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Current Affairs
English MediumDigest JANUARY - 2022
st stCoverage from 1 Dec. to 31 Dec. - 2021
UP Worst Performing State in the Index, Kerala topped
India ranks 66 in the Index among 195 countries, USA topped
Sworn in as new German chancellor.He succeeded Angela Merkel.
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Health IndexHealth Index
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Health Index Global Health Security Index 2021Global Health Security Index 2021Global Health Security Index 2021 Olaf ScholzOlaf ScholzOlaf Scholz
Paytm Payments BankPaytm Payments BankPaytm Payments Bank Kidambi SrikanthKidambi SrikanthKidambi Srikanth Elon MuskElon MuskElon Musk
Paytm Payments Bank receives scheduled bank status from RBI
India's Harnaaz Sandhu crownedMiss Universe 2021
Catherine Russell appointed as the new head of UNICEF
He became the first Indian man to win a silver medal at BWF World Championship
Elon Musk Named Time Magazine 2021 Person of the Year
Harnaaz SandhuHarnaaz SandhuHarnaaz Sandhu Catherine RussellCatherine RussellCatherine Russell Bipin RawatBipin RawatBipin Rawat
India's first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS)General Bipin Rawat passed away
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CURRENT AFFAIRS DIGEST - JANUARY-2022
TABLE OF CONTENTS
S. No. Chapter Name Page No.
1. 4TH EDITION OF NITI AAYOG’S STATE HEALTH INDEX FOR 2019–20
1-2
2. INTERNATIONAL AND BILATERAL 3-5
3. NATIONAL 6-11
4. STATES 12-13
5. ECONOMY AND BANKING 14-19
6. RBI UPDATES 20-22
7. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 23-25
8. DEFENCE 26-27
9. AWARDS AND HONOURS 28-31
10. SPORTS 32-35
11. OBITUARIES 36
12. REPORTS, INDICES AND RANKINGS 37-38
13. SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES 39-40
14. APPOINTMENTS 41-42
15. DAYS AND THEMES 43-45
16. BOOKS AND AUTHORS 46
18. CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE QUESTIONS 47-55
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1. 4TH STATE HEALTH INDEX FOR 2019–20
On December 27, 2021, the 4th edition of NITI
Aayog’s State Health Index for 2019–20 was released
in the report titled ‘Healthy States, Progressive
India‘.It was released jointly by NITI Aayog’s Vice
Chairman Dr Rajiv Kumar, CEO (Chief Executive
Officer) Amitabh Kant, Additional Secretary Dr
Rakesh Sarwal, and World Bank Senior Health
Specialist Sheena Chhabra.
• The report has been prepared by NITI Aayog,
with technical assistance from the World Bank
(WB), and in close consultation with the Ministry
of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).IPE
Global Private Limited worked as the independent
Validation agency.
• This edition of the report measured and
highlighted the overall performance and
incremental improvement of states and UTs
(Union territories) in health outcomes as well as
their overall status over the period 2018–19 (base
year) to 2019–20 (Reference year).
• This weighted composite index is premised upon
24 indicators grouped under the domains of health
outcomes, governance and information, and key
inputs/processes.
• The ranking is categorized as larger states, smaller
states and UTs.It has covered 19 larger states, 8
smaller states and 7 UTs.
• Three new indicators were added for larger states
viz. Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR), proportion
of pregnant women who received 4 or more
antenatal care checkups (ANC), and level of
registration of deaths.
• Among the larger states, West Bengal did not
participate.Data for Ladakh was not available as it
was established as a UT on October 31, 2019,
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prior to which it was part of the Jammu and
Kashmir state.
• This edition has not captured the impact of
COVID-19 because the time period for this
assessment is earlier to the pandemic.
Overall Performance ranking from 2018-19 to
2019-20
• Among the Larger States, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and
Telangana emerged among the best three
performers in terms of Overall Performance at 1st,
2nd and 3rd rank respectively. Uttar Pradesh (UP)
ranked at the bottom i.e. 19th.
• Among the Smaller States, Mizoram (1st), Tripura
(2nd), and Sikkim (3rd) emerged as the best
performer in Overall Performance. Nagaland
ranked 8th.
• Among the UTs, DH & DD-Dadra and Nagar
Haveli and Daman and Diu (1st), Chandigarh
(2nd) and Lakshadweep (3rd) are top performers.
Andaman & Nicobar ranked 7th.
Categorization on Incremental Performance and
Overall Performance
• Among the Larger States, in terms of annual
incremental performance, UP, Assam and
Telangana are the top three ranking states with
1st, 2nd and 3rd positions.Karnataka ranked 19th
with least incremental change.
• Among Smaller States, Mizoram (1st), Meghalaya
(2nd), and Nagaland (3rd) registered the
maximum annual incremental progress. Goa
ranked 8th with least incremental change.
• Among UTs, Delhi ranked top which is followed
by Jammu and Kashmir-J&K (2nd) and
Lakshadweep (3rd) showing best incremental
performance.Chandigarh ranked 7th with least
incremental change.
Key points
• For the 4th consecutive time, Kerala emerged as
the best performer in terms of Overall
Performance.
• Mizoram and Telangana were the only two states
that demonstrated strong Overall Performance and
showed most improvements.
• Rajasthan was the weakest performer both in
terms of Overall Performance and Incremental
Performance. In case of Smaller States, Arunachal
Pradesh and Manipur are the worst performers,
both in terms of Incremental and Overall
Performance.
• Among overall rankings, Assam made the
maximum improvement by moving up 3 ranks
(from 15 to 12).On the other hand Andaman &
Nicobar registered the maximum drop in rank
(down from 4th to 7th rank).
• The gap in the overall performance between the
best and the worst performing Larger State and
UTs narrowed in the current round of the Health
Index, while it increased for the smaller states.
• 14 out of the 19 Larger States, 4 out of the 8
Smaller States, and 5 out of the 7 UTs showed
improvement in Health Index Scores from 2018-
19 to 2019-20.
About Index
• The index, an annual tool to assess the
performance of states and UTs in health sector
outcomes is being compiled and published since
2017.It aims to nudge states/UTs towards building
robust health systems and improving service
delivery.
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2. INTERNATIONAL AND BILATERAL
Egypt became fourth new member
of New Development Bank
• India on December 29, 2021, welcomed Egypt as
the new member of BRICS New Development
Bank. With this, Egypt has now become a fourth
new member to be admitted to BRICS NDB.
• Before Egypt joined the multilateral bank, earlier,
in September 2021, India had welcomed
Bangladesh, Uruguay and the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) as the new members of the
BRICS New Development Bank.
• NDB was established by BRICS (Brazil, Russia,
India, China,South-Africa) in 2015.
• The BRICS Countries represent 41 percent of the
global population, 24 percent of the global GDP
and 16 percent of the global trade.
• The total members of NDB :1.Brazil, 2.Russia,
3.India, 4.China, 5. South Africa, 6.Bangladesh,
7.United Arab Emirates, 8.Egypt, 9.Uruguay.
• Egypt President – Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi
• Capital – Cairo •Currency – Egyptian Pound
•NDB President – Marcos Prado Troyjo
•Headquarters – Shanghai, China
Belgium to close all nuclear plants
by 2025
• The Government of Belgium agreed in principle
on December 23, 2021, to close all its nuclear
power plants by the year 2025. However, the
country has left open the possibility of extending
the life of two reactors if it will not be able to
otherwise ensure the energy supply.
• In Belgium, the two nuclear power plants, with 7
reactors in total, are operated by the French
Utility. They account for almost half of the
country’s electricity production.
• Other Countries with the plan of Nuclear phase
out by 2030s: Germany, Spain,Switzerland
• Belgium PM – Alexander De Croo
• Capital – Brussels •Currency – Euro
Japan introduces world’s 1st Dual-
Mode Vehicle that can run on Roads
and Tracks
• Japan has introduced a minibus lookalike world’s
first dual-mode vehicle (DMV) in its town of
Kaiyo. The vehicle can run on normal rubber
tyres on the road but its steel wheels, which are
in its underbelly, descend when it hits the rail
tracks
• This feature of effectively changing into a train-
like module easily on a rail track is the first of its
kind.It runs on diese
• It runs along part of the coast of Shikoku island
in southern Japan, connecting several small
towns.
• Japan PM – Fumio Kishida
• Capital – Tokyo •Currency – Japanese yen
Vietnam’s H.E. Nguyen Van Hung
visit to India
• H.E. Nguyen Van Hung, Minister of Culture,
Sports and Tourism (MoCST) of Vietnam paid a
5-day official visit to India from December 15 to
19, 2021. India and Vietnam are celebrating 50
years of diplomatic ties in 2022 and the 5th
anniversary of the Indo-Vietnam Comprehensive
Strategic Partnership in 2021.
• In line with the comprehensive strategic and
economic partnership and growing relations
between India and Vietnam, the Ministers of both
countries signed a ‘Letter of Intent’ for enhanced
cooperation in the Postal Sector.
• Tran Hong Ha, Vietnam Natural resources &
Environment Minister, and Jitendra Singh, Union
Minister for Science & Technology, signed the
first-ever MoU (Memorandum of Understanding)
to promote the scientific and technical
cooperation in marine science and ecology.
• Vietnam President – Nguyen Xuan Phuc
• Capital – Hanoi •Currency – Dong
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President Ram Nath Kovind’s 3-day
visit to Bangladesh
• On December 15-17, 2021, the President of India
Ram Nath Kovind was on a 3-day State visit to
Bangladesh to attend the 50th Victory Day (Bijay
Dibos or Vjay Diwas) celebrations at the
National Parade ground in Dhaka as a guest of
honour. He was the only foreign dignitary invited
to jointly commemorate these celebrations
reflecting a strong bond between two nations.
• The previous presidential visit from India to
Bangladesh was undertaken by Pranab
Mukherjee in 2013.
• India-Bangladesh celebrates 16th December as
Victory Day to commemorate the win over
Pakistan and their surrender to our joint forces in
1971 leading to the liberation of Bangladesh
(Bangladesh Liberation war of 1971).Both
countries are also celebrating the golden jubilee
of establishment of their diplomatic ties.
• The year 2021 commemorates the Golden Jubilee
of Bangladesh’s independence. It commemorates
50 years of the establishment of diplomatic
relations between our two countries.
• President Ram Nath Kovind presented a replica
of the 1971-era MIG 21 aircraft to his counterpart
Abdul Hamid to commemorate the joint
sacrifices made by the armed forces of India and
Bangladesh during the 1971 liberation war. The
original aircraft has been installed at the
Bangladesh National Museum.
• On December 17, the President inaugurated the
newly reconstructed Sree Sree Ramna Kali
Mandir in Dhaka that had been destroyed in
March 1971 by Pakistani forces.
• During the visit gifting of the Bangabandhu-
Bapu Digital Exhibition to the Liberation War
Museum in Dhaka; announcement of the first
occupant of the Bangabandhu Chair at Delhi
University; and; extension of the Nutan India –
Bangladesh Maitree Muktijoddha Sontan
Scholarship Scheme for a period of five years.
Dubai becomes world’s 1st 100%
paperless govt.
• In December 2021, Dubai became the world’s
first government to turn 100 percent paperless,
the announcement was made by the United Arab
Emirate (UAE) Crown Prince, Sheikh Hamdan
bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
• It will save around 3 billion Dirham (USD 350
million) and 14-million-man hours.
• The Dubai Paperless Strategy was implemented
in five consecutive phases, each entity consisting
of a different group of the Dubai Government’s
entities
• Dubai President –Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan
• Capital – Abu Dhabi •Currency – – Dirham
UAE became the 1st Country to
transition to 4 and half-day work
week
• The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has announced
to change its 5-day work-week to a 4 and a half
day starting from 1st January 2022 and became
the first country to make the employee-friendly
transition as part of its efforts to improve
productivity and work-life balance.
• New Schedule: Monday to Thursday the work
timings would be from 7.30 am to 3.30 pm,
followed by a half-day on Friday from 7.30 am to
12.00 pm & Saturdays and Sundays are full-day
holidays.
UNGA granted Observer Status to
International Solar Alliance
• The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)
granted Observer Status to the International Solar
Alliance (ISA) by adopting resolution 76/123.
This decision has been taken based on the
UNGA’s Sixth Committee report.
• The 4th UNGA of International Solar Alliance
(ISA) was held in October 2021 which saw the
participation of 108 countries including 74
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Member Countries and 34 Observer and
Prospective Countries, 23 Partner Organizations
and 33 Special Invitee Organizations
About International Solar Alliance (ISA):
• In November 2015, ISA was jointly launched by
India and France during the 21st session of the
United Nations
• Climate Change COP-21 in Paris, France to
promote solar energy among its Member
Countries. The major objective of the
organization is the deployment of 1000 GW of
solar capacity and mobilization of US$ 1000
billion of investment in the solar energy sector by
2030.Currently, 80 countries have signed and
ratified the ISA Framework.
• ISA Director General– Dr. Ajay Mathur
• Headquarter– Gurugram, Haryana
• UNGA President– Abdulla Shahid (76th)
•India’s Permanent Ambassador to UN–
T S Tirumurti
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s
visit to India
• President of the Russian Federation H.E.
Vladimir Putin paid an official visit to India,
New Delhi on 6 December 2021 for the 21st
India–Russia Annual Summit.
• The Annual Summit was not held in 2020 due to
the COVID-19. Both sides exchanged views over
the bilateral cooperation over COVID-19
especially with respect to ‘Sputnik-V’ vaccine.
• • The summit marks the first face to face meeting
between Putin and PM Modi, after the meeting
on the sidelines of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia,
India, China and South Africa) summit in
Brasilia in November 2019.
• Both of them discussed things related to
terrorism and drug trafficking, including the
situation in Afghanistan.
• The Russian side has welcomed the Delhi
Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan of
National Security Advisors/Secretaries of
Security Council in New Delhi (i.e. the Delhi
Declaration on Afghanistan)
• During the summit Indian PM and Russian
President signed 28 MoUs (Memorandum of
Understanding) across a wide range of sectors
including trade, energy, culture, intellectual
property accountancy and education.
• In addition to the 28 MoUs, a programme of
cooperation in the field of defence for the next 10
years from 2021 to 2031 was also signed.
India assumed the chairmanship of
Council of Regional Anti-Terrorist
Structure of SCO
• India assumed the Chairmanship of Council of
Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of Shanghai
Cooperation Organization (RATS SCO) for 1
year from October 28, 2021.
• The RATS, which is headquartered in Tashkent,
Uzbekistan, is a permanent organ of the SCO. It
serves to promote cooperation of member states
against terrorism, separatism and extremism.
• Each member state also sends a permanent
representative to RATS. The SCO Secretary
General and the Executive Director SCO RATS
are appointed for a term of 3 years.
• Director of the RATS SCO EC is Jumakhon
Giyosov.
Malta becomes first European
nation to approve cannabis for
personal use
• Malta became the first European country to allow
limited cultivation and possession of cannabis for
personal use, following a vote in parliament. The
Maltese parliament voted in favour of the reform
last week, with 36 votes in favour and 27 against.
Adults will be allowed to grow four plants at
home and carry seven grams of cannabis, with
smoking in public or in front of children
remaining illegal.
• Malta President – George Vella
• Capital – Valletta •Currency – Euro
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3. NATIONAL
PM inaugurates Kanpur Metro Rail
Project & Bina-Panki Multiproduct
Pipeline Project in Kanpur
• On December 28, 2021, Prime Minister (PM) of
India Narendra Modi visited Kanpur, Uttar
Pradesh (UP) to inaugurate the completed section
of Kanpur Metro Rail Project; Bina-Panki
Multiproduct Pipeline Project; and to attend the
54th Convocation Ceremony of IIT (Indian
Institute of Technology) Kanpur
• PM inaugurated the completed 9 km long priority
section of Corridor-1 of the project from IIT
Kanpur to Moti Jheel (9 elevated stations). Its
construction work was initiated in November
2019.
• PM also inaugurated the 356 Km long Bina
(Madhya Pradesh-MP)-Panki (Kanpur, UP)(283
km in UP and 73 km in MP) Multiproduct
pipeline project with an outlay of Rs 1524 crore
(Rs. 1227 crore in UP and Rs. 297 crore in MP).
• Extending from Bina Refinery in MP to POL
((Petroleum, Oils and Lubricants) Terminal at
Panki in Kanpur, it has a capacity of around 3.45
million metric tonne per annum catering the
demand of petroleum products from northern
states.It will be operated by Bharat Petroleum
Corporation Limited (BPCL).
UP’s Jhansi Railway Station
renamed as ‘Veerangana Laxmibai
Railway Station’
• The government of UP has renamed the Jhansi
Railway Station, in Jhansi, UP as “Veerangana
Laxmibai Railway Station” after Rani Laxmibai,
the Maharani consort of the Maratha princely
state of Jhansi.
• The notification of the renaming was issued by
the UP Government following the no objection
given by the Ministry of Home Affairs on 24th
November 2021.
MHA extends AFSPA, 1958 in
Nagaland for 6 more months
• In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3
of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act
(AFSPA), 1958 (No.28 of 1958) the Ministry of
Home Affairs (MHA) declared the entire
Nagaland as a ‘disturbed area’ for six more
months w.e.f. December 30, 2021 till June 30,
2022.
• This decision came days after the Union
Government constituted a 7-member high-level
committee headed by secretary-level officer
Vivek Joshi to examine the possibility of
withdrawing the controversial AFSPA, 1958
from Nagaland which has been operational since
decades, and it has not been withdrawn despite a
framework agreement signed in August 2015 by
Naga insurgent group NSCN-IM and the Central
Government.
• In December 2021, a unit of Army personnel
killed 14 unarmed civilians claiming that they
mistook them for armed insurgents. After that,
Nagaland Assembly unanimously adopted a
resolution to repeal AFSPA.
PM Modi inaugurated & laid
foundation stone of Rs 11,000 crore
worth hydropower projects in
Mandi, Himachal Pradesh
• PM Narendra Modi presided over the 2nd
groundbreaking ceremony of the Himachal
Pradesh Global Investors’ Meet in Mandi,
Himachal Pradesh (HP). He also inaugurated and
laid the foundation stone of the hydropower
projects worth ~Rs 11000 crore in Mandi, HP.
• The hydropower projects will assist Himachal
Pradesh to improve its economy and provide
additional power to the state.
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• He also inaugurated the Sawra-Kuddu Hydro
Power Project, a 111 MW Project which has been
built at a cost of around Rs 2,080 crore.
• He also laid the foundation stone of the Renukaji
Dam project which has been kept pending for
around 3 decades. The 40 MW project will be
built at a cost of around Rs 7,000 crore
• He also laid the foundation stone for the Luhri
Stage 1 Hydro Power Project and Dhaulasidh
Hydro Power Project, the first hydropower
project of the Hamirpur district.
Central govt. sets up 2 Sub-
Committees to lower Crop
Insurance Premium under PMFBY
• The Central government has appointed 2 sub-
committees with separate groups of experts
comprising officials from Centre, key crop-
producing states and top executives of public
sector insurance companies to lower crop
insurance premium under Pradhan Mantri Fasal
Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
• The committee was formed to suggest suitable
working models with cost-benefit analysis to
lower crop insurance premium and technology in
crop yield estimation under the flagship PMFBY.
• 1st Committee is a ten-member committee under
scientist KR Manjunath of Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO).
• This committee is headed by Saurabh Mishra,
joint secretary in Ministry of Finance.
MoRTH launches 1st ‘Intelligent
Transport System’ on 6 lane
Eastern Peripheral Expressway at
Ghaziabad, UP
• On 23rd December 2021 Union Minister for
Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Nitin
Gadkari launched the first Intelligent Transport
System (ITS) on the six-lane Eastern Peripheral
Expressway at Dasna, Ghaziabad,Uttar Pradesh.
• The ITS minimizes traffic problems, increases
efficiency in infrastructure usage, enriching users
with prior information about traffic, reducing
travel time and enhancing the safety and comfort
of commuters
PM Modi transferred Rs 1000 crore
under DAY-NRLM to bank accounts
of SHGs
• PM Modi addressed the gathering of women
beneficiaries of several government scheme at
Prayagraj district of Uttar Pradesh(UP) and
transferred Rs 1000 crore into the bank accounts
of the women Self Help Groups(SHGs) in UP.
