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.
Comments
write a comment