Daily GK Update: 3rd January 2023

 National & International Appointments

1. Bank of Singapore appoints Jason Moo as new CEO

• Jason Moo (Singapore) has been appointed as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Bank of Singapore, with effect from March 6, 2023.
• He will replace Vincent Choo, who assumed the role of interim CEO on January 1, 2023 after the retirement of former CEO Bahren Shaari on December 31, 2023.
• He has more than 25 years of experience in private banking, wealth management and capital markets.
• He has also worked at Goldman Sachs and Julius Baer.

 Sports

2. Koustav Chatterjee becomes 78th Grandmaster of India

• Koustav Chatterjee (19) has become 78th Grandmaster of India at the MPL 59th National Senior Chess Championship in New Delhi.
• He is also the tenth Grandmaster of West Bengal.
• He won his maiden GM-norm in October 2021 at Sheikh Russel GM 2021 in Bangladesh.
• He scored his second GM-norm at Asian Continental Championship in November 2022.
• He has also crossed 2500 in the August FIDE rating list.
• 77th grandmaster of India: Aditya Mittal
• 76th GM of India: Pranav Anand

 National Affairs

3. Government forms Committee to protect Ladakh culture, language & employment

• The government of India has constituted 17 member, High Powered Committee (HPC) under the Chairmanship of Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai.
• Reason: To discuss measures to protect unique culture, language and employment of Ladakh.
• The committee includes Ladakh LG, RK Mathur; MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal; Chairmans of Leh and Kargil Hill councils, representatives of Apex Body Leh, Kargil Democratic Alliance and nominee officials of Home ministry.

 National Affairs

4. ‘SMART’ program launched for Ayurveda professionals

• The National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) and the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) have launched ‘SMART’ program.
• 'SMART' refers to Scope for Mainstreaming Ayurveda Research in Teaching Professionals.
• Aim: To boost scientific research in priority healthcare research areas through Ayurveda colleges and hospitals.
• The program was launched by Vaidya Jayant Deopujari (Chairman, NCISM) and Prof. Rabinarayan Acharya (DG, CCRAS).

 Honours & Awards

5. Govt names 27 overseas Indians for 2023 Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards

• The government of India has selected 27 people for the highest honour for overseas Indians, Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award (PBSA) 2023.
• The awards will be conferred by the President Droupadi Murmu at 17th edition of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention held at Indore in Madhya Pradesh from January 8-10, 2023.
• President of Guyana Mohamed Irfaan Ali will be the chief guest this year.
• PBW 2023 theme: Diaspora: Reliable Partners for India's Progress in Amrit Kaal

 Science & Technology

6. IIT-M and DRDO collaborates to develop defence technology

• IIT Madras Centre of Excellence (CoE) has collaborated with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop Advanced Defence Technologies.
• IIT Madras CoE- ‘DRDO Industry Academia- Ramanujan Centre of Excellence’ (DIA-RCoE) will be conducting a directed research process to meet the national defence and security needs of the nation.
• DIA-RCoE was initially established by DRDO and then IIT Madras took it over.
• Director of DIA-RCoE: Dr. O.R. Nandagopan

 State Affairs

7. Imoinu Eratpa festival celebrated across Manipur

• The Meitei community of Manipur celebrated Imoinu Eratpa festival every year.
• They regard the Imoinu goddess as a goddess of wealth and prosperity.
• She is also associated as one of the incarnations of the goddess Leimarel Sidabi.
• This festival falls on the twelfth lunar day of Wakching month of Meitei calendar (falls either in December or January according to the Gregorian calendar).
• This year the festival is falling on January 3, 2023.

 National Affairs

8. Defence minister Rajnath Singh inaugurates steel arch Siyom Bridge

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the 100-metre, Siyom Bridge in Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh.
• This bridge will open an alternative route to the India-China border.
• The Siyom Bridge is one of the 28 projects completed by the Border Roads Organisation at a cost of Rs 724 crore to strengthen border infrastructure.
• He has virtually inaugurated other 27 projects in Ladakh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Punjab and J&K.

 State Affairs

9. Mamata Banerjee launches new campaign 'Didir Suraksha Kavach'

• West Bengal CM, Mamata Banerjee has launched two programme named 'Didir Suraksha Kawach' and ‘Didir Doot’, ahead of the 2023 panchayat polls.
• The programme will focus on 15 state government schemes, covering various sectors such as food, housing, health, education, social security, income and employment.
• ‘Didir Doot’, a mobile application has also been developed for people to register their problems.
• The programme will be launched on January 11, 2023.

 Obituaries

10. Karnataka seer Sri Siddeshwara Swamiji passes away

• Siddeshwara Swamiji, one of the prominent Lingayat seers in Karnataka, has been passed away at the age of 82 at Jnanayogashrama.
• He was born and brought up in Bijjaragi, Vijayapura in Karnataka.
• He was often referred to as the ‘Walking God of North Karnataka'.
• He was ordained as a math seer by his guru, Vedanta Kesari Sri Mallikarjuna Mahashivayogi.
• In 2018, he refused to accept the Padma Shri award.

 Sports

11. World Boxing Council to create transgender category

• The president of World Boxing Council, Mauricio Sulaiman has announced that it will introduce a transgender category from 2023.
• A ‘at birth rule’ will be used, which means a transgender boxer who is registered as male at birth will be allowed to fight others who have also been registered as male at birth.
• While, those registered as female at birth will be allowed to fight others who have been registered as female at birth.
• World Boxing Council HQ: Mexico

 International Affairs

12. Croatia adopts euro, entered borderless Europe club

• Croatia has adopted the euro as its currency with effect from 1 January 2023 and become the 20th member of the eurozone.
• Croatia has entered the EU in 2013.
• It becomes the 27th country to join the Schengen area.
• Schengen Area: It is an area that comprises 27 European countries that have abolished all passports and border control at their respective mutual borders
• Eurozone: It is officially called the euro area.
• The monetary authority of the Eurozone is the Eurosystem.

 State Affairs

13. Election Commission appoints Maithili Thakur as Bihar's state icon

• The Election Commission has appointed folk singer, Maithili Thakur as the state icon for Bihar.
• She will create awareness among the voters for their participation in the electoral process.
• She was born in Madhubani district of Bihar.
• She is a trained in Indian classical and folk music.
• She was recently selected for the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar of the Sangeet Natak Akademi for her contribution to the folk music of Bihar for 2021.