The amount was transferred under the Deendayal
Antyodaya Yojana- National Rural Livelihood
Mission (DAY-NRLM).
• This will benefit around 16 lakh rural women in
UP and make them self reliant and financially
independent.
• 80000 SHGs received a Community Investment
Fund (CIF) of Rs 1.10 lakh per SHG and 60000
SHGs received a revolving fund of Rs 15000 per
SHG.
Cabinet approves MSP for Copra for
2022 season
• On the basis of the recommendations provided by
the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices
(CACP), The Cabinet Committee on Economic
Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the PM Narendra
Modi has given its approval for the Minimum
Support Prices (MSP) for Copra for 2022 season
• In this regard, the MSP for Fair Average Quality
(FAQ) of milling Copra has been increased to Rs
10,590 per quintal from Rs 10,335 per quintal,
showing a 2.46% increase.
• The MSP for ball Copra has been increased to Rs
11,000 per quintal for 2022 season from
Rs.10,600 per quintal in 2021, a 3.77% hike.
• This is on the line with the Budget 2018-19
announcement of fixing the MSP at a level of at
least 1.5 times the all India weighted average cost
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of production in order to double farmers’
incomes by 2022.
NITI Aayog & UN-WFP signed SoI to
Mainstream Millets & Support India
in Knowledge Exchange
• On 20th December 2021, the National Institution
for Transforming India, known as NITI Aayog
has signed a Statement of Intent(SoI) with the
United Nations(UN) World Food Program(WFP)
for mainstreaming of millets and supporting India
in taking lead globally in knowledge exchange
using the opportunity of 2023 as International
Year of Millets.
‘Durga Puja in Kolkata’ inscribed on
UNESCO’s representative list of ICH
of Humanity
• The Intergovernmental Committee (IGC) of
UNESCO’s (United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization) 2003
Convention on Safeguarding of the Intangible
Cultural Heritage (ICH) has inscribed ‘Durga
Puja in Kolkata’ on the Representative List of
ICH of Humanity during its 16th session of IGC
which was held in Paris, France from 13 to 18
December 2021.
• With the inscription of Durga Puja in Kolkata,
India now have 14 ICH elements on the
prestigious UNESCO Representative List of ICH
of Humanity.
• This inscription of Durga Puja in Kolkata
represents the recognition of the confluence of
India’s rich heritage, culture, rituals & practices
and a celebration of feminine divinity & the spirit
of womanhood.
• Before Durga Puja, the two latest inscriptions in
the ICH list from India are Kumbh Mela
(inscribed 2017) and Yoga (inscribed 2016).
• .Durga Puja is an annual festival celebrated in
September or October, most notably in Kolkata,
in West Bengal of India, but also in other parts of
India and amongst the Bengali diaspora.
PM Modi lays Foundation stone of
Ganga Expressway in UP
• On December 18, 2021, Prime Minister (PM)
Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the
longest highway in India, the Ganga Expressway
in Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh (UP) to offer fast-
paced connectivity in India.
• The six-lane 594 km long expressway will be
built at a cost of about Rs 36200 crore will
connect the western and eastern regions of UP.
• The highway will pass through different districts
of UP such as Meerut, Hapur, Bulandshahr,
Amroha, Sambhal, Budaun, Shahjahanpur,
Hardoi, Unnao, Rae Bareli, Pratapgarh and
Prayagraj.
• A 3.5 km long airstrip was also planned to be
built in Shahjahanpur for assisting emergency
landing and take-off of Air Force planes.
• An industrial corridor will also be built along the
expressway for the socio-economic development
of the region.
CJI NV Ramana inaugurated India’s
1st IAMC in Telangana
• On 18th December 2021, Justice NV Ramana,
Chief Justice of India (CJI) and K Chandrasekhar
Rao, Chief Minister of Telangana has
inaugurated India’s First International Arbitration
and Mediation Centre(IAMC) at Phoenix VK
Tower at Nanakramguda, Hyderabad, Telangana.
• IAMC has been established to quickly resolve the
issues that arise due to the Lack of sufficient
judges.
• IAMC will settle commercial disputes and it will
also look into the disputes of ordinary people.
• The benefits of arbitration over traditional
litigation are fewer delays, less expenditure and
more involvement of the parties in the process.
• The centre will get support from the state, centre
and other Asian countries.
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Central government grant ‘In-
Principle’ approval for 6 nuclear
reactors at Jaitapur, Maharashtra
• On 16th December 2021 Union Minister of State
(Independent Charge) Science and Technology
Dr. Jitendra granted ‘In-Principle’ approval for
setting up 6 Nuclear Reactors at Jaitapur in
Maharashtra.
• The approval is for setting up 6 nuclear power
reactors of 1650 MW each, making Jaitapur as
India’s largest nuclear power generating site with
a total capacity of 9900 MW
• Technical cooperation is provided by the French
Firm – Électricité de France (EDF).
• Currently, 6780 MW of Nuclear Power Capacity
is established in India. The share of nuclear
power in the total electricity generation in India
is about 3.1 percent in the year 2020-2021.
Union Cabinet gives nod to raise
women’s marriage age to 21 from
18 years
• The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister
(PM) of India, Narendra Modi has given its nod
for proposal to bring uniformity in the
marriageable age of men and women, thereby,
increasing the legal age of marriage of women
from 18 to 21 years.
• In this regard, a Bill will be introduced to amend
the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA),
• 2006, Special Marriage Act, 1954 and personal
laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act 1955 in the
ongoing winter session of Parliament (November
29- December 23, 2021).The legal age to get
married for men is 21.
• This decision will not only boost gender equity
and gender empowerment but also enable girls to
complete their college studies and start earning.
Current Scenario:
• Section 5(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
sets 18 years as the minimum age for the bride
and 21 for the groom. The Special Marriage Act,
1954 and the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act,
2006 also prescribe 18 and 21 years as the
minimum age of consent for marriage for women
and men, respectively.
• Women’s age of marriage was increased from 15
years to 18 years in 1978, by amending the
erstwhile Sharda
• The proposals in the Bill have been made based
on the recommendations submitted to the Prime
Minister’s Office (PMO) in December 2020 by
the Ministry of Women and Child Development
(MoWCD) constituted 10-member task force,
headed by Jaya Jaitly, Samata Party chief.
Cabinet approved incentive scheme
to promote RuPay debit cards and
BHIM-UPI transaction
• The cabinet has approved an incentive scheme
with an estimated financial outlay of Rs 1,300
crore (for 1 year i.e. FY22) to promote
RuPayDebit cards and low-value (up to Rs 2,000)
BHIM-UPI (Bharat Interface for Money –
Unified Payments Interface) transactions
(Person-to-Merchant (P2M)) in India.
• Under the scheme, the acquiring banks will get
small amounts of incentives (a certain percentage
of the value of transactions) from the
Government for transactions (P2M) that has been
done through RuPay Debit cards and low-value
BHIM-UPI modes of payments.
Cabinet approved Rs 76,000 crore
scheme for Semiconductor
manufacturing
• Cabinet approved a production linked incentive
(PLI) scheme with an outlay of Rs 76,000 crore
to boost semiconductor and display
manufacturing in India, making the total amount
of incentives announced for the electronics sector
to Rs 2.30 lakh crore.
• Objective: To provide incentive support to
companies / consortia that are engaged in Silicon
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Semiconductor Fabs (Fabrication plant), Display
Fabs, Compound Semiconductors / Silicon
Photonics / Sensors (including MEMS (Micro
Electro-Mechanical System)) Fabs,
Semiconductor Packaging (ATMP (Assembly –
TestingMarking-and Packaging)/OSAT
(Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and
Test)), Semiconductor Design.
Cabinet approved implementation
of PMKSY for 2021-26
• Cabinet has approved the extension of
implementation of Pradhan Mantri Krishi
Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) for 2021-26 with an
outlay of Rs 93,068 crore to benefit about 22 lakh
farmers, including 2.5 lakh Scheduled Caste and
2 lakh Scheduled Tribe farmers.
• The scheme was launched in 2015-16 with a total
of 99 projects identified, out of the 99, 46 have
been completed. The rest of the projects will be
completed by 2024-25.
• During PMKSY 2016-21 the Cabinet Committee
on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved
central support of Rs 37,454 crore to States and
Rs 20,434.56 crore of debt servicing for loans
availed by the Government of India for irrigation
development.
PM Modi inaugurated 1st phase of
Kashi-Vishwanath Corridor Project,
Varanasi
• Prime Minister(PM) Narendra Modi inaugurated
the 1st phase of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor
project (Kashi Vishwanath Dham project) which
connects the Kashi Vishwanath temple and
Ganga ghats in Varanasi.23 building spread over
around 5 lakh square feet area was inaugurated as
a part of the 1st phase of the Rs 339 crore Kashi
Vishwanath Corridor project.
• The foundation stone of the project was laid on
8th March 2019.
• These buildings will provide a variety of
facilities to pilgrims, including yatri suvidha
kendras, tourist facilitation centre, vedic kendra,
mumukshu bhavan, bhogshala, city museum,
viewing gallery, food court, among others.
• The project involved the purchase and acquisition
of more than 300 properties around the temple.
PM Narendra Modi inaugurated
Saryu Nahar National Project in
Balrampur, UP
• The 40-year long pending project, Saryu Nahar
National Project, was inaugurated by PM
Narendra Modi in Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh (UP)
on December 11, 2021.
• The outlay of the project is over Rs 9,800 crore,
out of which more than Rs 4,600 crore was
provisioned in the last four years.
• It will cater to the problem of water shortage
mainly in eastern UP/ Purvanchal with assured
water for irrigation to over 14 lakh hectares of
land and benefit about 29 lakh farmers.
• The Saryu canal project also involves interlinking
of five rivers viz. Ghaghara, Saryu, Rapti,
Banganga and Rohini to ensure optimum usage
of water resources of the region.
Uttar Pradesh’s Haiderpur Wetland
recognized as 47th Ramsar Site in
India
• Haiderpur Wetland, the human-made wetland of
around 6908 hectares in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh
(UP) has been recognised as the 47th Ramsar Site
of India and 2,463rd site internationally. The
wetland is located within the boundaries of
Hastinapur Wildlife Sanctuary, Uttar Pradesh.
• .Haiderpur Wetland, a human-made wetland
formed in 1984 by the construction of the
Madhya Ganga Barrage on a floodplain of the
River Ganga.
• This provides habitat for various animals and
plant species including around 30 species of
plants, 300 species of birds (102 water birds), 40
fish and more than 10 mammals.
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• Other RAMSAR Sites in UP:1. Nawabganj Bird
Sanctuary,2. Parvati Arga Bird Sanctuary,3.
Saman Bird Sanctuary,4. Samaspur Bird
Sanctuary,5. Sandi Bird Sanctuary,6. Sarsai
Nawar Jheel,7. Sur Sarovar,8. Upper Ganga
River.
• The Convention on Wetlands (RAMSAR
Convention) is the oldest of the modern global
intergovernmental environmental agreements that
unite 172 countries to protect and use wisely the
wetlands and the resources they provide.
• The convention was adopted in Ramsar, Iran, in
1971 and came into force in 1975.
Central Govt. accepts plea to
grants Mithila Makhana GI tag
• The Geographical Indications Registry (GIR)
under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry
accepted the proposal to rename Bihar Makhana
as Mithila Makhana and retain its Geographical
Identification (GI) tag.
• It also suggested amendments in the brand logo
to highlight its origins and protect the product’s
Geographical Indications (GI) rights.
• The development ended the controversy over the
branding of the mithila region’s makhana or fox
nut.
India re-elected to International
Maritime Organisation Council for
2022-2023
• India has been re-elected to International
Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council for the
2022-2023 biennium under category B states.
• The Assembly of the International Maritime
Organization has elected the Members of its
Council for the 2022-2023 biennium.
• The Council is the executive organ of IMO and is
responsible, under the Assembly, for supervising
the work of the Organization.
• The Council performs the functions of the
Assembly, except that of making
recommendations to governments on maritime
safety and pollution prevention.
• IMO is the United Nations’ specialized agency
with responsibility for the safety and security of
shipping and the prevention of marine and
atmospheric pollution by ships.
• IMO currently has 175 Member States and three
Associate Members.
Centre to launch National Helpline
against atrocities on SCs, STs
• Union Minister Social Justice and Empowerment,
Dr Virendra Kumar has launched National
Helpline against atrocities on SCs, STs. The
objective of the helpline, reportedly, is to build
awareness about the provisions of the Act that are
aimed at ending discrimination and providing
protection to all. The Helpline will be available
24-7 on toll-free number – 14566.
• This Service will be available in Hindi, English,
and Regional languages of the States. The
objective of this helpline is to spread awareness
about the provision of the Scheduled Castes and
the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)
Act.
Bhasha Sangam mobile app
launched with 22 languages
• Union Minister of State for Education, Dr Subhas
Sarkar has informed that the government is all set
to launch Bhasha Sangam mobile app. The
mobile app is developed to give users familiarity
with common expressions of daily conversation
in scheduled Indian languages. The app has 100+
sentences, designed on different themes that
allow people to learn basic conversation in 22
Indian languages, test themselves and generate
online certificates. The app aims to foster the
spirit of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat by enabling
people across India to learn the different
languages of different states of India and come
closer to their culture.
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4. STATES
Odisha launches digital life
certificate for pensioners
• On 29th December 2021, Odisha Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik launched Digital Life Certificate
system for pensioners virtually while attending
the orientation programme for newly recruited
153 officers of Odisha Civil Services.
• Odisha is the first state in the country to
implement such a digital service for pensioners
• .Under the Digital Life Certificate system,
identification and life certificates can be
submitted by the pensioners using an Artificial
Intelligence-based video-verification process.
Karnataka govt partners with NPCI
& SBI to implement ‘e-RUPI’ for
Payment of Scholarships
• The Karnataka government has partnered with
the National Payments Corporation of India
(NPCI) & State Bank of India to enable and
implement the ‘e-RUPI’ payment solution to
students under its scholarship programme.
• For redeeming e-RUPI, the identified institutes
will scan the QR code or SMS string displayed
by the students using an Application
• The e-RUPI is a cashless and contactless
payment solution provided by NPCI and It will
be used to ensure leakproof delivery
transactions.The e-vouchers will be delivered by
the govt. to the mobiles of eligible students.
Telangana tops in highest number of
ODF villages
• Telangana stood first in the country in the list of
the highest number of open defecation free (ODF
Plus) villages under the Swachh Bharat Mission
(Grameen) Phase-II programme till December
31, 2021. As many as 13,737 out of 14,200
villages in the State are on the ODF Plus list,
which is 96.74%. This was followed by Tamil
Nadu with 4,432 villages (35.39%) and
Karnataka with 1,511 villages (5.59%). Gujarat
took the 17th position with only 83 villages
(0.45%).
Odisha CM Inaugurated ‘T-Setu’
Over Mahanadi river in Cuttack
• Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister of Odisha
inaugurated Odisha’s longest bridge, ‘T-Setu’,
built over the Mahanadi river at Gopinathpur,
Cuttack District, Odisha.
• The bridge will benefit more than 5 lakh people
and contribute to the development of tourism,
agriculture and commerce in the region.
• The 3.4-km-long bridge connecting Gopinathpur
in Badamba, Baideswar in Banki to Singhanath
Pitha in Cuttack, will cut the distance between
Badamba and Banki Baideshwar by almost 45
km.
Nagaland govt creates 3 new
districts namely Tseminyu, Nuiland
and Chumukedima
• The State Government of Nagaland has created
three new districts namely Tseminyu, Nuiland
and Chumukedima, reaching the total district
tally of the state to 15. Tseminyu became the
13th district followed by Nuiland and
Chumukedima as 14th and 15th Districts
respectively.
• The decision was taken during a state cabinet
meeting held under the leadership of Chief
Minister Neiphiu Rio today at Kohima.
• Niuland and Chumukedima have been formed
out of Dimapur district, while Tseminyu is the
sub-division of the Kohima district.
Punjab CM Channi declares Krishan
Balram Rath Yatra as State Festival
• The Chief Minister (CM) of Punjab Charanjit
Singh Channi declared Lord Krishna Balram
Jagannath Rath Yatra as an annual state festival.
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• The announcement for the same was made
during flagging off the 25th Shri Lord Krishna
Balram Jagannath Rath Yatra. The yatra, which
was carried out after a gap of two years due to
coronavirus restrictions
• He also announced a grant of Rs 2.51 crore for
the Iskcon Temple in Ludhiana, Punjab.
Uttarakhand State appoints
Rishabh Pant as brand ambassador
• On 19 December 2021,Uttarakhand Chief
Minister (CM) Pushkar Singh Dhami appointed
Indian cricketer Rishabh Pant as the ‘State Brand
Ambassador’ with the aim of encouraging the
youth of the state towards sports and public
health.
• Rishabh Rajendra Pant is a 24 year old cricketer,
who was born in Roorkee, Uttarakhand.
• ii.He is an Indian cricketer who plays as a middle
order wicket-keeper batsman for India, and the
Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League
(IPL).
• In 2015, he was named in India’s squad for the
2016 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
AP inked pact with UN-FAO & ICAR
for sustainable agriculture
• An agreement on Technical Cooperation Project
has been inked by Andhra Pradesh (AP)
Government with the United Nations Food and
Agriculture Organisation (UN-FAO) and Indian
Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to help
the state farmers in adopting a sustainable
agriculture food system.
• Through this agreement, there will also be
strengthening the capacities of the state
government in the agriculture sector
Uttarakhand’s Askot Wildlife
Sanctuary declared as Eco-
Sensitive Zone
• According to the gazette of India dated 2nd
December 2021 issued by the Ministry of
Environment, Forest and Climate
Change(MoEF&CC), an area of 454.65 square
kilometres around the boundary of Askot
Wildlife Sanctuary in the Pithoragarh district of
Uttarakhand has been declared as the Askot
Wildlife Sanctuary Ecosensitive Zone(ESZ).
• The notified area extends from 0 to 22 km around
the Askot Wildlife Sanctuary.
Kazhuveli Wetland declared as 16th
Bird Sanctuary of Tamil Nadu
• The Kazhuveli wetland situated in Villupuram
district of Tamil Nadu has been declared as the
16th Bird Sanctuary by Surpiya Sahu,
Environment and Forest Secretary, at the
Minister of Environment Forest and Climate
Change (MoEFCC).The declaration was made
under subsection (1) of section 18 of the Wildlife
(Protection) Act, 1972.
• The Kazhuveli wetlands is referred to as the 2nd
largest Brackish Water Lake in South India, only
after Pulicat lake.
Goa’s Liberation Day 2021
• Goa Liberation Day is observed on 19 December
every year in India and it marks the day Indian
armed forces freed Goa in 1961 following 450
years of Portuguese rule. The year 2021 marks
the 60 years of Goa’s independence. Goa
Liberation Day is marked by an abundance of
events and festivities in Goa though this time
because of the pandemic the celebrations are
expected to be muted. A torchlight procession is
ignited from three different locations in the state,
eventually all meeting at the Azad Maidan.
Himachal govt set up General
Category Commission
• Himachal Pradesh govt announced setting up a
Commission for upper castes, on the lines of
Madhya Pradesh. The Commission, to be named
as ‘Samanya Varg Aayog’, will be formalised
through a legislative enactment in three months’
time when the state assembly meets next in
February-March 2021 for the budget session of
the House.
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5. ECONOMY AND BANKING
SBI Card, Paytm join hands for card
tokenization to protect cardholders’
data
• SBI (State Bank of India) Cards and Payment
Services has collaborated with Paytm to enable
their cardholders to tokenize their cards on
devices and make payments through Paytm.
• Currently, only cards issued in the Indian
Territory are enabled on Paytm network but this
partnership enables SBI Cardholders to transact
through Paytm network in international locations.
