Daily Current Affairs in English 18 Aug 2022 – Useful for all Competitive Exams

August 25, 2022
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August-Current-Affairs-in-English-2022

Important Days

Parsi New Year 2022: History and Significance

  • Every year, Parsi New year is celebrated on the 16th of August. This year also on Parsi New Year 2022, India will observe a regional holiday which marks the beginning of the new year according to the ‘Shahenshahi’ calendar.
  • The Parsi New Year is also known as Navroz. Most of the Parsi community resides in the western part of the country, generally in Maharashtra and Gujarat. During Parsi New Year, the Parsi families all over India, visit holy temples, pay respect to elders and offer their prayers. They also enjoy their traditional food.

National

GoI appointed 11 new High Court Judges in Punjab & Haryana 

  • The government of India has notified the appointments of another 11 High Court Judges in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
  • The appointments include the names Nidhi Gupta, Sanjay Vashisth, Tribhuvan Dahiya, Namit Kumar, Harkesh Manuja, Aman Chaudhary, Naresh Singh, Harsh Bunger, Jagmohan Bansal, Deepak Manchanda and Alok Jain.
  • The Punjab and Haryana High Court are currently functioning with just 46 judges against the sanctioned strength of 85 with around a dozen of the 46 judges set to retire in the next two years.

India’s voluntary trust funds for the defence of human rights are more than Rs 3 crore

  • India has donated $ 400,000 (more than Rs 3 crore) to as many as four Voluntary Trust Funds, according to information released by the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in Geneva.
  • It went on to say that the donation to Voluntary Trust Funds was made to show India’s commitment to the global advancement and protection of human rights as well as its support for the UN Human Rights Council.
  • India has donated $400,000 to 4 Voluntary Trust Funds on Torture, Technical Cooperation, Implementation of UPR & LDCs/SIDS, reflecting our commitment to worldwide promotion & protection of human rights and support for @UNHumanRights.

Odisha Government Signed An MoU With NIOT For Protecting Its Coastline

  • The Odisha Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Chennai-based National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) for the protection of coastal areas from various natural calamities like floods, cyclones, soil erosion and high tide, etc.
  • The Odisha coastal areas face natural calamities every year due to the effects of climate change. Seven districts namely Ganjam, Puri, Khordha, Kendrapada, Bhadrak, Baleswar and Jagatsinghpur will get benefitted out of the initiative.

International

William Ruto is declared Kenya’s next president

  • Kenyan Deputy President, William Ruto is now the country’s president-elect after he was declared the winner of the last presidential election over five-time contender Raila Odinga.
  • Before Wafula Chebukati, the chair of Kenya’s electoral commission could announce Ruto’s victory. Ruto received 50.49% of the vote, the chairman said, while Odinga received 48.85%.

Covid booster vaccination approved first in the United Kingdom

  • British health authorities stated that the UK has become the first nation to approve a bivalent Moderna Covid booster vaccination. Covid booster vaccination targets both the original strain of COVID-19 and the more recent Omicron version.
  • The Moderna Covid booster vaccination was approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as a “sharpened instrument” against the new coronavirus after it was determined to meet its requirements of safety, quality, and effectiveness.

Appointments

Simon Stiell of Grenada named as new UNFCCC Executive Secretary 

  • UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed Simon Stiell as the new Executive Secretary of the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat based in Bonn, Germany.
  • The appointment has been endorsed by the Bureau of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
  • The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has near universal membership and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement.

Economy

India Can Be USD 5 Trillion Economy By FY29 If GDP Grows At 9% For 5 Years

  • India may become a USD five trillion economies by 2028-29 only if the GDP grows at nine per cent per annum consistently for the next five years, former RBI Governor D Subbarao.
  • Speaking at Federation of Telangana Chamber of Commerce and Industry on India @75- Marching Towards USD 5 Trillion Economy on the occasion of 75 years of Indian Independence.
  • There are eight key challenges for India to overcome to achieve the dream of 5 trillion economy. The challenges are increasing investment, improving productivity and education and health outcomes, creating jobs, raising agriculture productivity, maintaining macroeconomic stability, managing global megatrends and improving governance.

India To Start Supplying Petrol With 20% Ethanol From April 2023

  • India will start supplying petrol with 20 per cent ethanol at select petrol pumps from April next year and will ramp up supplies thereafter as it looks to cut oil import dependence and address environmental issues.
  • E20 petrol (petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol) in some quantity will be available from April 2023 and the rest to be covered by 2025.
  • India, which achieved the target of supplying petrol mixed with 10 per cent ethanol (10 per cent ethanol, 90 per cent petrol) ahead of schedule in June this year, has advanced the target of making petrol with 20 per cent ethanol by five years to 2025.

The wholesale Price Index (WPI) declines to 13.93% in July

  • According to figures issued by the commerce ministry, Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation in India decreased to 13.93% in July.
  • The WPI inflation rate dropped from a record-breaking 16.63 per cent in May to 15.18 per cent in June. Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation was 11.57 per cent in July 2021.
  • The wholesale price index increased by double digits in July, marking the 16th consecutive month that the WPI has risen above the 10-per cent threshold.

Banking

Karnataka Bank launches term deposit scheme “KBL Amrit Samriddhi” 

  • On the occasion of 75 years of Independence as Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Karnataka Bank has introduced a new Term Deposit Scheme, KBL Amrit Samriddhi under Abhyudaya Cash Certificate (ACC) and Fixed Deposit for a tenure of 75 weeks (525 days).
  • The interest rate for this Deposit Scheme is 6.10% per annum. Karnataka Bank, portraying the rich patriotic tradition and values, has always been ready to meet the aspirations and dreams of its valued patrons.
  • With the new product, KBL Amrit Samriddhi, Bank extends the benefit of the increase in the interest rates to our customers.

