National & International Appointments
1. Sanjay Malhotra appointed as DFS Secretary in Ministry of Finance
- Sanjay Malhotra (1990 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan Cadre) has been appointed as Secretary in Department of Financial Services (DFS) in the Ministry of Finance with immediate effect
- Prior to this, he was serving as the Chairman and Managing Director of REC Ltd
- He succeeded Debashish Panda, who completed his term as DFS Secretary on Jan 31, 2022
- DFS covers functioning of Banks, Financial Institutions, Insurance Companies, National Pension System, International banking
National & International Appointments
2. Ravi Mital takes charge as Chairperson of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board
- Ravi Mital (1986 batch IAS officer of Bihar cadre) took charge as the Chairperson of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India in New Delhi.
- Prior to this, he was serving as the Secretary of Department of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
- He succeeded M S Sahoo, who retired in September 2021.
- IBBI: Regulator for overseeing insolvency proceedings and entities covering Individuals, Companies, Limited Liability Partnerships and Partnership firms
- Founded: 2016
Honours & Awards
3. Atal Tunnel recognized as ‘Longest Highway Tunnel by World Book of Records
- Atal Tunnel has been officially certified as 'World’s Longest Highway Tunnel above 10,000 Feet' by World Book of Records
- World Book of Records, UK: Organization that catalogues, verifies extraordinary records with authentic certification around the globe
- Atal tunnel: Highway tunnel built under Rohtang Pass in eastern Pir Panjal Himalayan range on Leh-Manali Highway
- Its is the longest highway single-tube tunnel above 10,000 feet in the world with length of about 9.02 km
State Affairs
4. India’s first biomass-based hydrogen plant to come up at Madhya Pradesh
- India’s first commercial-scale biomass-based hydrogen plant will soon be inaugurated at Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh.
- The plant will produce one tonne of hydrogen, from 30 tonnes of biomass feedstock on daily basis.
- It is being established by a joint venture of Watomo Energies Ltd and Biezel Green Energy.
- The technology used by the plant is ‘Thermally accelerated anaerobic digestion (TAD) reactor’ that can produce hydrogen, methane and biochar from biomass
Banking & Finance
5. RBI emerged as the 2nd-largest buyer of Gold among world’s Central Banks
- Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has emerged as the second-largest buyer of Gold among Central Banks of the world in 2021.
- RBI bought record 77.5 metric tonnes in 2021 taking its total gold reserve to 754.1 tonnes at the end of December 2021.
- Highest buyer of Gold in 2021: Central Bank of Thailand (Bank of Thailand) and bought 90 metric tonnes of gold.
- As per World Gold Council website’s Goldhub, India’s official gold reserves is ninth largest in the world.
Banking & Finance
6. Sebi directs AMCs to set up audit committee with minimum three directors
- Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has directed mutual fund (MF) industry to set up audit committee at the asset management company (AMC) level.
- This audit committee will have minimum of three directors and at least two-third of them shall be independent directors of AMC.
- This new committee will come into effect from August 1, 2022.
- At present, this type of committee is set up by the trustee of a fund house.
- Chairman of SEBI: Ajay Tyagi
- Headquarters: Mumbai
National & International Appointments
7. Akshay Kumar appointed as brand ambassador of Uttarakhand
- Renowned Bollywood actor, Akshay Kumar has been appointed as the Brand Ambassador of Uttarakhand.
- The announcement of Akshay Kumar as Brand Ambassador was made by chief minister of Uttarakhand Pushkar Singh Dhami ahead of Assembly Elections 2022.
- Cricketer Rishabh Pant was also appointed as Uttarakhand’s brand ambassador in 2021.
- Akshay Kumar was also appointed as the state's brand ambassador for 'Swachhata Abhiyan' in 2017
Important Dates
8. World Pulses Day: 10th February 2022
- World Pulses Day is observed every year on 10 February to spread public awareness of the nutritional and environmental benefits of pulses as part of sustainable food production.
- 2022 World Pulses Day’s theme: Pulses to empower youth in achieving sustainable agri-food systems
- Day was proclaimed by UN General Assembly on Dec 20, 2018.
- It was observed for the 1st time in 2019
- Un recognizes 11 types of pulses including dry beans, dry peas, chickpeas, cow peas, lentils, etc
International Affairs
9. Instagram launches ‘Take a Break’ to encourage breaks from social media
- Instagram has launched ‘Take a Break’ campaign that will alert users scrolling on Instagram to periodically take breaks from the platform and focus on other things.
- It has been launched by Instagram in India and various other countries.
- The campaign will also alert users of the new inclusion with a notification
- It was first launched in US, UK, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, Australia.
- User can spend a certain amount of time on app after they joined campaign.
State Affairs
10. Khadi’s Employment Drive Transforms Tiger-infested Bali Island in Sunderban
- Khadi’s Employment Drive has transformed the sleepy tiger-infested Bali Island in the dense mangrove thickets of Sunderbans.
- Bali island was totally disconnected from the mainstream of development since Independence.
- Spinning activity by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) was started in 2018 in the island.
- It is now equipped with 125 new model charkhas, 15 modern looms and provides employment to nearly 150 women artisans of the Bali island.
Science & Technology
11. ARCI Scientists develop energy-efficient method for hydrogen production
- Indian Scientists of International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy & New Materials (ARCI) have developed method to produce hydrogen with high purity (99.99%) from methanol-water mixture at ambient pressure and temperature
- The method uses only one-third of electrical energy required in water electrolysis
- Hydrogen can be an ideal sustainable energy carrier with high specific energy value of 40 kWh/kg as compared to chemical fuels having 12-14 kWh/kg.
International Affairs
12. Bangladesh GDP grows at 6.91 percent in Financial Year (FY) 2020-21
- Bangladesh economy registered 6.91% growth in Financial Year (FY) 2020-21 exceeding provisional estimate by 1.51%, as projected by Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics report.
- GDP growth rate in 2019-20 was recorded to be 3.45%.
- This accelerated growth rate has taken place due to rebound in the industrial sector, especially the cottage, small, medium and large industries
- Size of Bangladesh GDP stood at USD 416 billion compared to USD 411 billion in the primary estimate
International Affairs
13. India to help Sri Lanka launch its version of Aadhaar
- India has agreed to provide grant to Sri Lanka to implement ‘Unitary Digital Identity framework’, apparently modelled on Aadhaar card.
- It will be categorized as a national level programme.
- This will provide personal identity verification device based on biometric data, digital tool that can represent identities of individuals in cyberspace, and identification of individual identities that can be accurately verified in digital and physical environments.
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