• The card tokenization facility is available only on
Android NFC (near field communication)
devices.
LIC, GIC, New India Assurance
continue to be identified as D-SIIs
for 2021-22: IRDAI
• Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC),
General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC)
and New India Assurance continued to be
identified by Insurance Regulator and
Development Authority of India (IRDAI) as
Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-
SIIs) for 2021-22.
• They were also consequently subject to enhanced
regulatory supervision and IRDAI has asked the
three insurers to raise the level of corporate
governance, identify all relevant risks and
promote a sound risk management culture.
LIC inaugurated “Digi Zone” to
enhance its digital footprint
• Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India has
inaugurated “Digi Zone”, at Bandra Kurla
Complex, Mumbai, Maharashtra, as part of its
effort to enhance its digital footprint. LIC’s Digi
Zone can be used by the customers to purchase
policies online, pay the premium and avail of
other services.
• As a part of its efforts to become a tech-driven
life insurer, LIC will offer information related to
its products and services through kiosks installed
on the Digi Zone premises
Central govt approved 19th tranche
of electoral bonds
• Ahead of assembly elections in five states such as
Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Himachal
Pradesh and Goa, the government has approved
the issuance of the 19th tranche of electoral
bonds, which will be open for sale from January
1 to 10, 2022.
• In the 19th tranche of sale, the State Bank of
India (SBI), has been authorised to issue and
encash electoral bonds through its 29 specialised
branches. SBI is the only authorised bank to issue
electoral bonds.
Electoral Bonds
• These are the alternative financial instruments
that could be used for making donations to
political parties, it was formed as part of efforts
to bring transparency in political funding.These
bonds will be issued in multiples of Rs 1,000, Rs
10,000, Rs 100,000 , 10,00,000 and Rs 1 crore
(the range of a bond is between Rs 1,000 to Rs 1
crore).
• Electoral Bonds can be purchased by a person
who is a citizen of India or entities incorporated
or established in India
Reliance New Energy Solar
Acquires 100% Stake in Faradion
• Reliance New Energy Solar Limited (RNESL), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries,
has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100
percent shareholding in Faradion Ltd. through
secondary transactions for a total value of British
Pound Sterling (GBP) 94.42 million based on an
enterprise value of £100 million.
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• Faradion is one of the leading global battery
technology companies based out of Sheffield and
Oxford in the United Kingdom and with patented
sodium-ion battery technology.
SBI to Acquire around 10% stake in
IICC
• State Bank of India (SBI) is set to acquire around
10% stake in the India International Clearing
Corporation (IICC), the first international
clearing corporation set up at GIFT-IFSC that
acts as a central counterparty providing clearing
and settlement and risk management services.
• This clears and settles index and single stock
derivatives, currency derivatives and debt
securities.
• SBI is expected to complete up to a 9.95% stake
subject to a maximum investment of Rs 34.03
crore, in IICC by March 2022,
• With this strategic investment, IICC is aimed at
strengthening the financial markets infrastructure
Central Bank of India & NPCI
Jointly Launches RuPay Debit Card
for Corporates
• Central Bank of India has partnered with the
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
to launch ‘RuPay Business Platinum Debit Card’
for corporates.
• Domestic – The card offers an ATM withdrawal
limit of Rs.1 lakh along with a purchase of up to
Rs.3 lakh at Point on Sale (POS) or E-
Commerce.
• International – The card users can also withdraw
up to Rs. 75,000 at ATMs abroad and perform
purchases globally worth up to Rs. 3 lakh at Point
On Sale (POS) or E-Commerce and international
online merchants
India’s Green Energy Economy Gets
$7.27 Billion FDI since 2014-15
• India’s green energy industry received foreign
direct investment (FDI) worth $7.27 billion from
2014-15 till June 2021.
• According to the Ministry of New and
Renewable Energy (MNRE) , out of $7.27 billion
FDI, $797.21 million was received during 2020-
21.
• India’s renewable energy programme is driven by
private sector investment. The installed power
capacity from non-fossil fuels will reach up to 66
percent by 2030
IndusInd Bank launches ‘Green
Fixed Deposits’ to support UN-SDGs
• IndusInd Bank launched Green Fixed Deposits
(FDs) where the deposit proceeds will be used to
finance projects and firms supporting the United
Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-
SDGs).
• With this, the bank has entered the list of few
global banks which offer integrating SDG into a
regular FD product.
• These FDs will be offered to both retail and
corporate customers.
• IndusInd Bank is the only bank in India to secure
‘band A’ in the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Wholesale price inflation spikes to
12-year high of 14.23% in November
2021
• As per Department for Promotion of Industry and
Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and
Industry, India’s annual wholesale price index
(WPI) inflation rises to 12-year high to 14.23%
in November 2021 as compared to last year due
to base effect.
• This WPI inflation is dominated by the prices of
mineral oils, basic metals, crude petroleum,
natural gas, chemicals and food products.It was
12.54% in October 2021.
• WPI measures factory-gate inflation, or what
producers charge wholesalers excluding taxes.
• The consumer price index (CPI) for November
2021 climbed to 4.91% compared with 4.48 per
cent registered in October 2021.
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IndusInd Bank became 1st Indian
bank to offer cross-border
payments via UPI
• IndusInd Bank has partnered with the National
Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for
offering real-time crossborder remittances to
India using UPI (Unified Payment Interface) IDs
for its Money Transfer Operator (MTO) partners.
• With this initiative, IndusInd Bank has become
the first Indian bank to go live on Cross Border
Payments/NRI Remittances.
• The bank will add more partners in various other
countries for cross border-payments via UPI in
the near future
HDFC Bank Partners with IPPB to
Offer Banking Services in Rural
Areas
• HDFC Bank has signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with India Post Payments
Bank (IPPB) to offer banking services to over 4.7
crore customers of IPPB in semi-urban and rural
areas.
• Under the MoU, Out of 4.7 Crore customers
around 90 percent reside in rural areas.
• HDFC Bank aims to boost its financial inclusion
drive by leveraging IPPB’s network of 650
branches and over 136,000 banking access
points.
• The agreement offers various citizen-centric
services with increased digital technologies.
CEBR: India to become 3rd largest
economy in 2031; China to be 1st
• As per the Centre for Economics and Business
Research’s (CEBR) World Economic League
Table 2022, India was predicted to become the
6th largest economy (by overtaking France) in
2022 and become the 3rd largest economy in
2031.
• The annual league table also predicted that China
will overtake the US to be the largest economy in
2030
GOI declares Soya Meal as an
Essential Commodity up to June
2022 with Stock Limit
• On December 23, 2021, the Central Government
has notified the order under the Essential
Commodities Act to declare ‘Soya Meal’ as an
Essential Commodities up to 30th June 2022 by
amending the Schedule of the Essential
Commodities Act, 1955, to cool down the
domestic prices of Soya Meal.
• The decision would empower the Union
Government and all States/Union Territories to
regulate production, distribution etc. of Soya
Meal and to smoothen the sale and availability of
it in the market.
• As India’s Soya meal is produced from non-
genetically modified sources it is in high demand
in the world markets.
BOB Financial and Indian Navy
launch Co-branded Credit card
• BOB Financial Solutions Ltd, a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Bank of Baroda, and the Indian
Navy have launched a co-branded credit card for
navy personnel.
• The credit card will be offered on the RuPay
platform and will be equipped with contactless
features.
• A navy personnel up to the age of 64 years will
be eligible to choose from 3 variants of the
cobranded credit car.
Paytm Partners with MoneyGram
for International Fund Transfer
• Paytm Payments Bank has partnered with
MoneyGram, a peer-to-peer remittance company
to enable international fund transfer directly to
Paytm Wallet
• Under the Partnership, MoneyGram users abroad
can now transfer money to any full Know Your
Customer (KYC)-compliant Paytm wallet.
• This is MoneyGram’s first mobile wallet
partnership in India
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GoI & EIB sign Finance Contract for
1st tranche loan of Euro 250 million
for Agra Metro Rail project
• The Government of India (GoI) signed an
agreement with European Investment Bank (EIB)
for a Finance Contract for the first tranche loan
of Euro 250 million for Agra Metro Rail Project,
Uttar Pradesh (UP).
• The Project is working under the Ministry of
Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Uttar
Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (UPMRCL)
is the implementing agency.
Akasa Air Unveiled its Symbol ‘The
Rising A’ & Tagline ‘It’s Your Sky’
• India’s new Airline, ‘Akasa Air’, operated by
SNV Aviation Private Limited and backed by
billionaire Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, has unveiled its
logo “The Rising A” and its aircraft livery. The
airline also unveiled its tagline “It’s Your Sky”,
which highlights the brand’s promise to embrace
everyone and to create an inclusive environment
for all Indians.
• Brand colours: ‘Sunrise Orange’ and ‘Passionate
Purple’ reflect the airline’s warm, youthful, and
respectful nature.
• The symbol and tagline were crafted by 26FIVE
India Lab, a Mumbai-based brand engagement
firm
UAE committed $100 billion for
investment and infrastructure
creation in India
• The Union Minister Piyush Vedprakash Goyal,
Ministry of Commerce and Industry chaired an
interaction with the heads of Indian industry and
Export Promotion Councils in Mumbai,
Maharashtra. It was held to discuss global
expansion opportunities for Indian businesses
through business platforms and infrastructure
offered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• During the meeting it was revealed that UAE has
committed $100 billion for investment and
infrastructure creation in India.
• UAE will become a gateway for Indian trade to
the Middle East and Africa.
HDFC Life Wins the ‘Best Governed
Company Listed Segment: Large
Category’
• HDFC Life, one of India’s leading life insurance
companies has won the ‘Best Governed
Company Listed Segment: Large Category’ at the
21st edition of the Institute of Company
Secretaries of India (ICSI) National Awards for
Excellence in Corporate Governance.
• The award was presented by Union Minister of
Home Affairs and Minister of Cooperation, Amit
Shah.
• The eminent Jury was headed by Justice
P.Sathasivam, Former Chief Justice of India.
NPCI ties up with Udemy Business
to upskill its Employees
• National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
signed a partnership agreement with Udemy
Business, to encourage innovative learning and
skill development for employees of NPCI.
• The 3-year partnership with Udemy Business will
offer courses on in-demand skills such as tech,
domain, behavioural, and leadership skills to all
NPCI employees
• Through the mission ‘Talent Development for
All’ of NPCI, it provides capacity building
programmes in Artificial Intelligence (AI),
Machine Learning (ML), Blockchain, Distributed
Ledger Technology (DLT), Robotic Process
Automation (RPA), etc
Bajaj Allianz General Insurance
launches ‘Health Prime’ rider
• In December 2021, Bajaj Allianz General
Insurance launched the ‘Health Prime’ wellness
rider, which can be availed by its Customers who
are registered with the health insurance &
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personal accident policies of Bajaj Allianz
General Insurance.
• The rider is collaborating with Bajaj Finserv
Health to provide the benefit of 90,000 doctors to
the customers of Bajaj Allianz General
Insurance.
• It covers four key areas including tele-
consultation cover, doctor consultation cover,
investigations cover for pathology or radiology
expenses and annual preventive health check-up
cover in a cashless manner.
NIPL & Western Union sign MoU to
enable real-time cross-border
transactions
• NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL),
international payments arm of National Payments
Corporation of India (NPCI) signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with
Western Union to enable real-time bank account
payout in India
• The agreement will enable bank account holders
in India to receive cross-border money transfers
instantly using UPI IDs
It will benefit millions of Indian citizens to
seamlessly receive money from across the world.
Pine Labs partners with AU Small
Finance Bank for EMI offerings
• Pine Labs, a merchant commerce platform, has
partnered with AU Small Finance Bank, to
enable the bank’s credit cardholders to avail
equated monthly instalments (EMI) offers.
• The Partnership offers EMI at the point of sale
(PoS) and converts their customer’s regular
purchase into interest-free EMIs across the over 2
lakh merchant base of Pine Labs, pan India.
IMF Announces Global Debt Record
as $226 Trillion in 2020
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has
announced that the Global debt raised a record
$226 trillion in 2020 as the world was hit by the
Covid-19 pandemic and a deep recession.
• Global debt rose by 28 percentage points to 256
percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020
• IMF’s latest Global Debt Database figures the
2020’s debt as the largest 1-year debt surge since
World War II.
• According to IMF, the public debt rose from 70
percent of GDP in 2007 to 124 percent of GDP in
2020 and the private debt rose at a moderate pace
from 164 percent to 178 percent of GDP in 2020.
CBDT rolls out ‘e-Verification
Scheme, 2021’ for taxpayer’s info e-
verification
• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has
issued new rules namely ‘e-Verification Scheme,
2021’ for faceless collection of information from
taxpayers, where mismatches are detected.
• The scheme is notified under a provision in
Income Tax Act 135A that proposes faceless
information gathering aimed at imparting
efficiency, transparency and accountability. It
eliminates the interface between the income-tax
authority and the assessee.
• The scheme also focuses on the optimal use of
the department’s resources
ADB extends $112 million loan to
establish a skill university in Assam
• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has
approved a $112 million loan to strengthen skills
education and training through the establishment
of the Assam Skill University (ASU).
• The Loan will create a path for skill development
to enhance the productivity and competitiveness
of Assam’s economy and industries
Paytm launches EdTech platform to
train traders, investors – ‘Paytm
Wealth Academy’
• India’s Leading online payment ecosystem
Paytm launched the first of its kind Artificial
Intelligence (AI) powered Educational
Technology (EdTech) platform named, ‘Paytm
Wealth academy’ for traders and investors.
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BoB launches Wearable Payment
Solution – bob World Wave
• Bank of Baroda (BOB) in partnership with
National Payments Corporations of India (NPCI)
launched bob World Wave, a wearable line of
products for payments, integrated with a
complete health ecosystem.
• A bob World Wave wearable device will allow
customers to monitor their Saturation of
Peripheral Oxygen (SpO2), body temperature,
heart rate and blood pressure.The device will
provide contactless payments of up to Rs. 5,000
in all Near-Field Communication (NFC) enabled
Point of Sale (PoS) devices and also enable
payments above Rs 5000 using the PIN.
• It is anticipated that 10 percent of the small ticket
payments will be made through wearable
devices, in the next 2 years.The Bob wave world
line of products will be priced between Rs. 100
and Rs. 5,000.
LIC introduced individual savings
life insurance plan – ‘Dhan Rekha’
• On December 13, 2021, the Life Insurance
Corporation of India (LIC) has introduced a new
Non -Linked, NonParticipating, Individual
Savings Life Insurance Plan named ‘Dhan
Rekha’.
• The plan will offer special premium rates for
female lives and it is also allowed for the third
gender.The minimum sum assured under this
plan is Rs 2 lakh and there is no limit for the
maximum sum assured.
• The minimum age at entry ranges from 90 days
to 8 years and the maximum age at entry ranges
from 35 years to 65 years based on the chosen
policy term.
Axis Bank tie up with Swift to
provide digital banking solution
• Axis Bank is working with new digital services
from provider Swift to provide a comprehensive
digital solution to clients. The bank is integrating
with different digitisation initiatives by
government bodies and service providers to
extend an end-to-end service to business clients.
NABARD Projects 12% increase in
Assam’s Credit Potential to INR
36,292 Cr for FY23
• The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD) projected a 12%
increase in credit potential of Assam to INR
36,292 crore for the 2022-23 financial year (FY).
• The amount will be used as a base for preparation
of the annual credit plan for priority sector
lending (PSL) for FY23
• According to a report titled State Focus Paper for
2022-23 released by the NABARD, around 52%
of the total projected credit potential is estimated
for the agriculture and allied activities, and 36%
for the MSME (Micro,Small and Medium
Enterprises) sector.
Shivalik SFB & Indiagold partner to
launch India’s 1st loan against
‘Digital Gold’
• On 6 December 2021, Shivalik Small Finance
Bank (SSFB) signed a partnership agreement
with fintech firm, Indiagold to launch India’s first
Loan against Digital Gold.
• This agreement will enable customers to use their
digital gold balance to avail instant and digital
loans upto Rs. 60,000 and also seamlessly access
gold loans starting at a monthly interest of just
1%.
ICICI Bank partners with Flipkart to
offer instant overdraft facility
• On 7th December 2021, ICICI Bank partnered
with Flipkart, an e-commerce platform, to offer
an instant and digital overdraft (OD) facility of
up to 25 lakh to individual sellers and businesses
registered on Flipkart.
• The OD is renewable on an annual basis,
depending on the repayment track records of the
seller.
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6. RBI UPDATES RBI’s 24th FSR 2021: Banks GNPA
may rise to 8.1% by September
2022
• On December 29, 2021, Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) released the 24th issue of its Financial
Stability Report (FSR) 2021. It estimated the
Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) Gross
Non-Performing Assets (GNPAs) to rise from 6.9
percent in September 2021 to 8.1 percent of total
assets by September 2022 (under a baseline
scenario) and to 9.5 percent (under severe stress
scenario).
• FSR is the bi-annual collective assessment of the
Sub-Committee of the ‘Financial Stability and
Development Council’ (FSDC-SC) on risks to
financial stability.
RBI extends deadline for periodic
KYC update till March 31, 2022
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended
the deadline for periodic Know Your Customer
(KYC) updation in bank accounts till March 31,
2022, from the previous deadline of December
31, 2021, due to the Omicron variant of the
COVID-19 in India.
• Periodic updation of KYC needs to be carried out
at least once every 2 years for high-risk
customers, once in every 8 years for medium risk
customers and once in every 10 years for low risk
customers from the date of opening of the
account or last KYC updation.
• Section 38 of the Master Direction on KYC dated
February 25, 2016, mandated the REs (Regulated
Entities) to carry out periodic updation of KYC
of existing customers.
RBI Extends Direction for PMC Bank
till March 2022
• On 28 December 2021,the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) extended the restrictions for Punjab and
Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank for
another three months from January 1 2022 to
March 31 2022.
• In exercise of the powers conferred on it by Sub–
section (4) of Section 45 read with Section 56 of
the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, the Reserve
Bank of India had prepared a draft scheme of
amalgamation of The Punjab and Maharashtra
Cooperative (PMC) Bank with Unity Small
Finance Bank Ltd. (USFB.
RBI Extends CoF tokenisation
deadline till June 2022
• On December 23, 2021, the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) extended the card-on-file (CoF)
tokenisation deadline by 6 months i.e. to June 30,
2022. Earlier the deadline was fixed till
December 31, 2021.
• Tokenization: The process of replacing a card’s
sensitive information like card number,
expiration date, security code with a device-
specific alternate code, or ‘Token’ is called
tokenization.
RBI empaneled CSB Bank as
agency bank to undertake
government businesses
• On 21 December 2021, the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) announced empanelment of CSB
Bank, a private sector lender as an ‘Agency
Bank’ to undertake general banking business of
central and state governments.
• Through this appointment, the CSB Bank will
undertake general banking business of the central
and state governments under the guidelines set by
the RBI.
• As an Agency bank, CSB Bank will work with
different state governments and central
government departments for businesses such as
tax collections, pension payment, collection of
stamp duty, etc.
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RBI authorised RBL Bank to collect
indirect taxes
• Based on the recommendation from the
Controller General of Accounts, the Ministry of
Finance, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has
granted permission to RBL Bank to collect
indirect taxes on behalf of the Central Board of
Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).
• RBL Bank has already got permission from RBI
in November 2021 to collect direct taxes. Thus
the current announcement enables the bank to
collect both direct and indirect taxes.
• After technical integration, the banks’ corporate
and individual customers could pay their indirect
taxes through the bank’s mobile banking, net
banking platforms and branch banking network.
RBI allows payments banks, SFBs
as agency bank to conduct govt
business
• On December 15, 2021, in consultation with the
Department of Financial Services (DFS), the
Ministry of Finance, Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) has decided to make the Scheduled
payments banks and scheduled small finance
banks (SFBs) eligible to conduct Government
(govt) agency business.
• In February 2021, the Finance Ministry had
removed the embargo (an official ban) imposed
in September 2012 on the allocation of govt
business to private sector banks
• Thus any payment bank or small finance bank
which intends to undertake govt agency business
could be appointed as an agent of RBI only upon
execution of an agreement with RBI and also in
compliance with the regulatory framework
prescribed for those banks.