4 independent directors were reappointed by GoI to RBI’s central board

  • Satish Kashinath Marathe, Swaminathan Gurumurthy, Revathy Iyer, and Sachin Chaturvedi have all been renominated by the national government to serve as part-time, non-official directors on the RBI’s central board or central board of the Reserve Bank of India.
  • The RBI said on its website that Gurumurthy and Marathe have been renominated for another term of four years until further instructions from RBI’s central board.

Defence

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh unveils statue of Marwari warrior Veer Durgadas Rathore

  • Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has unveiled the Statue of “Veer Durgadas Rathore” on his 385th birth anniversary in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur.
  • The Raksha Mantri paid glowing tribute to Veer Durgadas Rathore on the occasion, terming him as the symbol of social harmony, honesty, bravery and devotion.
  • He stated that people, irrespective of caste or religion, should take inspiration from Veer Durgadas Rathore, who strived for peace and harmony against divisive elements in society.

Schemes and Committees

Delhi HC Appoints Committee To Take Over Affairs Of Indian Olympic Association(IOA)

  • The Indian Olympic Association has been directed by the Delhi High Court to set up a three-member Committee of Administrators(CoA) to take over its affairs. According to PTI, the court took the decision after the IOA’s “persistent recalcitrance” to comply with the Sports Code.
  • A bench of Justices Manmohan and Najmi Waziri said the CoA to run IOA’s day-to-day affairs will comprise former Supreme Court judge Justice Anil R Dave, former Chief Election Commissioner Dr S.Y Quraishi, and former Secretary of Ministry of External Affairs Vikas Swarup.
  • Additionally, Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, world championship medallist Anju Bobby George and Olympian Bombayla Devi will be the consultant sportspersons.
  • Each member of the CoA will receive an honorarium of Rs 3 lakh per month while each of the consultant sportspersons will get Rs 1.5 lakh, the court said.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh unveils India’s first Saline Water Lantern

  • Union Minister of Earth Sciences, Jitendra Singh has launched India’s first saline water lantern, ‘Roshini’, which uses seawater to power Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps.
  • The minister unveiled the first-of-its-kind lantern during his visit to Sagar Anveshika, a coastal research vessel operated by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) Chennai for marine research.

Science and Technology

Indian flag unfurled in space to mark 75 Years of Independence

  • The Indian national flag was unfurled in space at an altitude of over 30 km as the country marked its 75 years of Independence. The tricolour was sent to the edge of space on a balloon by Space Kidz India, which describes itself as an aerospace organisation creating young scientists for the country.
  • The unfurling of the flag was part of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations that mark the completion of 75 years since India became Independent.
  • Space Kidz India is an organization creating “young scientists for the country and spreading awareness among children for a borderless world.” The organisation recently launched a satellite into Low Earth Orbit.

India’s first 3D-printed Human Cornea developed by CCMB, IIT Hyderabad, and LVPEI

  • Researchers in Hyderabad have successfully 3D-printed an artificial cornea (3D-printed Human Cornea) and placed it in a rabbit eye for the first time ever in India.
  • A 3D-printed Human cornea made from human donor corneal tissue has been created by researchers from the L V Prasad Eye Institute (LVPEI), Indian Institute of Technology-Hyderabad (IIT-H), and the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB).
  • The product (3D-printed Human Cornea) was created locally with support from the government and philanthropic organisations; it is entirely natural, free of synthetic ingredients, and safe for patients to use.

Awards

Home Ministry awarded 1082 Police Medals in 2022

  • The Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) has awarded 1,082 police personnel from CAPFs and state forces with various categories of service medals, including for gallant action on the eve of Independence Day.
  • The decorations include 347 police medals for gallantry (PMG), 87 President’s police medals for distinguished service and 648 police medals for meritorious service.
  • Out of the 347 gallantry awards, 204 personnel are being awarded for their gallant action in Jammu and Kashmir, 80 for displaying bravery in Left Wing Extremism or Naxal violence-affected areas and 14 personnel for showing bravery in North-East Region.

Dadabhai Naoroji’s London home gets Blue Plaque honour

  • London home of Dadabhai Naoroji will get a ‘Blue Plaque’, an honour that is reserved for notable personalities who have lived and worked in London. Naoroji was the first Asian who was elected as a Member of Parliament in Britain.
  • The Blue Plaque scheme, run by the English Heritage charity, honours the historic significance of particular buildings across London. Naoroji’s plaque was unveiled to coincide with the 75th-anniversary celebrations of Indian Independence.
  • By 1986, English Heritage assumed charge of the scheme. Since then, English Heritage has erected over 360 plaques in more than 900 buildings in London.

Sports

Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh, Malaysia from November 16-25, 2022

  • Malaysia’s premier men’s hockey tournament, the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2022 will be held from November 16 to 25 in Ipoh. The tournament is making a return after a two-year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
  • World No 1 Australia, fifth-ranked Germany, India, New Zealand, and Canada have been invited to the tournament. All matches will be played at the Azlan Shah Stadium in the city of Ipoh in Malaysia, which is the permanent venue of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.
  • The Sultan Azlan Shah Cup has been an annual feature in the FIH calendar since 1998, although it initially started life in 1983 as a biennial event. The event is named after legendary hockey fan and former FIH Executive Board Member HRH Sultan Azlan Shah.
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