Daily GK Update: 9th January 2023

Sports

Indian squash prodigy, Anahat Singh (14) has clinched the girl's Under-15 squash title at the 2023 British Junior Open tournament, held in Birmingham (United Kingdom) from January 4-8, 2023.
She has defeated Sohaila Hazem of Egypt by 3-1 in the final.
The British Junior Open is held in January every year in the UK.
She has also won the 2022 Scottish Junior Open held in Edinburgh, Scotland in the Girls under-17 categories.
She hails from New Delhi.

Sports

Indian batter, Suryakumar Yadav has become the fastest player to reach 1,500 runs in T20 International cricket in terms of balls faced.
He took only 843 balls to reach this landmark.
In 45 matches and 43 innings, Suryakumar has scored 1,578 runs at an average of 46.41.
He has three centuries and 13 half-centuries in the format, with the best individual score of 117.
However, he is the third-fastest batter to reach the 1,500-run mark in terms of innings.

Sports

The Khelo India Senior Women National Kho Kho league will be held at Chandigarh University, Punjab from January 10 to January 13, 2023.
The league is being organized by the Kho Kho Federation of India.
It will be held over three phases with full financial support from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
The Kho Kho women's league for junior and sub-junior age groups is scheduled from January 16 to 19 at the Alberta Ekka Kho Kho stadium in Hotwar, Ranchi.

State Affairs

Gujarat Chief Minister, Bhupendra Patel has inaugurated the International Kite Festival 2023 in Ahemdabad, organised from the 8th to 14th January, 2023.
The theme of this festival will be held with the theme of G20 - 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'.
The event is organized after a gap of two years due to the covid 19 pandemic.
The delegates from G20 countries have been invited to the inauguration of the international kite festival 2023 to exchange their culture.

Obituaries

Senior leader of BJP, Keshari Nath Tripathi has been passed away at the age of 88 in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh.
He was a governor of West Bengal from July 2014 to July 2019.
He had also served as the governor of Bihar, Meghalaya and Mizoram, and speaker of UP legislative assembly.
He had also worked as a senior advocate at the Allahabad High Court.
He authored several books such as "The Age of Wings", "Sanchayita:Kesharinath Tripathi", "Destination Jesus".

International Affairs

According to the Nikkei Asia report, India has surpassed Japan to become the third-largest auto market for the first time.
As per the report, the India's sales of new vehicles totalled at least 4.25 million units, based on preliminary results, topping the 4.2 million sold in Japan.
According to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, New vehicles delivered in India totalled 4.13 million between January and November 2022
China has topped the list, followed by US

National Affairs

PM Modi has launched the Aspirational Block Programme at the second National Conference of Chief Secretaries in New Delhi.
Aim: To develop backward districts
This programme is on the lines of the Aspirational District Programme (launched in 2018).
The programme will cover 500 districts across 31 states and Union Territories initially.
Over half of these blocks are in 6 states—UP (68 blocks), Bihar (61), MP (42), Jharkhand (34), Odisha (29) and WB (29).

Honours & Awards

Chief Justice of India (CJI), D.Y. Chandrachud has been selected for the "Award for Global Leadership" by the Harvard Law School Center.
Reason: In recognition of his lifetime service to the legal profession in the country and around the world.
The award will be presented to him at an online event on January 11, 2023.
He took over as the 50th CJI on November 9, 2022.
He obtained an LL.M. degree and a Doctorate in Juridical Sciences (SJD) from the Harvard Law School.

National Affairs

Union chemicals and fertilizers Mansukh Mandaviya has informed that the Fertilizer projects in Odisha’s Talcher will be operational by October 2024.
It will be the largest and first coal gasification plant in India.
Talcher Fertilizers Ltd has been mandated by the government to revive the erstwhile Talcher plant of FCIL by setting up a new coal gasification-based urea plant with an installed capacity of 12.7 lakh tonne per annum (LMTPA).

National Affairs

The India's first-of-its-kind inclusivity, 'Purple Fest: Celebrating Diversity' has been started in Panjim, Goa from January 6–8, 2023.
The event was attended by Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Dr. Virendra Kumar; Goa CM, Dr Pramod Sawant; and Minister for Social Welfare, Goa government Subhash PhalDessai.
Aim: To showcase how we can come together to create a welcoming and inclusive world for everyone.