RBI introduces PCA Framework for
NBFCs
• On December 14, 2021, the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) issued the Prompt Corrective Action
(PCA) Framework for Non-Banking Financial
Companies (NBFCs) to further strengthen the
supervisory tools .
• The provisions of the PCA framework will be
effective from October 2022 based on the
financial position of NBFCs on or after March
31, 2022. Until now, the RBI had imposed PCA
only on banks.
• Generally an NBFC will be placed under PCA
framework based on the audited Annual
Financial Results and/or the Supervisory
Assessment made by the RBI.
• However, the RBI may impose PCA on any
NBFC during the course of a year (including
migration from one threshold to another) in case
the circumstances so warrant.
• RBI may issue a press release when an NBFC is
placed under PCA as well as when PCA is
withdrawn.PCA framework for NBFCs will be
reviewed by RBI after 3 years.
RBI mandated 20-digit LEI for cross-
border transactions above Rs 50
crore
• In December 2021, the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) has mandated the companies to quote the
20-digit Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) for cross-
border transactions for capital or current account
transactions of Rs 50 crore and above, from
October 1 2022.LEI is a number used to uniquely
identify parties to financial transactions
worldwide to improve the quality and accuracy
of financial data systems.
RBI granted scheduled payment
bank status to Paytm Payments
Bank Limited
• On December 9, 2021, the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) granted a scheduled payment bank status
to the Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) by
including it into the Second Schedule to the RBI
Act, 1934. With this approval, PPBL becomes
the 3rd Scheduled Payments Banks.
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• Apart the PPBL, other payment banks that are in
the List of Second Schedule of the RBI Act are
India Post Payments Bank Limited (IPPBL), and
Fino Payments Bank Limited (FPBL).
• Currently, the list of Scheduled Commercial
Banks (SCBs) include 12 Public Sector Banks
(PSBs), 22 Private Sector Banks, 11 Small
Finance Banks (SFBs), 3 Payments Banks, 43
Regional Rural Banks (RRBs), and 46 Foreign
Banks in India.
RBI fifth bi-monthly monetary policy
of FY21-22
• The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) 6-members
Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had met on
6th, 7th and 8th December 2021 and released its
fifth bi-monthly monetary policy statement for
FY22 (April 2021 – March 2022).
• RBI kept the rates under the liquidity adjustment
facility (LAF) unchanged (maintains status quo)
for the 9th consecutive time i.e it decided to
continue with the accommodative stance to
mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the
economy and to revive and sustain growth on a
durable basis.on the economy and to revive and
sustain growth on a durable basis.
The unchanged Policy rates are as follows
Category Rates
Policy Rates
Repo Rate 4.00%
Reverse Repo Rate 3.35%
Marginal Standing Facility (MSF)
Rate
4.25%
Bank Rate 4.25%
Reserve Ratios
Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) 4.00%
Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) 18.00%
• The MPC has retained India’s real gross
domestic product (GDP) growth projection for
FY22 at 9.5 percent with 6.6 percent in Q3; and
6.0 percent in Q4. Real GDP growth for Q1
FY23 is projected at 17.2 percent and for Q2 at
7.8 percent.
• As per RBI data, India’s GDP has expanded by
13.7 percent in the first half of 2021-22.
• Consumer Price Index (CPI)/Retail inflation was
projected at 5.3 percent in FY22, with 5.1 percent
in Q3 and 5.7 percent in Q4.
• CPI inflation for Q1 and Q2 FY23 was projected
at 5.0 percent.
• The government retained the inflation target at 4
percent with the lower and upper tolerance levels
of 2 percent and 6 percent, i.e. within a band of
+/- 2 percent.
RBI plans to launch UPI-based
payment products for feature phone
users
• RBI has decided to launch a UPI (Unified
Payments Interface)-based payment product for
feature phone users to increase digital penetration
of financial services and support them to transact
digitally without access to smartphones or
reliable internet services.
• Feature phones – These are the basic phones,
which typically provide voice calling and text
messaging functionalities. Some of these devices
also have basic multimedia and internet
options.Currently, UPI requires a smartphone
with a working internet connection to send
money.
RBI to increase in UPI transaction
limit
• Over time, UPI has also become a popular
payment option for Initial Public Offerings
(IPOs) since its availability from January 01,
2019. It is reported that IPO applications of Rs 2
to Rs 5 lakh constitute ~10 percent of
subscription applications.The transaction limit in
the UPI system was enhanced from Rs 1 lakh to
Rs 2 lakh in March 2020.To further encourage
the use of UPI by retail investors, it is proposed
to enhance the transaction limit for payments
through UPI for Retail Direct Scheme and IPO
applications from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.
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7.SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Russia launched 1st versatile
nuclear powered icebreaker ‘Sibir’
to Boost India’s arctic plans via
NSR
• Russia has launched its first in the series Project
22220 versatile nuclear-powered icebreaker
known as ‘Sibir’, which will support the growing
fleet of icebreakers to keep the Northern Sea
Route open for year-round shipping through the
Arctic and enable a wider presence of India in the
arctic region.
• Project 22220 nuclear-powered icebreakers are
the most powerful and the largest in the world.
Russia Successfully launched 3rd &
final demonstration mission of
Angara A5 rocket
• Russia has successfully launched its 3rd and final
demonstration flight of the Angara-A5/Persey
rocket from the state test cosmodrome of the
Russian Defence Ministry – Site 35/1 Plesetsk
cosmodrome, Mirny, ArkhangelskOblast, Russia.
• The Angara is being developed and built by the
Khrunichev State Research and Production Space
Center in Moscow, Russia.This marks the 3rd
launch of the rocket after its maiden launch in
2014
Japan launches Inmarsat-6 F1
Communications Satellite into
Geostationary Orbit
• Japan has launched Inmarsat-6 F1, a
communication satellite, through a Mitsubishi
Heavy Industries’ (MHI) HIIA204 rocket from
Japan’s Tanegashima Space Center that will enter
geostationary orbit, about 22,240 miles (35,790
kilometers) above earth.
• It is developed by the London-based company
Inmarsat as a part of its next-generation satellite
broadband service.
• The satellite is 12,060-pound (5,470 kilograms)
and is the first of two ‘I-6’ spacecraft.
China launches new camera
satellite ‘Ziyuan-1 02E’ to find
resources
• On 26th December 2021, the China National
Space Administration (CNSA) stated about
China’s launch of a new satellite with a high-
resolution camera that can take pictures of the
ground with a resolution of 5 meters.
• The satellite, named ‘Ziyuan-1 02E’ or ‘five-
meter optical satellite 02’ was launched by a
Long March-4C rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite
Launch Centre in north China’s Shanxi province.
NASA’s James Webb Space
Telescope launched from French
Guiana, South America
• This discovery work has been published in the
refereed journal Monthly Notices of the Royal
Astronomical Society, titled ‘Discovery of an
inflated hot Jupiter around a slightly evolved star
TOI-1789’.
• On December 25, 2021, NASA’s (National
Aeronautics and Space Administration) James
Webb Space Telescope (JWST), an infrared
telescope, launched through the Arianespace’s
heavy-lift Ariane 5 rocket from the European
Space Agency’s (ESA) spaceport in Kourou,
French Guiana, on South America’s northeast
coast.
• It is named after James Edwin Webb, one of the
architects of the Apollo Moon programme.
• This 14,000-pound (around 6350 Kg) instrument
is a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope
(1990-till date), and Spitzer space telescope
(2003-2020).
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• It will be positioned at a spot called Lagrange
Point 2 (L2), 1.5million kilometers from earth or
more than four times beyond the moon.
• Its commissioning in space will take 6 months.
• The mission span is between 5-15 years.
• JWST is NASA’s largest and most powerful
space science telescope ever constructed
• The telescope is an international collaboration led
by NASA in partnership with the European space
agency (ESA) and Canadian Space Agency
(CSA).
• Astronomical operation of the telescope will be
managed from the Space Telescope Science
Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, United
States (US). It will be initiated in summer of
2022.
DRDO successfully conducts flight-
test of indigenous aerial target
‘Abhyas’
• On 24th December 2021, Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully
conducted the flight test of indigenously
developed High-speed Expendable Aerial Target
(HEAT) Abhyas, Integrated Test Range (ITR),
Chandipur off the coast of Odisha.
• The performance of the system during the entire
flight duration has been confirmed from the data
captured by various Range instruments deployed.
• Developed by – Aeronautical Development
Establishment (ADE), DRDO laboratory along
with other laboratories
• HEAT provides a high subsonic speed trajectory
at a very low altitude with high endurance that
meets the requirement of aerial targets of the
Indian Armed Forces
India successfully tests ‘Pralay’
missile off the coast of Odisha
• On 22nd December 2021 India successfully test
fired short-range, surface to surface-guided
ballistic missile ‘Pralay’ from APJ Abdul Kalam
Island off the coast of Odisha.
• Pralay is the solid-fuel, battlefield missile based
on Prithvi Defence Vehicle from the Indian
ballistic missile programme.
• Developed by – Defence Research Development
Organisation (DRDO).
• Pralay is a 350-500 km short-range, surface-to-
surface missile with a payload capacity of 500-
1,000 kg.
• The missile is powered with a solid propellant
rocket motor with state-of-the-art navigation
system and integrated avionics which can be
launched from a mobile launcher.
New generation ballistic missile
‘Agni P’successfully test-fired by
DRDO in Odisha
• Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) successfully test-fired its
new generation AgniPrime (Agni-P) missile. The
test was done from adefence base at Dr APJ
Abdul Kalam island off theOdisha coast in
Balasore.
• The Agni-P is a newgeneration advanced variant
of the Agni class ofmissiles. The missile was
designed and developedcompletely by the DRDO
is accurate and effective tothe point
India successfully test-fires vertical
launchshort range surface-to-air
missile
• India successfully test-fired the Vertically
LaunchedShort Range Surface to Air Missile
(VL-SRSAM) fromIntegrated Test Range (ITR)
in Chandipur off the coastof Odisha for
neutralising various aerial threats atclose ranges,
including sea-skimming targets.
• The VL-SRSAM is indigenously designed
anddeveloped by DRDO for the Indian Navy.
The test launch was monitored by senior officials
of the DRDO and Indian Navy.
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Pakistan successfully test-fires
enhancedrange version Babur
Cruise Missile 1B
• Pakistan successfully test-fired an enhanced
rangeversion of its indigenously-built surface-to-
surfaceBabur cruise missile namely ‘Babur
Cruise Missile 1B’that can strike targets up to
900 kilometres from 450km of former
missile.The Babur missile is capable of engaging
targets at land and sea with high precision.
ISRO, Oppo India collaborates to
strengthen R&D of NavIC
messaging service
• An agreement has been inked between the
IndianSpace Research Organisation (ISRO) and
the Chinesesmart devices maker Oppo’s Indian
arm to strengthenthe Research and Development
(R&D) of the NavICmessaging service, an Indian
satellite navigationsystem.NavIC, an acronym for
Navigation with IndianConstellation, aims to
provide a user-friendly platform.
India Successfully Test-Fires Air
Version ofBrahMos Supersonic
Cruise Missile
• India successfully test-fired the air version of the
BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the
integratedtest range of Chandipur, off the coast of
Odisha.The air version of the missile was test-
fired from supersonicfighter aircraft Sukhoi 30
MK-I. The launch paved theway for serial
production of air-version BrahMos missiles.
India successfully test-fires Supersonic
Missile Assisted Torpedo in Odisha
• India has successfully test-fired a long-range
Supersonic Missile Assisted Torpedo (SMART)
off the coast of Balasore in Odisha.The SMART
will enhance anti-submarine warfare capability
far beyond the conventional range of the
torpedo.The weapon system is a next-generation
missile-based standoff torpedo delivery system, it
is being developed by DRDO for the Indian
Navy.
China launches satellites for
spaceexploration – Shijian-6 05
• China successfully launched a new group of
satellitesShijian-6 05 into space from the Jiuquan
Satellite Launch Center in northwest China for
space exploration and new technology tests.The
satellites were launched by a Long March-4B
rocket whichmarked the 400th mission of Long
March series carrier rockets.
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe enters
the Sun’s upper atmosphere
• NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has entered the
Sun’s upper atmosphere for, first time in history.
In 2018, launched the Parker Solar Probe aims to
unravel the mysteries of the Sun by travelling
closer to it. After three years of launching, Parker
has finally arrived in the solar atmosphere. Parker
Solar Probe has flown through the Sun’s upper
atmosphere for the first time in history – the
corona. The probe sampled particles and
magnetic fields there.
• The new milestone marks one major step for
Parker Solar Probe and one giant leap for solar
science.
First Ship ‘Sandhayak’ under Survey
Vessel (Large) project for Indian
Navy launched in WB
• Sandhayak, the first of the four Survey Vessels
(Large)Project being built for the Indian Navy
(IN) waslaunched in Hooghly River of Kolkata,
West Bengal(WB) in the presence of Minister of
State (MoS) AjayBhatt, Ministry of Defence
(MoD).
• It is expected to be commissioned by October
2022. These Vessels havebeen designed and
developed by Defence Public Sector Undertaking
(DPSU), Garden Reach Shipbuildersand
Engineers (GRSE) Limited on the concept
of‘Integrated Construction’.
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8.DEFENCE
Defence Minister lays foundation
stone for DTTC & BRAHMOS
manufacturing centre of DRDO in
Lucknow
• On December 26, 2021 the Union Defence
Minister, Rajnath Singh laid the foundation stone
for Defence Technology & Test Centre (DTTC)
and BrahMos Manufacturing Centre. The 2
defence manufacturing houses will be established
by Defence Research & Development
Organisation (DRDO) in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
(UP).
• The state-of-the-art DTTC is set up as a result of
the MoU signed between Uttar Pradesh
Expressways Industrial Development Authority
(UPEIDA) & DRDO during DefExpo-2020 held
in Lucknow.
Indian Navy Decommissions INS
Khukri after 32 Years of Service
• On 23rd December 2021 INS Khukri (Pennant
number 49), the first indigenously built Missile
Corvette, was decommissioned after 32 years of
service at Visakhapatnam.
• The warship was built by the Mazagon Dock
Shipbuilders (MSD) & Commissioned on 23rd
August 1989 and had been part of both the
Western and Eastern Fleets.
• Commander (now Retired Vice Admiral) Sanjeev
Bhasin was the first Commanding Officer.
• The ship was commissioned in Mumbai by Shri
Krishna Chandra Pant, the then Raksha Mantri
• During the service, the ship was commanded by
28 Commanding Officers and travelled a distance
of over 6,44,897 nautical miles, which can be
equated to navigating around the world 30 times
or 3 times the distance between the Earth and the
Moon.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
unveils indigenous Multi-terrain
Artillery Gun 155– BR
• On the lines of Government’s Make-in-India and
Atmanirbhar Bharat Mission, the Union Minister
Rajnath Singh, Ministry of Defence (MoD)
unveiled indigenously built Multi-terrain
Artillery Gun (MArG 155) – BR which is the
only 155mm 39 calibre gun system mounted on
4×4 HMV (High Mobility Vehicle) in the world.
• It was unveiled in the presence of Chief of the
Army Staff (COAS), Manoj Mukund Naravane.
• It is developed by Pune (Maharashtra)-based
Indian MNC (Multinational Company) Bharat
Forge Ltd.
Indian Army launches in-house
messaging application ASIGMA
• On 23 December 2021, The Indian Army,
launched a contemporary messaging application
named ‘ASIGMA’ (Army Secure IndiGeneous
Messaging Application). It is a new generation
web-based application developed entirely in-
house by a team of officers of the Corps of
Signals of the Army.
• It works as an alternative to Army Wide Area
Network (AWAN) messaging application which
has been in service for the past 15 years
Multinational exercise PANEX-21
inaugurated at Pune, Maharashtra
comprising BIMSTEC nations
• On December 20-22, 2021, the 3rd edition of
multi-national – multi-agency exercise, PANEX-
21, was organized at Pune (Maharashtra) to
develop capabilities in Humanitarian Assistance
and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations among
BIMSTEC nations. BIMSTEC is an acronym for
Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral
Technical and Economic Cooperation.
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IAF deploys first S-400 air defence
system in Punjab sector
• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has deployed the
firstsquadron of the S-400 air defence missile
system inthe western Punjab sector which will
take care ofaerial threats from Pakistan and
China. It wasdeveloped by Russia’s Almaz
Central Marine DesignBureau.The S-400 air
defence system was contractedfrom Russia in a
deal worth around Rs 35,000 croreand five
squadrons would be provided to India fortackling
air threats from up to 400 km.
• Indian Army will soon induct a new range
oflandmines viz. Nipun, Vibhav, Vishal,
Prachandand Uluk which will act as the first line
ofdefence against enemy infantry and
armouredcolumns or terrorists trying to infiltrate
intoIndian territory.
Security of Offshore Assets
inVisakhapatnam, AP reviewed
during exercise‘Prasthan’
• The security of the Offshore Development Area
(ODA)in Krishna Godavari Basin on the East
Coast of India inVisakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
(AP) was reviewed during exercise Prasthan,
conducted on December 21-22, 2021 for a
duration of 24 hours.
• This biannualexercise was coordinated and
controlled by NOICNaval Officer-in-Charge
(APD) from Joint OperationsCentre (JOC)
Visakhapatnam under the aegis of Indian Navy.
Army Chief Gen Naravane takes
charge asChairman of CoSC
• The Chief of Army Staff, General Manoj
Mukund (MM) Naravane, was appointed as the
chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee
(CoSC).The CoSC comprisesthe chiefs of the
Army, Navy, and the Air Force. Hesucceeded
General Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence
Staff(CDS) who passed away in an accident in
TamilNadu.MM Naravane was a 27th Chief of
the Army Staff in 2019.
IAF-DRDO flight-tested Helicopter-
launched Stand-off Anti-Tank
Missile
• Defence Research and Development
Organisation(DRDO) and Indian Air Force (IAF)
successfully flighttested the indigenously
designed and developedHelicopter launched (air-
launched) Stand-off Anti-tank(SANT) Missile
from the Pokhran range in Rajasthan. Itshould be
noted that it is for the first time that thiswas
launched from a Russian origin Mi-35 helicopter
gunship.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
inaugurates Swarnim Vijay Parv
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has inaugurated
Swarnim Vijay Parv commemorating 50 years of
India’s victory in the 1971 war. He inaugurates
‘Wall of Fame -1971 Indo-Pak War’ at the
inaugural ceremony. Swarnim Vijay Parv is an
event commemorating the valour &
professionalism of the Armed Forces and their
contribution to the liberation of Bangladesh in
the Indo-Pak 1971 war, at India Gate Lawns in
New Delhi on December 12, 2021.
• The event marks the culmination of year-long
celebrations of 50 years of India’s victory in
1971.
India-Maldives joint military
Exercise EKUVERIN in Maldives
• The 11th edition of Exercise EKUVERIN-21
between India and Maldives, held at Kadhdhoo
Island, Maldives. Ekuverin means “Friends” in
the Dhivehi language. It is an Indo – Aryan
language. It is spoken in India, Lakshadweep and
Maldives. The exercise enhances synergy and
inter-operability between the Armed Forces of
both nations in terms of understanding
transnational terrorism both on land and at sea,
conducting Counter-Terrorism and Counter-
Insurgency Operations and sharing best military
practices and experiences.
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9. AWARDS AND HONOURS
PETA India has named actress Alia
Bhatt as “Person of the Year 2021”
• People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
(PETA) India has named Indian Bollywood
actress Alia Bhatt as the ‘Person of the Year’
2021 to celebrate her work in supporting the
animal-friendly fashion industry and her
advocacy for dogs and cats in need. Alia Bhatt
has invested in Phool.co, an Indian Institute of
Technology (IIT) Kanpur-backed biomaterial
startup,that develops ‘fleather’ – bio-degradable
vegan leather.
