in the security arrangements of PM Modi “which led to the exposure of the VVIP to grave risk” and submit the report at the earliest.
• The move comes just ahead of the Supreme Court’s hearing on the PM’s security breach. It was the government’s own former ASG, Maninder Singh, who moved SC seeking an independent probe into the PM’s security breach. The court is slated to hear the matter on January 7.

Sports News

17. World Rapid Chess Championship 2021 won by Nodirbek Abdusattorov

• Nodirbek Abdusattorov (Uzbekistan), won the World Rapid Chess Championship 2021 by defeating Ian Nepomniachtchi (Russia) in a tiebreaker and dethroning Magnus Carlsen, the current World Number 1. 2020 FIDE Championship was won by Magnus Carlsen.
• Nodirbek won the title along with a prize of $60,000, where he lost only one match against the Ukrainian Anton Korobov, and tied in five others. The Uzbeki Grand Master (GM), received the Mard Uglon (“Brave Son”) Presidential medal.

18. LLC named Jhulan Goswami as Ambassador of All Women Match Official Team

• Legends League Cricket (LLC) has appointed Jhulan Goswami as an ambassador to its All Women Match Official Team to promote Women’s Empowerment initiatives of the LLC and to increase participation of women in cricket.
• The LLC set up an All Women Match Official Team for the League. This is the first of its all-women official teams that would officiate an entire men’s league. Legends League Cricket (LLC) is the professional cricket league for retired cricketers.
• The inaugural session of LLC will be organized from January 20 2022 at Oman Cricket Stadium in Muscat, Oman. Legends League Cricket (LLC) 2022 teams: Indian Maharaja, Aisan Lions, World Giants.

Important Days

19. Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2022: 09th January

• The Non-Resident Indian Day or also known as the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas is celebrated every year on 9th January every year.
• The aim of the event is to strengthen the engagement of the overseas Indian community with the Government of India and reconnect them with their roots.
• On the occasion of 2022 Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD), Union Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan will speak at a virtual youth PBD conference on the "role of Indian diaspora" in innovation and new technology.
• On 9 January 1915, Mahatma Gandhi came to India from South Africa and became the greatest Pravasi who led India's Freedom Struggle and made India free from British or colonial rule. As a Non-Resident Indian or Pravasi, he is presented as a symbol of a change and development that could bring into India.

20. World Hindi Day: 10 January

• World Hindi Day is celebrated on January 10 since 2006 to promote the language at the global stage. The day marks the anniversary of the first World Hindi Conference which was inaugurated on January 10, 1975, by the then prime minister Indira Gandhi.
• However, the celebration of first World Hindi Day was commenced on 10 January 2006 by former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. The first World Hindi Day conference was organised on January 10, 1975, in Nagpur, a city in the state of Maharashtra.
• The grand event registered the participation of 122 representatives from 30 countries. The day is observed in India from the year 2003. The Ministry of External Affairs began the tradition of celebrating World Hindi Day in other nations in 2006 with an aim to promote this language across the world.