Greenman Viral Desai wins the
Global Environment and Climate
Action Citizen Award 2021
• Viral Sudhirbhai Desai, an industrialist from
Surat, who is popularly known as the Greenman
or green man of Gujarat has been honoured with
the Global Environment and Climate Action
Citizen Award 2021. Among the 28 personalities
from 11 countries who were honoured with this
award, Viral Desai was the only Indian to win the
honour for climate change.
• The winners of the 8th Edition of the “Bharat
Gaurav Awards” Lifetime achievement award
were felicitated at Atlantis, The Palm Island,
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) with the
Bharat Gaurav Samman by Sanskruti Yuva
Sansthan.
Harmony Foundation felicitated the
17th Mother Teresa Memorial
Awards for Social Justice 2021
• Harmony Foundation hosted the 17th annual
Mother Teresa Memorial Awards (MTMA) for
Social Justice 2021 and felicitated the
winners.The award was given by Dr Abraham
Mathai, the founder chairman of the
foundation.The winners are
• Dr Anil Prakash Joshi (The environmentalist,
who was conferred upon the Padma Bhushan in
2021 ,Vidyut Mohan (the winner of the Earth
shot Prize) ,Ridhima Pandey (young
environmental activist from Uttarakhand) ,Tulsi
Gowda (A Padma Shree awardee) ,Aadya Joshi
(Recipient of the Children’s Climate Prize 2020)
,Paani Foundation –Awarded for the mission to
create a droughtfree Maharashtra,and Subojit
Mukherjee –Awarded for his efforts to amplify
the green cover in and around Mumbai.
• The other recipients of the award include –
Vinisha Umashankar (youth environmental
activist); Jamuna Tudu (for preserving the forests
of Jharkhand); WeForest; Pollution Coalition.
Divya Hegde wins UN Women’s
Award for Leadership Commitment
• Divya Hegde, an Indian Climate Action
Entrepreneur from Udupi, coastal Karnataka, has
won the United Nation (UN) Women’s Award
for Leadership Commitment at the 2021 Regional
Asia-Pacific Women’s Empowerment Principles
(WEP) Awards ceremony.
• She has been recognised for her sustained efforts
in advancing gender equality through climate
action efforts.
Other Winners
• Youth Leadership – Pallavi Sherring
• Gender-inclusiveWorkplace – NatWest Group
• Gender-Responsive Marketplace – Dharma Life
• Community Engagement & Partnerships –
The Very Group
• Transparency & Reporting – Biocon Ltd India
• SME Champions – Namita Vikas
Bank of Baroda achieves top
position in digital payments for
2020-21
• On December 20, 2021, Bank of Baroda (BoB)
grabbed the top spot in overall digital
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transactions among large banks for FY20-21. It
was felicitated by the Ministry of Electronics &
Information Technology (MeitY) at the
• Digital payments Utsav which was held to
commemorate 75th anniversary of Independence
of India.
• BoB has been conferred with five DigiDhan
awards for FY 2019-20 & 2020-21 in various
categories.
• The award was received by Akhil Handa, chief
digital officer at BoB, which was presented by
Union minister Ashwini Vaishnav, MeitY and
MoS (Minister of State) Rajeev Chandrashekar,
MeitY.
SAIL receives prestigious Golden
Peacock Environment Management
Award 2021
• The Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL),
awarded with the prestigious Golden Peacock
Environment
• Management Award (GPEMA) 2021 in the Steel
Sector by the Institute of Directors (IOD). SAIL
received this
• award for the 3rd consecutive year
• Golden Peacock Environment Management
Award is a prestigious award that was instituted
by the World Environment Foundation in 1998.
.It encourages corporate companies to enhance
their environmental performances
PM Modi Becomes the 1st Foreigner
to Receive ‘Ngadag Pel gi Khorlo’,
Bhutan’s Highest Civilian Award
• On the occasion of Bhutan’s 114th National Day
(17th December 2021), The Kingdom of Bhutan
has honoured Narendra Modi, Prime
Minister(PM) of India with Bhutan’s highest
civilian award Ngadag Pel gi Khorlo also known
as Order of the Dragon King (Druk Gyalpo).
• PM Modi becomes the first foreigner to receive
the coveted award.
• King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
conferred the award upon PM Modi.
• The announcement was made by Lotay Tshering,
Prime Minister of Bhutan.
Prof Neena Gupta awarded 2021
DST-ICTP-IMU Ramanujan Prize for
Young Mathematicians
• Professor Neena Gupta, a mathematician at the
Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in Kolkata, West
Bengal has been awarded the 2021 DST-ICTP-
IMU Ramanujan Prize for Young
Mathematicians from developing countries. The
award recognized her outstanding work in affine
algebraic geometry and commutative algebra.
Elon Musk named Time Magazine’s
‘Person of the Year’ 2021
• The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tesla &
SpaceX, Elon Musk named ‘Person of the Year
2021’ by Time magazine. He took over the title
from US President Joe Biden & Vice President
Kamala Harris, who received the title in 2020.
• In April 2021, NASA granted Elon Musk’s
rocket company SpaceX an exclusive contract to
put United States (US) astronauts on the moon
for the first time since 1972.
• .COVID-19 Vaccine scientists Kizzmekia
Corbett, Barney Graham, Katalin Kariko and
Drew Weissman named ‘Heroes of the year
2021’ by Time Magazine. They were involved in
developing the m-RNA for COVID-19 Vaccine.
India’s Harnaaz Sandhu Crowned
Miss Universe 2021
• 21 years old Indian Actor and Model, Harnaaz
Sandhu from Chandigarh, Punjab, has been
crowned Miss Universe 2021 at the 70th Edition
of the Miss Universe Competition held in Eilat,
Israel.Harnaaz Sandhu became the 3rd Indian to
be crowned Miss Universe after Sushmita Sen,
the 1st Indian to win Miss Universe (1994) and
Lara Dutta (Miss Universe 2000).
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• Miss Universe 2020 Andrea Meza (Mexico)
presented the crown to Harnaaz Sandhu. Nadia
Ferreira(Paraguay) finished 2nd followed by
Lalela Mswane (South Africa) in 3rd.
• The first-ever Miss Universe pageant was held in
1952 in Long Beach, California, USA.
Architect Balkrishna Doshi to be
honoured with the Royal Gold Medal
2022
• Acclaimed Indian architect Balkrishna Vithaldas
Doshi (94) has been named for the Royal Gold
Medal 2022 which is one of the world’s highest
honours for architecture.
• The announcement for the same was made by
Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
• Notably, worked under Le Corbusier (Designed
Chandigarh) and Louis Kahn, he is a pioneer of
modernist and brutalist architecture in India. In
2018, he became the first Indian architect to
receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize.
Fortune India’s Most Powerful
Women List 2021: Union Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman tops
• Fortune India released the list of most powerful
women in India 2021 in which Union Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman (62), Ministry of Finance &
Ministry of Corporate Affairs ranked 1st.She is
followed by Reliance Foundation Chairperson
and Goodwill Ambassador Nita Ambani (58) in
2nd position, and Soumya Swaminathan (62),
Chief Scientist, World Health Organization
(WHO) at 3rd.
Nilmani Phukan & Damodar Mauzo
wins Jnanpith Awards
• Assamese poet Nilmani Phookan Jr & Konkani
novelist Damodar Mauzo won the country’s
highest literary award, the Jnanpith award for
their outstanding contribution to literature.
• Assamese poet Nilmani Phookan Jr won the 56th
Jnanpith Award and Konkani novelist Damodar
Mauzo won the 57th Jnanpith Award.
• Damodar Mauzo: Damodar Mauzo is 77 years
old, from Majorda, Goa has written many well
known books and his books have been translated
into several Indian languages.
• He has won the Vimala V Pai Vishwa Konkani
Sahitya Puraskar award for his novel ‘Tsunami
Simon’ in 2011.
• Damodar Mauzo is the second awardee of
Jnanpith Award for a Konkani writer. The first
being Ravindra Kelekar in 2006.
• Nilmani Phookan Jr:Phookan is 90 years old
from Guwahati, Assam and has won Sahitya
Akademi and Padma Shri awards.
• He is a poet of renown and has written Surya
Henu Nami Ahe Ei Nodiyedi, Gulapi Jamur
Lagna, and Kobita.
• He was one of the pioneering art critics from
Assam, and worked on folklore and folk art
• Phookan is the third Assamese writer to receive
the Jnanpith. The previous awardees were
Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya in 1979 and
Mamoni Raisom Goswami in 2000.
About Jnanpith Award:
• The award is recognized as the highest literary
award of the country for English and other Indian
languages. It is sponsored by the cultural
organization bharatiya jnanpith.
• t was instituted in 1961 by Bharatiya Jnanpith
trust founded by the Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain
family that owns the Times of India newspaper
group.The Award is open only for Indian citizens
and is awarded annually.
Nirmala Sitharaman ranked 37th on
Forbes’ 2021 World’s 100 Most
Powerful Women
• Finance Minister(FM) of India, Nirmala
Sitharaman has ranked 37th on the Forbes’ list of
the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women 2021 or
18th Edition of Forbes’ list of the World’s 100
Most Powerful Women. She has been featured on
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the list for the 3rd year in a row. She was ranked
41st on the list in 2020 and 34th in 2019
• India’s seventh woman billionaire and the
wealthiest self-made billionaire, Falguni Nayar,
founder and CEO, Nykaa was ranked 88th on the
list.Only 4 Indian Women ranked in Forbes 2021
World’s 100 Most Powerful Women List.
• Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Chairperson of the HCL
Technology, the first woman to lead a listed IT
company in India was ranked 52nd on the list.
• Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, executive chairperson
and founder of Biocon was ranked 72nd on the
list. She founded India’s largest listed
biopharmaceutical firm in India in 1978.
Britain’s 7-times F1 Champion
Lewis Hamilton received Knight
Bachelor for Services to Motorsport
• British racing driver Lewis Hamilton, who has
won the Formula one(F1) Championship 7 times
has been honoured with Britain’s Knight
Bachelor, for Services to Motorsport.Lewis
Hamilton received Knighthood from Charles,
The Prince of Wales, in a ceremony at Windsor
Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, England.
• Hamilton is the 4th F1 driver to receive the
knighthood, the honorary title Sir in Britain after
Jack Brabham(Australian), Stirling Moss and
Jackie Stewart.
• He is the first and the only active racer to receive
the honours.
Other active sportsmen to receive knighthood:
• Bradley Wiggins (Road and track racing
cyclist) was knighted in 2013
• Andy Murray, (Tennis) was knighted in 2016
• Mo Farah (Track athlete) was knighted in 2017
• Alastair Cook (Cricket) was knighted in 2019
Simone Biles named Time
Magazine’s 2021 Athlete of the Year
• Simone Biles was named Time magazine’s 2021
Athlete of the Year. The world’s most decorated
gymnast, a four-time Olympic medalist, was
hailed for putting her mental health first when
she withdrew from four event finals at the Tokyo
Olympics. Despite the setback, the 24-year-old
managed to earn a team all-around silver and a
bronze in balance beam at the Tokyo Games.
Sunil Gavaskar honoured with SJFI
Medal 2021
• The Sports Journalists’ Federation of India (SJFI)
has decided to honour former Indian Cricketer
and cricket commentator Sunil Manohar
Gavaskar with its prestigious ‘SJFI Medal 2021’
at SJFI Annual General Meeting (AGM) in
Guwahati, Assam. SJFI Medal is the highest
honour of SJFI. SJFI was founded on 27th
February 1976 at the Eden Gardens, Calcutta
(now Kolkata), West Bengal.
Other SJFI Awards
Kumar Mangalam Birla receives Global
Entrepreneur of the Year Award
• Aditya Birla Group’s chairman, Kumar
Mangalam Birla has received the Global
Entrepreneur of the Year Award- Business
Transformation from The Indus Entrepreneurs
(TiE) based out of Silicon Valley. Birla is the
first Indian Industrialist to receive the award for
global entrepreneurship along with top global
business leaders Satya Nadella, Elon Musk, and
Jeff Bezos.
Award Winner
SJFI Sportsman of the year 2021
Neeraj Chopra (Javelin)
SJFI Sportswoman of the year 2021
Mirabai Chanu (Weightlifting)
SJFI Team of the Year 2021
Indian Men’s Hockey team
SJFI Parathletes of the year 2021(Men)
Pramod Bhagat (Badminton) and Sumit Antil (Javelin)
SJFI Parathletes of the year 2021(Women)
Avani Lekhara (rifle shooter)
SJFI Special Recognition Award
Olympic Gold Quest (OGQ)
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10. SPORTS
Pankaj Advani wins 2021 National
Billiards Title
• In December 2021, Pankaj Advani defended his
National Billiards Title— to win his 11th one—
after defeating his PSPB teammate Dhruv
Sitwala in a 5-2 game final that was held in
Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh (MP).
• He represented the Petroleum Sports Promotion
Board (PSPB) team in the National Billiards
Championship.
• The 88th National Billiards and Snooker
Championships 2021, held at Bhopal, MP. It was
organised by Billiards and Snooker Federation of
India (BSFI), the governing body for cue sports
in India
• Pankaj Arjan Advani is an Indian billiards and
snooker player, who was the only cueist to win
the Asian and World Championships in all
formats of billiards and snooker
Veteran Indian spinner ‘Harbhajan
Singh’ announced retirement from
all forms of cricket
• On 24 December 2021, the senior Indian off-
spinner, Harbhajan Singh announced retirement
from all forms of cricket.
• Major boost in his international career was when
he snapped 32 wickets in three Tests, including a
hattrick, against Australia in March in 2001.
• Harbhajan was the 1st Indian Cricketer to take
Hat-trick wickets in Test.
• Harbhajan Singh is a 41-year-old cricketer from
Jalandhar, Punjab who took 417 wickets in 103
Tests and is the 4th highest wicket taker for India
in Test cricket.
• He made his debut to the national cricket team,
during an ODI (One Day International) against
New Zealand at Sharjah in 1998 and lastly
represented India in 2016 during a T20 against
the UAE at Dhaka, Bangladesh.
South African cricketer Quinton de
Kock announced retirement from
test cricket
• South African cricketer (wicketkeeper &
Batsman) Quinton de Kock(29 years old) has
announced his retirement from Test Cricket with
immediate effect. He has committed to play
international limited-overs cricket (white-ball
cricket).
• Quinton de Kock hails from Johannesburg,
Gauteng, South Africa.
• He made his test debut against Australia in
Gqeberha, South Africa in 2014.
• He has also played in the Indian Premier League
(IPL) representing Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi
Daredevils, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and
Mumbai Indians.
New Zealand’s Ross Taylor
retirement from international
cricket
• Senior cricket player of New Zealand, Ross
Taylor announces to retire from international
cricket after playing in the Two-Test series
against Bangladesh and his last ODIs (One Day
Innings) against Australia and the Netherlands in
March 2022.Ross Taylor was the World’s 1st
player to play 100 international matches in all 3
formats of cricket.
WADA restores accreditation to
India’s National Dope Testing
Laboratory
• On 23rd December 2021, The World Anti-
Doping Agency (WADA) restored the
accreditation of National Dope Testing
Laboratory (NDTL) in accordance with the
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International Standard for Laboratories (ISL),
which had been suspended since August 2019.
• This accreditation helps to boost India ‘s efforts
to achieve the highest global standards of
excellence in sport.
• Recently ‘The National Anti-Doping Bill 2021’
was introduced in the winter session of the
Parliament.
India wins bronze in Men’s Hockey
Asian Champions Trophy 2021
• On 22nd December 2021 Indian Men’s Hockey
team under the Captaincy of Manpreet Singh
won a bronze medal in the Men’s Asian
Champions Trophy Hockey tournament 2021 in
Dhaka, Bangladesh after defeating
Pakistan.Tournament Held at – Mawlana
Bhashani Hockey Stadium, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• The Men’s Asian Champions Trophy Hockey
Trophy 2021 was won by South Korea and silver
for Japan.
• India won the Men’s Asian Champions Trophy in
2016 and secured joint winners with Pakistan in
2018 which was held at Muscat, Oman.
• The Men’s Asian Champions Trophy is an event
held annually by the Asian Hockey Federation
(AHF) which features Asia’s top six field hockey
teams competing in a round robin format.
BWF Ranking Men’s Singles: India’s
Kidambi Srikanth ranked 10th,
Viktor Axelsen tops
• As on December 21, 2021, Indian badminton
player Kidambi Srikanth has re-entered the top
10 in the Badminton World Federation(BWF)
world rankings. He moved up 4 spots and
secured the 10th position in the ranking.
• He won the silver medal (men’s singles) in the
2021 BWF World Championship and became the
first Indian man to achieve the feat.
• Lakshya Sen, who won the bronze (men’s
singles) in the 2021 BWF World Championship
and B Sai Praneeth has ranked 17th and 18th
respectively.
• Sameer Verma and Prannoy Haseena Sunil
Kumar (Prannoy H. S.) has ranked 25th and 26th
respectively.
• The ranking is topped by Viktor Axelsen of
Denmark followed by Kento Momota of Japan
and Anders Antonsen of Denmark in 2nd and
3rd spot.
Argentina beat Germany to lift 12th
Men’s FIH Junior Hockey World Cup
2021 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha
• Argentina junior men’s hockey team defeated
Germany by 4-2 in the final of the 2021 Men’s
FIH Hockey Junior World Cup (WC) or 12th
edition of the Men’s FIH Hockey Junior WC to
clinch their second Junior Men’s
• Hockey WC title at the Kalinga Stadium in
Bhubaneswar, Odisha. This was held from
November 24, 2021-December 5, 2021.
• This makes them only the third team after
Germany (six titles) and India (2001, 2016) to
win multiple Junior Hockey WC titles.
• The third place was clinched by France after
defeating India by 3-1 in the Bronze medal match
• This biennial men’s under-21 field hockey world
championship was organized by the International
Hockey Federation (FIH).
BWF World Championships 2021
• The 2021 Badminton World Federation (BWF)
World championship (officially known as the
TotalEnergies BWF World Championships
2021), an annual tournament was held between
12th December 2021 and 19th December 2021 in
Huelva, Spain
• Venue – Palacio de los Deportes Carolina Marin,
Spain
• .Kidambi Srikanth has won India’s first medal at
the 2021 World Championships.
• Loh Kean Yew is the first player from Singapore
to win a world championship title.
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Winners of Bwf World Championship
Category Winner Runner
Men’s Singles Loh Kean Yew
(Singapore)
Srikanth Kidambi
(India)
Women’s
Singles
AkaneYamaguchi
(Japan)
Tai – Tzu Ying
(Chinese Taipei)
Men’s
Doubles
Takuro Hoki &
Yugo Kobayashi
(Japan)
He Jiting & Tan
Qiang (China)
Women’s
Doubles
Chen Qingchen – &
Jia Yifan (China)
Lee So-hee &
Shin Seung-Chan
(South Korea)
Mixed
Doubles
Dechapol
Puavaranukroh &
Sapsiree
Taerattanachai
(Thailand)
Yuta Watanabe &
Arisa Higashino
(Japan)
India wins 16 medals in 2021
Commonwealth Weightlifting
Championship & 1 gold in World
Weightlifting Championship
• On 17th December 2021 India concluded the
Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships
2021 with 16 medals, including 4 golds held at
Tashkent, Uzbekistan while Bindyarani Devi was
India’s only medallist at the World Weightlifting
Championships 2021,that was also held parallelly
at Tashkent.Bindyarani Devi won the Gold
Medal in the 55 kg Clean & Jerk event.
• India ended the Commonwealth championships
with 16 medals – 4 Gold, 7 Silver, and 5 Bronze
with 19 representatives in different categories
participating in commonwealth games 2021.
• India’s 4 Commonwealth gold medallists –
(Jeremy Lalrinnunga, Achinta Sheuli, Ajay
Singh, Purnima Pandey) have qualified directly
for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in
Birmingham, United Kingdom (UK).
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen wins
Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2021
• Red Bull’s Max Emilian Verstappen (24) from
The Netherlands clinched the Formula 1 Etihad
Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2021 by
defeating Mercedes’ Lewis Carl Davidson
Hamilton of the United Kingdom (UK) at the Yas
Marina Circuit on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi,
United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• With this, Max Verstappen won his first Formula
One (F1) World Driver Championship.
Avani Lekhara wins ‘Best Female
Debut’ honour at 2021 Paralympic
Sport Awards
• Indian shooter Avani Lekhara, who has created
history by winning India’s first Gold medal in
Shooting at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, won
the “Best Female Debut” honour at the 2021
Paralympic Sport Awards. The
• Awards were announced by the International
Paralympic Committee.
• She became the 1st Indian woman to win 2
Paralympic medals in a single edition of the
Paralympic Games.
• India won an unprecedented 19 medals at the
Paralympic Games including 5 Gold, 8 Silver &
6 Bronze.
Other Winners of 2021 Paralympic Sport Awards
Player Sport Category
Adam Peska
(Czech Republic)
Boccia Best Male Debut
Winner
Diede de Groot
(Netherlands)
Tennis Best Female
Athlete
Marcel Hug
(Switzerland)
Para
Athletics
Best Male
Athlete
Great Britain
Rugby team
Rugby Best Team
Dr Anja
Hirschmueller
(Germany)
– Best Official)
World Chess Championship 2021-
Magnus Carlsen wins his 5th Title
defeating Ian Nepomniachtchi
• On 10th December 2021, Norway’s Magnus
Carlsen, the defending Champion won his 5th
World Chess Championship after defeating
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Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi in 2021’s World
Chess Championship that was organised by FIDE
(the International Chess Federation) at Dubai,
UAE.i.Magnus Carlsen won the finals, with 7.5-
3.5, against his Russian opponent Ian
Nepomniachtchi.
• Game 6 of the finals saw the longest game in the
history of the championship, which lasted a
record 136 moves, and for 15 minutes short of 8
hours.
• Magnus Carlsen has previously won the
Championship in 2013, 2014, 2016 & 2018
• Magnus Carlsen has been holding the
Championship since 2013, when he defeated
India’s Viswanathan Anand in the 2013
Championship finals.
• Magnus Carlsen is also the FIDE World No.1
Chess player since 2011
India wins 41 medals at Asian
Youth Para Games
• On 8th December 2021 at Indian’s claimed 41
medals, with 12 gold, 15 silver, and 14 bronze, at
4th Asian Youth Para Games (AYPG), Asia’s
biggest event that was held in Riffa, Bahrain
• The event is organized by the National
Paralympic Committee (NPC) of Bahrain.
• Over 700 athletes from around 30 countries
participated in the event from 2nd to 6th
December 2021.
• 9 Para Sports played- Para athletics, Para
badminton, boccia, goalball, Para powerlifting,
Para swimming, Para table tennis, Para
taekwondo, and wheelchair basketball.
• Indian Contingent took part in all the 9 sports.
• The 5th edition of the Asian Youth Para Games
2025 will be hosted by Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Australia’s Ashleigh Barty won the
WTA Player of the Year for 2nd time
• Women’s Tennis Association(WTA)’s World
No.1 Ashleigh Barty, Australian professional
tennis player, has won the 2021 WTA Player of
the Year Award.She won the award for the 2nd
Time, previously she won the WTA Player of the
year in 2019.
• Apart from this, .Emma Raducanu, British
professional tennis player who made her Grand
Slam main draw debut at 2021 Wimbledon has
been named the WTA Newcomer of the Year
2021.
New Zealand’s Ajaz Patel becomes
3rd bowler to take 10 wickets in an
innings
• During the 2nd Test match between India & New
Zealand, the Mumbai-born Ajaz Patel created
history by taking all 10-wickets of Indian players
in the 1st innings which was played at Mumbai’s
Wankhede Stadium. He completed his spell with
an impressive 10 wickets for 119-runs
• Ajaz Patel became the 3rd player in the history of
Men’s Test cricket to take all 10 wickets in an
innings. He is also the 1st New Zealand Player to
hold this historic record.
• Other 2 players holding the record – England’s
Jim Laker in 1956 & India’s Anil Kumble in
1999.
Lewis Hamilton Wins inaugural
edition of Saudi Arabian GP
• On 5th December 2021 Mercedes Driver Lewis
Hamilton (Britain) won the inaugural edition of
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (GP), by surpassing
Max Verstappen (Netherlands) in the event held
at the 30-kilometer (18.6-mile) coastal resort area
in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
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11.OBITUARIES
Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond
Tutu passes pway
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Peace Prize
laureate and a veteran of South Africa’s struggle
against white minority rule, died at the age of 90
in Cape town.He won the Nobel Peace prize in
1984 in recognition of his non-violent opposition
to South Africa’s brutal apartheid regime.He
chaired a Truth and Reconciliation Commission
which was set up to unearth atrocities committed.
• He was born in Klerksdorp, Transvaal, who spent
most of his life in Cape Town and led numerous
marches and campaigns to end South Africa’s
struggle.
Former Union Minister R. L. Jalappa
passes away
• L. Jalappa, a veteran leader of the Indian
National Congress(INC) and the former Union
Minister of Textiles has passed away in Kolar,
Karnataka.
• The Government of Karnataka honoured him
with the D Devaraj Urs Award in 2015 for his
contribution to the field of education and
development.
Pritzker Prize-winning British-Italian
Architect Richard Rogers passed
away
• Richard Rogers, Pritzker Prize-Winning British-
Italian Architect, has passed away at his
residence in London, The United Kingdom(UK).
He was born in Italy in 1933.He received the
Pritzker Prize, known as the Nobel Prize of
Architecture, in 2007.
• He received the Knight Bachelor in 1991 and he
was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. He was the
architect of the new World Trade Center (3
World Trade Center) in New York City, United
States, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, France and
the Millennium Dome in London, UK.
Padma Shri awardee Nanda Kishore
Prusty passes away
• Padma Shri awardee who is a well-known
teacher from Odisha, Nanda Kishore Prusty
(Nanda Sir), passed away at bhubaneswar,
Odisha.He was conferred with the Padma Shri
award for his contributions in the field of
education.
India’s 1st CDS Bipin Rawat dies in
IAF Mi17 Helicopter Crash
• Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Indian Armed
Force General Bipin Rawat, India's most senior
defence official died in a helicopter crash near
Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.Gen Rawat was on board
an Indian Air Force (IAF) Mi17 V5 helicopter
from Russia along with his wife Madhulika
Rawat, and 11 other defence personnel. While
IAF Group Captain Varun Singh is the lone
survivor in the crash.
Senior Journalist Vinod Dua passed
away at 67
• Senior journalist Vinod Dua passed away at the
age of 67 years in Delhi’s Hospital.In 1996, he
became the first electronic media journalist to
receive the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in
Journalism Award.He was honoured with Padma
Shri for Journalism in 2008.
Sarada Menon, India’s 1st Woman
Psychiatrist, passed away
• Padma Bhushan Dr Mamballaikalathil Sarada
Menon, India’s 1st woman Psychiatrist and the
longest-serving head of the Institute of Mental
Health has passed away in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
She was born in a Malayali family in Mangaluru,
Karnataka. She was honoured with Padma
Bhushan in 1992 for social works.
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12. REPORTS, INDICES AND RANKINGS
Good Governance Index 2020-21:
Gujarat tops the Index followed by
Maharashtra, Goa
• On December 25 2021, on the occasion of Good
Governance Day, Union Minister of Home
Affairs and Minister of Cooperation, Amit Shah
released the Good Governance Index 2020-21
(GGI 2021) which was a biannual exercise
prepared by Department of Administrative
Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG).
• Gujarat has topped the composite ranking in the
GGI covering 10 sectors 58 indicator index
followed by Maharashtra and Goa.
Top ranking states in sectors as well as composite
ranks
3rd ARIIA 2021: IIT-Madras tops for
3rd consecutive year as most
innovative educational institute
• Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT
Madras) ranked 1st & recognized as the Most
Innovative Educational Institute in India in the
3rd edition of Atal Ranking of Institutions on
Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) 2021. It is for
the 3rd consecutive year that IIT Madras has
been recognized.
Telangana tops in the Implementation
of SPMRM
• Telangana has secured 1st place among the 34
states and Union Territories(UTs) that implement
the Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission
(SPMRM), Tamil Nadu and Gujarat has secured
the 2nd and 3rd place on the list respectively.
• In the Ranking of the Cluster, among the 295
clusters, the Ryakal cluster of Sangareddy and
the Jukkal cluster of Kamareddy in Telangana
has secured the 1st and 2nd position respectively.
The Aibawk cluster of Aizawl in Mizoram has
secured the 3rd position.The ranking was made
based on the performance-based indicators as of
28th December 2021.
Global Unicorn Index 2021: India
Ranked 3rdReplacing UK
• As per the Global Unicorn Index 2021 report
released by the Hurun Research Institute, India
ranked at third (by adding 33 ‘unicorns’) in 2020
by displacing the United Kingdom (UK) to the
4th spot. In 2020, India ranked at the 4th spot.
• US, China comprise 74% of unicorns: The
United States (US) and China still continue to
bag the top two ranks in the list by adding 254
and 74 unicorns, respectively
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India Skills Report 2022:
Maharashtra Retains Top Position
for most Employable Talent
• As per the 9th edition of India Skills Report
(ISR) 2022, released by Wheebox, Maharashtra
has retained the top position in the list of states
with the highest poll of employable talent
followed by Uttar Pradesh and Kerala.
• The theme of ISR 2022 – ‘Rebuilding and
Reengineering the Future of Work’.
• States with Maximum Hiring Activity:
Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu are the
3 states that have a higher job demand
World Malaria Report 2021:
Worldwide Malaria Cases in 2020
estimated at 241 million
• According to WHO’s (World Health
Organisation) latest World Malaria Report 2021,
globally there were an estimated 241 million
malaria cases and 627000 malaria deaths in 85
malaria-endemic countries in 2020, increasing
from 227 million in 2019. Globally, India
accounts for 1.7 percent of malaria deaths in
2020. As per the report, India was the only high-
burden country to have sustained a reduction in
the disease burden.
India ranked 66th at the Global
Health Security Index 2021; USA
tops
• As per the Global Health Security (GHS) Index
2021, the world’s average overall GHS Index
score was reduced to 38.9 (out of 100) in 2021,
from a score of 40.2 in the GHS Index, 2019.
India ranked 66 out of 195 countries with an
overall Index score of 42.8 and along with a
change of -0.8 from 2019.
• The United States of America (USA) ranked 1st
on the index with a score of 75.9 followed by
Australia and Finland.The 2021 GHS Index
assesses countries across 6 categories, 37
indicators, and 171 questions.
Asia Power Index 2021: India
Ranked as 4thmost Powerful
Country
• Index Name - Lowy Institute Asia Power Index
2021India ranked 4th most powerful country out
of 26 countries.India is one of 18 countries in
Asia to trend downward in its overall score in
2021. The top 10 countries for overall power in
the Asia-Pacific region are the US, China, Japan,
India, Russia, Australia, South Korea, Singapore,
Indonesia and Thailand.
India ranks 56th on IMD 2021 World
Talent Ranking; Switzerland tops
• Report Name - International Institute for
Management Development (IMD) 2021 World
Talent Ranking
• Published by - IMD World Competitiveness
Center
• India has ranked 56th in the report and it
evaluates the ability of the economies in
developing, attracting and retaining talent.
• The IMD World Talent Ranking 2021 shows the
overall ranking for 64 economies.
• In the Peer Group Ranking – Asia – Pacific, India
have ranked 12th.Switzerland tops the ranking
followed by Sweden in 2nd and Luxembourg in
3rd.
HAL, BEL, Indian Ordnance Factories
ranked among SIPRI Top 100 Arms-
Producing Companies 2020
• As per the report of Swedish think-tank
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
(SIPRI) titled ‘Top 100 arms-producing and
military services companies, 2020’, 3 Indian
defence manufactures companies such as
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Indian
Ordnance Factories, and Bharat Electronics
Limited (BEL) ranks among the top 100
manufacturers globally.The HAL, ranked 42nd,
and BEL, ranked 66th, Indian Ordnance Factories
ranked 60th.
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13. SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES India hosts 8th Indian Ocean Dialogue
• India hosted the 8th Edition of the Indian Ocean
Dialogue virtually with the assistance of the
Indian Council for World Affairs and the Indian
Ocean Rim Association (IORA) Secretariat. The
Dialogue comprises 4 Sessions which focuses on
the Health, Education, Development and Trade
sectors that ensures digital inclusion and bridging
the digital device.
• The dialogue was jointly hosted by the External
Affairs Ministry and Indian Council of World
Affairs.
• Theme – Post Pandemic Indian Ocean:
Leveraging Digital Technologies for Health,
Education, Development and Trade in IORA
Member States.
3rd meeting of the India-Central Asia
Dialogue held in New Delhi
• The 3rd meeting of the India-Central Asia
Dialogue was held in New Delhi from 18th to
20th December 2021 under the chairmanship of
Dr S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister
(EAM) of India.The Foreign Ministers of
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan participated in the
3rdMeeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue.
• The Ministers of Central Asian countries have
agreed to hold the next meeting of the
IndiaCentral Asia Dialogue in 2022.
All-India Mayors’ conference held at
Varanasi
• Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India virtually
inaugurated the All India Mayors’ Conference
held at Pt Deendayal Upadhyay Trade
Facilitation Centre in Varanasi, Uttar
Pradesh(UP). Around 120 mayors from different
states attended the conference held in Varanasi
(also known as Kashi).
• The theme of the conference was ‘New Urban
India’.
The 1st Summit for Democracy
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has participated
in the closed-door virtual Summit Session of the
1st summit for democracy which was convened
by United States President Joe Biden.India was
among the 12 countries invited to attend the
Summit for Democracy Leaders’ Plenary
Session.
India joins G20’s Troika with
Indonesia and Italy
• Indonesia assumed the Presidency of G20 (Group
of 20) from the outgoing Italy, which held the
presidency for the last 1-year. With this
Presidency change, India which is set to hold the
G20 Presidency from 1st December 2022 to 31st
November 2023 has entered the G20 Troika.G20
Troika is a group comprising theprevious, current
& the next G20 Presidencies of G20.
• Theme for G20 Leaders Summit 2022 –
“Recover Together, Recover Stronger”.
52nd IFFI 2021 held in Goa
• 52nd edition of the Asia’s oldest and largest film
festival, International Film Festival of India
(IFFI), held in Goa with support of Directorate of
Film Festivals (under Ministry of Information
and Broadcasting) and the Entertainment Society
of Goa.It was conducted in hybrid mode.
• Union Minister for Information and
Broadcasting, Anurag Singh Thakur,announced
that Hema Malini, Actor, Member of Parliament
from Mathura, UP and Prasoon Joshi, Lyricist
and Chairperson, CBFC (Central Board of Film
Certification) were the Indian Film Personality of
the Year Award for 2021.
• Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award -
Hungarian film director Istevan Szabo and
American film director, producer, screenwriter
and actor Martin Scorsese have been conferred
with the award.
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PM Modi holds India-Russia Summit
2021
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian
President Vladimir Putin held the 21st India-
Russia Annual Summit to discuss the entire
gamut of relations, including regional and global
issues. During his visit, India and Russia signed
28 agreements. The leaders discussed on
International North-South Transport Corridor and
also about the Chennai – Vladivostok Eastern
Maritime Corridor (which is under the proposal).
• The visit of the Russian President is a reflection
of the country’s commitment to its ties with
India. This is in need of the moment. Because the
ties between India and Russia were buffeted by
New Delhi’s ties with the US. Also, Russia was
getting closer with China on the back of US
sanctions, CAATSA and its annexation of
Crimea in 2014.
India to chair Counter Terrorism
Committee of UNSC in January
2022
• India will chair the Counter-Terrorism
Committee of UNSC in January 2022 after 10
years. The Counter-Terrorism Committee was
established by Security Council resolution 1373
adopted unanimously on 28 September 2001 in
the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks in the US. The
Committee was tasked with monitoring the
implementation of resolution 1373 which
requested countries to implement a number of
measures aimed at enhancing their legal and
institutional ability to counter terrorist activities
at home and around the world.
NMCG and c-Ganga organized 6th
India Water Impact Summit 2021 in
Hybrid mode
• The 6th edition of the India Water Impact
Summit (IWIS) 2021 was organized by the
National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), and
Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and
Studies (c-Ganga) in a hybrid mode.
• Physically it was held at NMCG office, New
Delhi and IIT (Indian Institutes of Technology),
Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
• The theme of the summit is ‘River Resources
Allocation “Planning and Management at the
Regional Level’.
• It was inaugurated by Union Minister Gajendra
Singh Shekhawat, Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS)
along with Rajiv Ranjan Mishra, Director
General NMCG; and Dr Vinod Tare, Founding
Head, c-Ganga.
MoS of S&T Dr Jitendra Singh
Inaugurated 7thIndia International
Science Festival 2021
• Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State(MoS)
(Independent Charge) Science &
Technology(S&T), inaugurated the 7th edition of
the India International Science festival, IISF
2021 at Panaji, Goa.IISF is a joint program of the
Ministry of Science & Technology(MoST),
Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES) and Vijnana
Bharati (VIBHA), a swadeshi science movement
of Bharat.
• Nodal Agency for organising IISF 2021 was the
National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research,
an autonomous institute under the MoES.
MeitY organized ‘Digital Payment
Utsav’ in New Delhi; Yes Bank
launched RuPaybranded Credit Card
on Payment Platform
• Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeitY) organized ‘Digital Payment
Utsav’ in New Delhi, Delhi as a part of the week-
long ‘Azadi Ka Digital Mahotsav’ to
acknowledged the rise of digital payments in
India by bringing together leaders from the
Government, Banking, financial services and
insurance (BFSI), and startups. Union Minister
launched various initiatives viz.
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14. APPOINTMENTSVishwavir Ahuja Steps down as the
MD & CEO of RBL Bank; Rajeev
Ahuja takes over
• The board of the RBL Bank has accepted to
proceed with the medical leave of Vishwavir
Ahuja, the Managing Director (MD) and Chief
Executive Officer(CEO) of RBL Bank Ltd, the
erstwhile Ratnakar Bank Ltd. Vishwavir Ahuja
will step down from the post of MD & CEO and
go on leave with immediate effect.Rajeev Ahuja,
Executive Director of the RB L Bank has been
appointed as the interim managing director &
CEO of the RBL Bank, with immediate effect,
subject to regulatory and other approvals.
Atul Kumar Goel appointed as new
MD & CEO of PNB
• Atul Kumar Goel was appointed as the Managing
Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of
Punjab National Bank (PNB). He will serve as
PNB chief until December 31, 2024.He will
succeed Mallikarjuna Rao, the incumbent MD &
CEO of PNB, who will retire on 31st January
2022.
Vasudevan reappointed as MD &
CEO of Equitas Small Finance Bank
for 3 years
• The Board of Directors (BoD) of Equitas Small
Finance Bank Limited (ESFBL) reappointed
Vasudevan Pathangi Narasimhan (PN) as the
Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) for three years (from July 23,
2022 to July 22, 2025). Vasudevan PN is
currently serving as the MD and CEO of the
bank. Earlier he was working as the MD of
Equitas Holdings Limited.
EaseMyTrip appointed actors Vijay
Raaz & Varun Sharma as brand
ambassadors
• EaseMyTrip.com (Easy Trip Planners Ltd), an
online travel company of India has appointed
bollywood actors Vijay Raaz and Varun Sharma
as its brand ambassadors. This is the first time for
EaseMyTrip to appoint any brand ambassador.
Diplomat Anupam Ray appointed as
India’s permanent representative at
UN Conference on Disarmament
• Senior diplomat Dr Anupam Ray, a 1994 batch
of Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, has been
appointed as India’s next permanent
representative(PR)/Ambassador to the United
Nations(UN) Conference on Disarmament(CD)
in Geneva, Switzerland.He is currently serving as
the joint secretary in the Ministry of External
Affairs(MEA).He replaces Dr Pankaj Sharma.He
has been appointed as the next Ambassador of
India to Mexico
PV Sindhu re-elected as member of
BWF’s Athletes’ commission for 2nd
term till 2025
• PV Sindhu was re-elected as a member of the
Badminton World Federation (BWF)’s Athletes’
Commission for a 2nd term till 2025. She is
among the 6 appointed members of the
Commission.Sindhu was first elected as a
member of the BWF’s Athletes’ Commission in
2017. She is the only member who stood for re-
election.
DRDO Scientist Atul Dinkar Rane
appointed DG BrahMos Aerospace
Limited
• Senior DRDO (Defence Research and
Development Organisation) Scientist Atul Dinkar
Rane has been appointed as the Director-
General(DG) of the BrahMosAerospace Private
Limited, Which manufactures the BrahMos
supersonic cruise missile. He was a part of the
core team of BrahMos Aerospace, since its
foundation as a joint venture with Russia.
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Gabriel Boric becomes youngest
president elect of Chile
• Gabriel Boric, 35-year-old, won Chile
presidential elections, to become the youngest-
ever President elect of Chile. He defeated his
oppositionJose Antonio Kast in the elections.He
will become the youngest president in Chile’s
history
UN appoints Catherine Russell as
executive director of UNICEF
• United Nation (UN) Secretary-General Antonio
Guterres appointed Catherine Russell as the
Executive Director of United Nations
International Children’s Emergency Fund
(UNICEF). Russell will succeed Henrietta Fore,
who resigned in July 2021. Russell, a lawyer, has
worked in Democratic politics since the mid-
1980s.Catherine Russell is an assistant to US
President Joe Biden and she also heads the White
House Office of Presidential Personnel.
FICCI appoints HUL Chairman -
Sanjiv Mehta as President-elect
• Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI) is set to appoint Sanjiv Mehta,
the Chairman & Managing Director of Hindustan
Unilever Limited (HUL), as its New President
after the conclusion of FICCI's 94th Annual
General Meeting on 18th December 2021.
Olaf Scholz appointed as German
Chancellor; succeeds Angela
Merkel
• The Parliament of Germany has appointed Olaf
Scholz (63) as the 9th post-World War II
Chancellor of Germany succeeding Angela
Dorothea Merkel whoretires from her services
after 16 years (since 2005) of tenure as
Chancellor.The ceremony for the same took
place at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany
Disney BYJU’s early learn app signs
Neeraj Chopra & PV Sindhu as
brand ambassadors
• In December 2021 BYJU’S announced a 2 year
partnership with Olympic medalists Neeraj
Chopra and PV Sindhu as the brand ambassadors
for Disney BYJU’S Early Learn app.Javelin
thrower, Neeraj Chopra is a Gold medallist and
Badminton player, PV Sindhu is a Bronze
medallist from 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Alka Upadhyaya appointed as New
Chairperson of NHAI
• Alka Upadhyaya, IAS officer (1990 batch) of
Madhya Pradesh cadre appointed as Chairperson
of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI)
under Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
(MoRTH) by the Government of India.She
succeeded Giridhar Aramane, who was given
additional charge of the Chairperson of NHAI
after Sukhbir Singh Sandhu steps down.
Pradip Shah appointed NARCL
Chairman & Sanjay Jain joins as the
CEO of IDRCL
• The founder of IndAsia Fund Advisors,Pradip
Shah appointed as the Chairman of National
Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd (NARCL)
and Managing Director of Aditya Birla Asset
Reconstruction Company (ABARC), Sanjay Jain
appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
of India Debt Resolution Company Ltd
(IDRCL).Diwakar Gupta, former managing
director of State Bank of India (SBI), also
appointed as Chairman of IDRCL.
Gita Gopinath appointed as the
IMF’s first deputy managing
director
• Indian-American and the first female Chief
Economist of the International Monetary Fund
(IMF), Gita Gopinath is promoted as the IMF’s
First Deputy Managing Director (FDMD) serving
under IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva. She will
succeed FDMD Geoffrey Okamoto who is set to
be relived from IMF.She hails from
Kannur,Kerala.
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15. IMPORTANT DAYS AND THEMES International Day of Epidemic
Preparedness 2021 – December 27
• United Nations (UN)’s International Day of
Epidemic Preparedness is annually observed across
the globe on 27th December to create awareness
about the importance of the prevention of,
preparedness for and partnership against epidemics.
Good Governance Day 2021 – December
25
• The Good Governance Day is annually observed
across India on 25th December to commemorate the
birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari
Vajpayee.
• 25th December 2021, the ‘8th Good Governance
Day’ marks the 97th birth anniversary of former
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Bharatiya Grahak Diwas or National
Consumer Day 2021 – December 24
• Bharatiya Grahak Diwas or National Consumer
Day is annually observed across India on 24th
December to create awareness about consumer
rights and responsibilities.
• The National Consumer Day is also known as
National Consumer Rights Day.
• Theme: “Consumer – Know your Rights”
5th National Siddha Day – 23rd
December 2021
• Siddha day is annually observed across India on
23rd December to create awareness about the
Siddha system of medicine.
• Theme: “Strength of Siddha in Communicable
Diseases”.
Kisan Diwas or National Farmers’ Day
2021 – December 23
• The Kisan Diwas or National Farmers’ Day is
annually observed across India on 23rd December
to commemorate the birth anniversary of
Chaudhary Charan Singh, the 5th Prime Minister of
India (1979- 1980)
• He is popularly known as the “champion of India’s
peasants”.
National Mathematics Day 2021 –
December 22
• National Mathematics Day is annually celebrated
across India on 22nd December to mark the birth
anniversary of renowned Indian mathematician
Srinivasa Ramanujan.
• 2021 SASTRA Ramanujan Prize was awarded to
Dr Will Sawin of Columbia University, United
States of America (USA).
International Human Solidarity Day 2021
– December 20
• United Nations(UN)’s International Human
Solidarity Day is annually observed across the
globe on 20th December to create awareness about
the importance of solidarity.
Minorities Rights Day 2021 – December
18
• Minorities Rights Day is annually observed across
India on 18th December to create awareness on the
Constitutionally-assured rights of religious
minorities and aims to uphold the right to freedom
and equal opportunities for the ethnic minorities in
India.
UN World Arabic Language Day observed
on December 18 2021
• This day honors the Arabic language, which is
spoken by over 400 million people globally and
celebrates the cultural diversity of the Middle
Eastern region.
• Theme: ‘Arabic Language, a bridge between
civilisations’.
International Migrants Day 2021 –
December 18
• United Nations (UN)’s International Migrants Day
is annually observed across the world on December
18th to increase the interest of the international
community on effective and full protection of the
human rights of the migrants.
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• Theme: “Harnessing the Potential of Human
Mobility”
International Day to End Violence
Against Sex Workers 2021 - December 17
• Sex Workers 2021 - December 17 International Day
to End Violence Against Sex Workers is annually
observed across the globe on 17th December to
focus attention on the hate crimes committed
against sex workers across the globe.
• ‘Red Umbrella’ is the symbol for sex workers’
rights across the globe.
50th Vijay Diwas – 16th December 2021
• Vijay Diwas is annually observed across India and
Bangladesh on December 16th to commemorate the
victory of Indian armed forces against Pakistan in
the 1971 Indo Pak War, also known as the 1971
Liberation War and pays tribute to the soldiers who
sacrificed their lives for nation.
National Energy Conservation Day 2021 –
December 14
• National Energy Conservation Day is annually
observed across India on 14th December to create
awareness about the importance of energy
conservation and the benefits of replacing
nonrenewable resources with renewable energy.
• The day is annually organised by the Ministry of
Power.
International Day of Neutrality 2021 –
December 12
• United Nations (UNs) International Day of
Neutrality is annually observed globally on 12th
December to promote neutrality among countries
and to lay emphasis on raising awareness levels in
public about the value of neutrality in international
relations.
International Universal Health Coverage
Day 2021 – December 12
• United Nations(UN)’s International Universal
Health Coverage Day (UHC Day) is annually
observed across the globe on 12th December to
create awareness about the need for strong and
resilient health systems and Universal Health
Coverage (UHC).
• Theme: “Leave No One’s Health Behind: Invest in
health systems for all.”
• UNICEF Day 2021 – December 11
• UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Day is
annually observed across the globe on 11th
December to create awareness on saving children’s
lives, defending their rights and helping them to
fulfil their potential from childhood to adolescence
• UNICEF was originally known as the “United
Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund”.
• International Mountain Day 2021 –
December 11
• United Nations (UN)’s International Mountain Day
is annually observed across the globe on 11th
December to create awareness about the importance
of preserving the mountains across the globe.
• Theme: “Sustainable mountain tourism”.
• United Nations General Assembly(UNGA) has
declared the year 2002 as the “International Year of
Mountains”.
Human Rights Day 2021 – December 10
• United Nations (UN) Human Rights Day 2021 is
observed annually on December 10, as the Day
marks the anniversary of the adoption of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)
in 1948 to raise awareness about people’s social,
cultural, and physical rights and to ensure the
welfare of everyone.
• Theme:‘Equality – Reducing inequalities,
advancing human rights.
International Day of Commemoration and
Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of
Genocide & the Prevention of this Crime
- December 9
• International Day of Commemoration and Dignity
of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the
Prevention of this Crime is marked annually on 9th
December.
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• 2021 marks the 73rd anniversary of the adoption of
the 1948 ‘Genocide Convention’ by the United
Nations General Assembly (UNGA)
International Anti-Corruption Day 2021 –
December 9
• United Nations (UN) International Anti-Corruption
Day is observed annually on 9th December to raise
awareness of corruption and of the role of the UN
convention on combating and presenting
corruption.
• Theme: “Your right, your role: say no to
corruption”.
International Civil Aviation Day 2021 –
December 7
• United Nations(UN)’s International Civil Aviation
Day(ICAD) is annually observed across the globe
on December 7th to create awareness about the
importance of international civil aviation towards
the social and economic development of the states
and its importance in creating a globally transit
network.
• Theme: “Advancing Innovation for Global Aviation
Development”.
India & Bangladesh Celebrates Maitri
Diwas on December 6
• India and Bangladesh will jointly observe Maitri
Diwas/Divas or friendship day on December 6 in
New Delhi (India) and Dhaka (Bangladesh).
• 2021 marks the 1st Maitri Diwas of India and
Bangladesh.
International Volunteer Day for
Economic and Social Development 2021
– December 5
• United Nations(UN)’s International Volunteer Day
for Economic and Social Development, which is
commonly referred to as the International Volunteer
Day(IVD) is annually observed across the globe on
5th December to create awareness about the
important contribution of volunteer service and
encourage more people to offer their service as
volunteers.
• Theme: “Volunteer now for our common future”.
World Soil Day 2021 – December 5
• United Nations(UN)’s World Soil Day(WSD) is
annually observed across the globe on December
5th to highlight the importance of healthy soil and
to advocate the sustainable management of soil
resources.
• Theme: “Halt soil salinization, boost soil
productivity”
Indian Navy Day 2021 – December 4
• ndian Navy Day is annually observed across India
on 4th December to commemorate the victory of
India Navy’s Operation Trident, launched during
the 1971 Indo-Pak war and to pay homage to the
martyrs who lost their lives in the line of duty
• Theme: ‘Swarnim Vijay Varsh’.
International Day of Banks 2021 –
December 4
• United Nations (UN)’s International Day of Banks
is annually observed across the globe on 4th
December to recognize the vital role of the banking
systems in the UN Member States in contributing to
the improvement of their standard of living.
International Day of Persons with
Disabilities 2021 – December 3
• United Nations (UN)’s International Day of Persons
with Disabilities is annually observed across the
globe on 3rd December to create awareness about
the situation of persons with disabilities in every
aspect of political, social, economic and cultural
life.
• Theme: “Leadership and participation of persons
with disabilities toward an inclusive, accessible and
sustainable post-COVID-19 world.”
• World AIDS Day 2021 – December 1
• World AIDS (Acquired ImmunoDeficiency
Syndrome) Day is annually observed across the
globe on 1st December to create awareness about
HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), a major
public health issue that affects millions of people
across the globe.
• Theme: “Ending the HIV Epidemic: Equitable
Access, Everyone’s Voice”.
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16. BOOKS AND AUTHORSBook Title - “The Modi Gambit: Decoding
Modi 2.0”
• Author– Sanju Verma, an economist and the BJP
National Spokesperson
• Subject: The book features the various
achievement in the last 2 years of Prime Minister
(PM) Narendra Modi’s 2nd term as PM of India.
Book Title – “ Glimpses of a Pioneer’s
Life Journey’ by V L Indira Dutt”
• Author– Dr V L Indira Dutt, Chairperson and
Managing Director(CMD) of KCP Group, in
Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
Book Title - ‘Rewinding of First 25 years
of Ministry of Electronics and
Information Technology’
• Author S.S Oberoi, the former adviser at the
Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeitY).
Book Title - ‘Gandhi Topi Governor’
• Author– Dr Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad
• Subject: The book is the autobiography of B K
Madhur, a former Chief Executive Officer at DHFL
Property Services Ltd, and one of the key
personalities in establishing Dewan Housing.
Book Title - "The Monk Who Transformed
Uttar Pradesh: How Yogi Adityanath
Changed UP Waala Bhaiya' abuse to a
Badge of Honour"
• Author– Shantanu Gupta
• Subject: The book is the autobiography of B K
Madhur, a former Chief Executive Officer at DHFL
Property Services Ltd, and one of the key
personalities in establishing Dewan Housing.
Book Title - “India’s Ancient Legacy of
Wellness”
• Author– Dr Rekha Chaudhari
• Subject: The book is the autobiography of B K
Madhur, a former Chief Executive Officer at DHFL
Property Services Ltd, and one of the key
personalities in establishing Dewan Housing.
Book Title - “The Turnover Wizard –
Saviour of Thousands”
• Author– Arup Roy Choudhury, the former
Chairman and Managing Director(CMD) of
NTPC Limited and NBCC (India) Limited.
Book Name - “Watershed: How We
Destroyed India’s Water and How We Can
Save It”
Author– Mriduala Ramesh, the founder of Sundaram
Book Name - ‘Pride, Prejudice and Punditry’ Climate
Institute.
Publisher- Hachette India
Book Name - ‘Pride, Prejudice and
Punditry’
Author– Dr.Shashi Tharoor, Former union minister
and Lok Sabha Member of Parliament.
Publisher- Aleph Book Company.
Book Name - ‘Raj Kapoor: The Master at
Work’
Author– Rahul Rawail.
Publisher- Bloomsbury India.
Book Title - ’1971: Charge of the Gorkhas
and Other Stories’
Author– Rachna Bisht Rawat
Publisher- Penguin Random House India (PRHI)
Subject: The book includes, from the story of the flight
lieutenant who went missing after his plane crashed
inside Pakistan to the ‘last khukri attack’ in modern
military history.
Book Title - ‘The Midway Battle: Modi’s
Roller-coaster Second Term’
Author– Gautam Chintamani.
Publisher- Bloomsbury India.
Subject: The book mentioned about the political
scenario of India.It marks the second tenure of the
current Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi.
Book Title - ‘At Home In The Universe’
Author– Bala Krishna Madhur.
Publisher- Bookworld Enterprises of Mumbai.
Subject:The book is the autobiography of B K Madhur,
a former Chief Executive Officer at DHFL Property
Services Ltd, and one of the key personalities in
establishing Dewan Housing.
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17. CURRENT AFFAIRS PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. Which of the following is/are identified as
Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs)
for 2021-22 by IRDAI?
a) Life Insurance Corporation of India
b) General Insurance Corporation of India
c) New India Assurance
d) Both 1 & 3
e) All 1, 2 & 3
2. Name the company that recently (in Dec’21)
launched “Digi Zone” in Mumbai to provide all
insurance services online.
a) General Insurance Corporation of India
b) Life Insurance Corporation
c) The Oriental Insurance Company
d) National Insurance Company
e) New India Assurance
3. Government of India approved the issuance of 19th
tranche of electoral bonds in January 2022.
Which of the following points are correct with
respect to the Electoral Bonds?
A) The 19th tranche comes ahead of assembly
elections in 5 states in 2022 - Uttar Pradesh,
Uttarakhand, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh & Goa.
B) State Bank of India is the only authorized bank
to issue and encash electoral bonds through its
29 specialized branches
C) The Electoral Bond Scheme was introduced
with the Finance Bill in 2017, later notified as the
‘Electoral Bond Scheme 2018’, making the 1st sale
in March 2018.
a) Only A
b) Only B
c) Only C
d) Only A & C
e) All A, B & C
4. Cricketer Quinton de Kock recently (in Dec’21)
announced his retirement from Test Cricket.Which
country did he represent in International Cricket?
a) West Indies
b) New Zealand
c) England
d) South Africa
e) Australia
5. Which of the following Institute has topped the 3rd
edition of Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation
Achievements (ARIIA) 2021 & also recognized as the
Most Innovative Educational Institute in India for the
3rd consecutive year?
a) IIT Madras
b) IIT Bombay
c) IIT Delhi
d) IISc Bengaluru
e) IIT Kanpur
6. In exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of
the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 ____
Ministry extended the entire State of Nagaland as a
“disturbed area” for _________ months with effect
from December 30, 2021.
a) Ministry of Home Affairs; 6months
b) Ministry of Defence; 1year
c) Ministry of Home Affairs; 8months
d) Ministry of Law & Justice; 1year
e) Ministry of Defence; 6months
7. In December 2021, which country became the 4th
new member of the New Development Bank?
a) Maldives
b) Malaysia
c) Egypt
d) Indonesia
e) Sri Lanka
8. 11. In December 2021, RBI extended the deadline
for Know Your Customer (KYC) updation in bank
accounts till __________.
a) 1st February, 2022
b) 1st September, 2022
c) 31st March, 2022
d) 30st July, 2022
e) 1st April, 2022
9. Which Bank recently (in Dec’21) signed a MoU
with Schwing Stetter India to Offer Customized
Financial Solutions?
a) YES Bank
b) HDFC Bank
c) ICICI Bank
d) Federal Bank
e) Axis Bank
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10. In December 2021, __________ became the 1st
Indian state to launch the ‘Life Certificate system’
for pensioners.
a) Odisha
b) Karnataka
c) Uttarakhand
d) West Bengal
e) Uttar Pradesh
11. In December 2021, Simone Biles was named Time
Magazine’s 2021 Athlete of the year. He belongs to
which field of sports?
a) Badminton
b) Cycle Race
c) Gymnastics
d) Chess
e) Boxing
12. In December 2021, Cumbre Vieja volcanic eruption
was over after three months of daily explosions &
Earthquakes. In which country Cumbre Vieja
volcano is located?
a) Botswana
b) Spain
c) Egypt
d) Italy
e) Indonesia
13. PM Modi has inaugurated Sawra-Kuddu Hydro
Power Project, in which state?
a) Gujarat
b) Uttar Pradesh
c) Himachal Pradesh
d) Maharashtra
e) Madhya Pradesh
14. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches
blockchain-based digital degrees at ________.
a) IIT Delhi b) IIT Kanpur
c) IIT Bombayd) IIT Roorkee
e) IIT Madras
15. Which of the following designation is associated
with Vikram Misri ?
a) Attorney General
b) Solicitor General
c) Chiefs of Staff Committee
d) Chief Information Commissioner
e) Deputy National Security Advisor
16. Which state has secured 1st place in the
implementation of the Shyama Prasad Mukherji
Rurban Mission?
a) Bihar b) Assam
c) Tamil Nadu d) Kerala
e) Telangana
17. . In which city of Madhya Pradesh, Indian Army
recently (in Dec’21) launched ‘Quantum Lab’ in
the Military Headquarters Of War?
a) Bhopal
b) Jabalpur
c) Indore
d) Gwalior
e) Ujjain
18. SEBI approved the Alternative Investment Funds,
Regulations, 2012, to introduce Special
Situation Funds (SSF) that invest in ____________
& also fixed the minimum investment by an
investor to ___________.
a) Stressed Assets; 10 crore
b) International Stocks; 10 crore
c) International Stocks; 5 crore
d) Stressed Assets; 50 crore
e) International Stocks; 50 crore
19. Which Bank recently (in Dec’21) partnered with
NPCI to Launch ‘RuPay Debit Card’ for
Corporates?
a) Bank of Maharashtra
b) Central Bank of India
c) Punjab National Bank
d) Indian Bank
e) Bank of Baroda
20. In December 2021,Who was named as the PETA
India’s ‘Person of the Year 2021’?
a) Priyanka Chopra
b) Alia Bhatt
c) Deepika Padukone
d) Akshay Kumar
e) Bhumi Pednekar
21. In December 2021, ________ was reappointed as
the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer
of Equitas Small Finance Bank Limited (ESFBL)
for _________ terms.
a) Ittira Davis; 5 years
b) Arun Ramanathan; 4 years
c) Vasudevan PN; 3 years
d) Ittira Davis; 3 years
e) Vasudevan PN; 5 years
22. Name the 1st series of Project 22220 versatile
nuclear-powered icebreaker which was recently (in
Dec’21) launched by Russia to Boost India’s Arctic
Plans in the Northern Seas Route.
a) Arktika
b) Lenin
c) Sibir
d) Himadri
e) Xuelong
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23. Which state has topped among the Larger States in
the NITI Aayog’s fourth edition of the State Health
Index for 2019–20?
a) Tamil Nadu
b) Karnataka
c) Kerala
d) Andhra Pradesh
e) Odisha
24. Which bank has signed an MoU with India Post
Payments Bank (IPPB) to offer banking services of
IPPB in semi-urban and rural areas?
a) RBL Bank
b) ICICI Bank
c) State Bank of India
d) HDFC Bank
e) Axis Bank
25. Recently, which edition of Hockey India Junior
Men National Championship was crowned by
________.
a) Haryana
b) Chandigarh
c) Uttar Pradesh
d) Odisha
e) Tamil Nadu
26. Which country launched the World's 1st Dual-
Mode Vehicle (in Dec’21) that can run on both
roads & tracks?
a) Indonesia b) Japan
c) China d) USA
e) UK
27. What was the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) of
November 2021 that reached a 12 years high?
a) 10.47 % b) 11.54 %
c) 14.23 % d) 12.54 %
e) 16.50 %
28. In December 2021, Who was appointed as the
Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of
Punjab National Bank (PNB)?
a) S.C. Gupta
b) Sunil Mehta
c) Atul Kumar Goel
d) Gauri Shankar
e) Mallikarjuna Rao
29. In which year ‘Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban
Mission’ (SPMRM) was launched by the Ministry
of Rural Development to deliver Infrastructure
Projects in Rural areas?
a) 2019
b) 2005
c) 2016
d) 2014
e) 2012
30. Which Country will chair the Counter Terrorism
Committee of United Nations Security Council
(UNSC) in January 2022?
a) Russia
b) China
c) USA
d) India
e) Pakistan
31. Which state has topped the composite ranking in
the Good Governance Index (GGI) 2021?
a) Tamil Nadu
b) Karnataka
c) Uttar Pradesh
d) Gujarat
e) Punjab
32. Name NASA’s $10 billion world’s largest space
telescope designed to capture the first glimpse of
the universe just shortly after the Big Bang.
a) Herschel Space Observatory
b) Spitzer Space Telescope
c) Hubble Space Telescope
d) Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope
e) James Webb Space Telescope
33. Which cricket team has won their first ever Vijay
Hazare Trophy in 2021?
a) Gujarat b) Karnataka
c) Tamil Nadu d) Himachal Pradesh
e) Punjab
34. Who has authored a new book titled “The Modi
Gambit: Decoding Modi 2.0”?
a) Sanju Verma
b) Yarlagadda Lakshmi Prasad
c) Shantanu Gupta
d) SS Oberoi
e) Rahul Rawail
35. Name the Nobel Peace Prize laureate anti-apartheid
campaigner African Archbishop who passed away
recently.
a) Richard Rogers
b) Desmond Tutu
c) Anne Rice
d) Ahmad Shah Ahmadzai
e) Wilbur Smith
36. Who has been honoured with the Global
Environment and Climate Action Citizen Award
2021?
a) Vinod Kumar Rana
b) Viral Sudhirbhai Desai
c) Saurabh Singh
d) Vikram Sharma
e) Soniya Dhana
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37. In which city did Union Defence Minister Rajnath
Singh lay the foundation stone (in Dec’21) for
Defence Technology & Test Centre (DTTC) &
BRAHMOS Manufacturing Centre of DRDO?
a) Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
b) Patna, Bihar
c) Gandhinagar, Gujarat
d) Dehradun, Uttarakhand
e) Bhubaneswar, Odisha
38. Name the Bank that was recently (in Dec’21)
became the 1st Indian Bank to offer cross-border
payments via UPI along with NPCI.
a) ICICI Bank b) HDFC Bank
c) Axis Bank d) IndusInd Bank
e) YES Bank
39. Which of the following points are correct with
respect to the World Economic League Table 2022
released in December 2021?
A) The report was released by UK-based Centre for
Economics and Business Research’s (CEBR).
B) India will move to 6th position in 2022
overtaking France & become the 3rd World’s
largest economy in 2031.
C) The Table predicted that China will overtake the
United States of America to be the World’s largest
economy in 2030.
a) Only A b) Only B
c) Only A & B d) Only B & C
e) All A, B & C
40. Which state became the 1st state to achieve 100%
Vaccination of its Adult eligible population in
December 2021?
a) Maharashtra
b) Uttar Pradesh
c) Gujarat
d) Himachal Pradesh
e) Assam
41. In which state 97th edition of the World Sangeet
Tansen festival 2021 was celebrated?
a) Maharashtra
b) Gujarat
c) Madhya Pradesh
d) Assam
e) Uttar Pradesh
42. Name the first indigenously built Missile Corvette
Indian Navy Ship that was decommissioned after
32 years of service at Visakhapatnam recently.
a) INS Visakhapatnam
b) INS Tushil
c) INS Vikrant
d) INS Kalinga
e) INS Khukri
43. In December 2021, the Central Government has
appointed ______ sub-committees to lower crop
Insurance premiums under ________________.
a) 2; Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana
b) 4; Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana
c) 2; Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana
d) 4; Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana
e) 3; Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana
44. In which city of Uttar Pradesh did the Ministry of
Road Transport & Highways recently (in Dec’21)
launched the 1st Intelligent Transport System (ITS)
on the 6-lane Eastern Peripheral Expressway?
a) Kanpur
b) Ghaziabad
c) Meerut
d) Noida
e) Gorakhpur
45. Which of the following was recently (in Dec’21)
declared as an Essential Commodity till 30th June
2022 by the Central Government?
a) Cottonseed meal
b) Soya Meal
c) Corn
d) Bran
e) Palm oil
46. Name the billiards player who recently (in Dec’21)
won his 7th National Billiards Title during 88th
National Billiards and Snooker Championships
2021?
a) Babar Masih b) Pankaj Advani
c) Aditya Mehta d) Dhruv Sitwala
d) Geet Sethi
47. Where is the Headquarters of the International
Energy Agency (IEA)?
a) Geneva, Switzerland
b) Montreal, Canada
c) Paris, France
d) Vienna, Austria
e) Rome, Italy
48. What is the share of sponsor banks in the regional
rural banks?
a) 15% b) 35%
c) 20% d) 50%
e) 25%
49. Who among the following has won the Mother
Teresa Memorial Award for Social Justice 2021?
a) Sushil Kumar
b) Vipin Tiwari
c) Saurab Rawat
d) Anil Prakash Joshi
e) Mhd. Akram
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50. In December 2021, RBI extended the card-on-file
(CoF) tokenization deadline upto _________,while
‘Tokenization’ was issued based on the directives
of RBI’s Payment and Settlement Systems Act,
_______.
a) 1st April 2022; 2007
b) 31st March 2022; 2005
c) 30th June 2022; 2007
d) 1st May 2022; 2005
e) 30th July 2022; 2008
51. Indian Off- spinner ‘Harbhajan Singh’ announced
Retirement from All Forms of Cricket.He
is_________ highest wicket taker for India in Test
cricket.
a) 6th
b) 4th
c) 2nd
d) 3rd
e) 5th
52. Every year National Consumer Day is observed
across India on __________.
a) 21st December
b) 24th December
c) 22nd December
d) 25th December
e) 23rd December
53. Jingkieng Jri got UNESCO World Heritage Site tag
in December 2021. In which state is Jingkieng Jri
located?
a) Nagaland
b) Mizoram
c) Tripura
d) Meghalaya
e) Assam
54. Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik has
inaugurated state’s longest bridge, ‘T-Setu’, built
over which of the following river?
a) Mahanadi
b) Brahmani
c) Godavari
d) Rushikulya
e) Krishna
55. Which bank has grabbed the top spot in overall
digital transactions among large banks for FY 20-
21?
a) Punjab National Bank
b) State Bank of India
c) HDFC Bank
d) Axis Bank
e) Bank of Baroda
56. ________ has written his first book titled ‘Bachelor
Dad’.
a) Shahrukh Khan
b) Karan Johar
c) Tusshar Kapoor
d) Akshay Kumar
e) Sunil Shetty
57. As per the Global Unicorn Index 2021 report
released by the Hurun Research Institute, India
secured ______ rank with 54 Unicorns, while the
United States tops the Index with 487 Unicorns.
a) 5th
b) 3rd
c) 2nd
d) 1st
e) 6th
58. Which Bank recently (in Dec’21) partnered with
MoneyGram to enable International Fund Transfer?
a) India Post Payments Bank
b) Paytm Payments Bank
c) Airtel Payment Bank
d) Jio Payment Bank
e) Fino Payment Bank
59. What is the Tagline of Akasa Air that was crafted
by 26FIVE India Lab in December 2021?
a) Your Palace in the Sky
b) Touch the Sky
c) It’s Your Sky
d) Great way to Fly
e) Fly the High
60. In December 2021, Who was awarded with the
BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2021 Award?
a) Emma Raducanu
b) Serena Williams
c) Novak Djokovic
d) Roger Federer
e) Naomi Osaka
61. The Maturity Period of Certificate of Deposit (CD)
is between 7days to _______.
a) 2 years
b) 1 years
c) 8 Months
d) 6 months
e) 4 months
62. Gabriel Boric has become the youngest-ever
President of which of the following country?
a) Chile
b) Equador
c) Bolivia
d) Austria
e) Venezuela
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63. In Men’s Single BWF world rankings (as of 21st
Dec), Kidambi Srikanth from India secured ______
rank, while ________ tops the ranking
a) 8th; Anders Antonsen
b) 10th; Viktor Axelsen
c) 8th; Kento Momota
d) 10th; Anders Antonsen
e) 5th; Viktor Axelsen
64. India has won 16 medals in Commonwealth
Weightlifting Championship 2021 held at
___________.
a) Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
b) Dushanbe, Tajikistan
c) Tashkent, Uzbekistan
d) New Delhi, India
e) Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan
65. Which of the following state government has
recently announced that the creation of three new
districts, namely Tseminyu, Niuland and
Chumoukedima?
a) Assam
b) Nagaland
c) Arunachal Pradesh
d) Mizoram
e) Tripura
66. In 2020-21, India has registered the highest ever
annual Foreign Direct Investment inflow of
_______________.
a) $ 111.97 bn
b) $ 71.97 bn
c) $ 61.97 bn
d) $ 51.97 bn
e) $ 81.97 bn
67. Which of the following state has appointed Rishabh
Pant as its brand ambassador?
a) Uttar Pradesh
b) Uttarakhand
c) Himachal Pradesh
d) Bihar
e) Odisha
68. Name the former Supreme Court judge, who
headed two inquiry commissions formed to probe
into the 2002 Godhra Riots & 1984 Anti-Sikh
Riots, passed away.
a) Justice S.C. Agrawal
b) Justice K. Ramaswamy
c) Justice Yogeshwar Dayal
d) Justice Girish Thakorlal Nanavati
e) Justice G.N. Ray
69. Name the Multinational Exercise that was recently
(in Dec’21) organized in Pune, Maharashtra to
develop capabilities in disaster management aspects
of the BIMSTEC?
a) PANEX-21
b) MILEX-21
c) KAZIND-21
d) SIMBEX-21
e) JIMEX-21
70. Which International Organization recently (in
Dec’21) signed a Statement of Intent with NITI
Aayog to promote Millet Production in India?
a) United Nation Development Programme
b) World Trade Organization
c) International Food Policy Research Institute
d) World Food Program
e) World Health Organization
71. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to make
the Scheduled payments banks and scheduled small
finance banks (SFBs) an agency banks. What is the
maximum balance limit per account in Payments
Banks?
a) Rs 1 lakh
b) Rs 1.5 lakh
c) Rs 2 lakh
d) Rs 2.5 lakh
e) Rs 5 lakh
72. Who is the author of the Telugu book titled
‘Gandhi Topi Governor’, released by Venkaiah
Naidu?
a) Ayaz Memon
b) Sanjay Baru
c) C K Garyali
d) Rajnish Kumar
e) Y Lakshmi Prasad
73. On which date, Goa Liberation Day is celebrated
every year?
a) 16 December
b) 17 December
c) 19 December
d) 20 December
e) 21 December
74. Which of the following was inscribed on the
Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage
of Humanity during 16th session of IGC 2021?
a) Chhath
b) Bathukamma
c) Kathok Chenmo
d) Durga Puja
e) Kolattam
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75. Which state declared the Lord Krishna Balram
Jagannath Rath Yatra as the State festival in
December 2021?
a) Madhya Pradesh
b) Punjab
c) Uttarakhand
d) Rajasthan
e) Haryana
76. Union Cabinet approved a Rs ___________ crore
production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for
boosting semiconductor.
a) Rs 46,000 crore
b) Rs 56,000 crore
c) Rs 66,000 crore
d) Rs 76,000 crore
e) Rs 86,000 crore
77. In December 2021, PM Narendra Modi laid the
foundation stone of the Ganga Expressway in
which district?
a) Dhanbad, Jharkhand
b) Birbhum, West Bengal
c) Dehradun, Uttarakhand
d) Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh
e) Sheikhpura, Bihar
78. Where was the 11-day long 24th Edition of
Lokrang 2021 held?
a) Dispur, Assam
b) Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
c) Mumbai, Maharashtra
d) Gandhinagar, Gujarat
e) Jaipur, Rajasthan
79. . Chief Justice of India, Justice NV Ramana
inaugurated India’s 1st (IAMC) International
Arbitration and Mediation Centre in which City?
a) Surat, Gujarat
b) Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
c) Bangalore, Karnataka
d) Hyderabad, Telangana
e) Chennai, Tamil Nadu
80. Who authored the book, “India’s Ancient Legacy of
Wellness”?
a) Aseem Chawla b) Syed Akbaruddin
c) Rekha Chaudhari d) Jerry Rao
e) Surya Prakash
81. In December 2021, CCI suspended Amazon to
acquire a stake in _____________ & imposed Rs
202 crore penalty on the e-commerce sectors.
a) Hinduja Group
b) ITC Limited
c) Bajaj Group
d) Godrej Group
e) Future Group
82. What is the theme of the International Migrants
Day 2021?
a) Reimagining Human Mobility
b) Harnessing the potential of human mobility
c) #WeTogether
d) Migrants and Refugees Challenge Us
e) We live in the ‘age of mobility
83. RBI has introduced prompt corrective action
framework for large non-banking financial
companies. The provisions of the PCA framework
will be effective from ______________.
a) December 2021
b) October 2022
c) March 2022
d) December 2022
e) March 2023
84. Who is the author of the book titled ‘Raj Kapoor:
The Master at Work’, released by Vice President M
Venkaiah Naidu?
a) Amit Ranjan
b) Subhadra Sen Gupta
c) Rahul Rawail
d) Pradeep Magazine
e) Aseem Chawla
85. Name the NASA spacecraft, which has become the
first spacecraft to pass through the Sun’s outer
atmosphere.
a) Space Solar Probe
b) Parker Solar Probe
c) American Solar Probe
d) RedPlanet Solar Probe
e) SunPlanet Solar Probe
86. Which organization has approved a $112 million
loan to strengthen skills education and training
through the establishment of the Assam Skill
University (ASU)?
a) Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
b) New Development Bank
c) Asian Development Bank
d) World Bank
e) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development
87. Who is the author of the new book titled ‘Pride,
Prejudice and Punditry’?
a) C K Garyali
b) Bhalchandra Mungekar
c) Shashi Tharoor
d) Anuradha Roy
e) Amish Tripathi
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54 IACE (Indian Academy of Competitive Exams) www.iace.co.in Toll Free: 1800-270-9975, Ph: 9533200400
88. Which edition of the India International Science
festival commences in Panaji, Goa?
a) 10th
b) 11th
c) 4th
d) 6th
e) 7th
89. Wholesale inflation surges to 14.23% in November,
highest in current series. What is the base year for
calculating WPI inflation in India?
a) 2004 – 2005
b) 2005 – 2006
c) 2010 – 2011
d) 2009 – 2010
e) 2011 – 2012
90. Saryu Nahar National Project has been inaugurated
by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi in which
of the following state?
a) Gujarat
b) Karnataka
c) Tamil Nadu
d) Punjab
e) Uttar Pradesh
91. Which of the following has become the world’s
first government to turn 100% paperless?
a) Dubai, United Arab Emirates
b) Lausanne, Switzerland
c) Montreal, Canada
d) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
e) Munich, Germany
92. Who has been named ‘Person of the Year’ for 2021
by TIME Magazine?
a) Joe Biden
b) Elon Musk
c) Vladimir Putin
d) Jeff Bezos
e) Kamala Harris
93. A long-range Supersonic Missile Assisted Torpedo
(SMART) was successfully test fired off Balasore
coast in Odisha. The SMART weapon system is
developed by which country?
a) Russia
b) India
c) USA
d) Israel
e) France
94. What was the rank of India in the Global Health
Security (GHS) Index 2021?
a) 49 b) 55
c) 66 d) 74
e) 81
95. India has been re-elected to International Maritime
Organisation Council for 2022-2023. Where is the
headquarters of International Maritime
Organisation (IMO)?
a) Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur
b) Jakarta, Indonesia
c) Shanghai, China
d) London, United Kingdom
e) New York, United States
96. Which country became the first country to
transition to 4 and half-day work week?
a) Qatar
b) Oman
c) Kuwait
d) Saudi Arabia
e) United Arab Emirates
97. Who among the following has won the 2021 Miss
Universe crown?
a) Adline Castelino
b) Sanjana Vij
c) Vartika Singh
d) Harnaaz Sandhu
e) Andrea Meza
98. Which country topped the Global Health Security
Index 2021?
a) Finland
b) Thailand
c) Canada
d) USA
e) Australia
99. What is the rank of India in the “World Talent
Ranking Report 2021” published by IMD World
Competitive Centre?
a) 42
b) 53
c) 56
d) 66
e) 74
100. Who among the following has been appointed as
the head of United Nations Children’s Fund
(UNICEF)?
a) Catherine Russell
b) Audrey Azoulay
c) Henrietta H Fore
d) Rafael Grossi
e) Achim Steiner
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Answers
1 e 11 c 21 c 31 d 41 c 51 b 61 b 71 c 81 e 91 a
2 b 12 b 22 c 32 e 42 e 52 b 62 a 72 e 82 b 92 b
3 e 13 c 23 c 33 d 43 b 53 d 63 b 73 c 83 b 93 b
4 d 14 b 24 d 34 a 44 b 54 a 64 c 74 d 84 c 94 c
5 a 15 e 25 c 35 b 45 b 55 e 65 b 75 b 85 b 95 d
6 a 16 e 26 b 36 b 46 b 56 c 66 e 76 d 86 c 96 e
7 c 17 c 27 c 37 a 47 c 57 b 67 b 77 d 87 c 97 d
8 c 18 a 28 c 38 d 48 b 58 b 68 d 78 e 88 e 98 d
9 d 19 b 29 c 39 e 49 d 59 c 69 a 79 d 89 e 99 c
10 a 20 b 30 d 40 d 50 c 60 a 70 d 80 c 90 e 100 a
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