DAILY GK 14-15 JAN 2025
1.
INDIA-NEPAL IGC ON TRADE, TRANSIT, AND COOPERATION
·
The India-Nepal Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) on Trade, Transit, and Cooperation to
Combat Unauthorised Trade was held in Kathmandu, Nepal.
·
This meeting
is a bilateral mechanism which aims at bolstering trade and ties between
both countries.
·
Nepal PM- Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli
·
President – Ram Chandra Poudel
·
Capital- Kathmandu
2.
NATIONAL
TURMERIC BOARD LAUNCHED
·
Union
Minister Piyush Goyal, Ministry of Commerce and
Industry(MoC&I), launched the National Turmeric Board (NTB) in
New Delhi, with an aim to boost the turmeric industry in India.
·
Palle Ganga
Reddy has
been appointed as its first Chairperson.
·
The headquarters
of the Board has been set up at Nizamabad, Telangana.
·
The
NTB will function under
the Department of Commerce(DoC)
3. GOI RECONSTITUTED AEC
·
The Government of India (GoI) has reconstituted the
high-powered Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) and
include Cabinet Secretary T.V. Somanathan and
Expenditure Secretary Manoj Govil as ex-officio
member of AEC.
·
The GoI
has decided to retain Ajith Kumar Mohanty,
Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) as the chairman of
the reconstituted AEC.
·
AEC
has Ajit Kumar Doval, National Security
Advisor (NSA)of India; Dr. Pramod
Kumar Mishra, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister (PM); Vikram Misri, Foreign Secretary;
and Vivek Bhasin, Director,
Trombay, Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) as ex-officio members.
·
The newly reconstituted AEC also
included Pankaj Mishra, who took over charge of
member (Finance) for AEC in 2024
·
The
appointment of other members of AEC is
made for each Calendar Year (CY) on the recommendation of the Chairman, AEC
and after approval by the PM of India.
·
AEC was initially established in August
1948 as part of the Department of Scientific Research.
·
The
DAE was constituted on 3rd August, 1954
under the direct charge of PM through Presidential Order.
·
Later,
GoI introduced a resolution dated March 01, 1958 and established AEC under the
administrative control of DAE.
·
AEC is mainly responsible for formulating
policies related to atomic energy and ensure their implementation through DAE.
4.
INDIA
AND SAUDI ARABIA SIGN HAJJ AGREEMENT
·
India signed a Hajj
agreement with Saudi Arabia securing a quota of 1,75,025 pilgrims for Indian
pilgrims for 2025.
·
As
per the Haj Policy 2025, 30% of India’s total Hajj quota, or 52,507 slots,
will be allocated to private Haj Group Organizers (HGOs), while 70% will
be provided to the Haj Committee of India (HCoI).
·
Saudi
ArabiaPM –
Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
·
Capital– Riyadh, Currency– Saudi
Riyal(SAR)
5.
NPCI
TO EXPAND UPI ACCEPTANCE IN UAE
·
NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of the
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has partnered with Magnati,
a leading payment solutions provider in
the Middle East, to provide the feature of QR (Quick Response) based Unified Payments Interface (UPI) merchant payments
via Magnati’s Point-Of-Sale (POS) terminals in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
·
UPI
acceptance will be initially provided across Dubai Duty Free,
enhancing the shopping and payment experience for Indian tourists.
·
UPI payments are accepted in seven countries, including Bhutan, Mauritius,
Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka,France and the UAE.
6. CHINA BUILT WORLD’S FIRST 300 MW CAES
PLANT CONNECTED TO GRID
·
Nengchu-1, the world’s first 300-Megawatt (MW)
Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES)
demonstration project was fully connected to the grid in Yingcheng, central China’s Hubei
Province.
·
It is the world’s first full
green, non-supplementary combustion project invested and individually
developed by China Energy Engineering Group Corporation Limited(CEEC).
·
The
project has made three world records in
terms of single-unit power, storage capacity, and energy conversion efficiency.
·
The energy storage capacity reaches 1,500
megawatt-hours (MWh), and the underground gas storage reaches 700,000 cubic
meters(m3).
·
The long-term energy storage effect is
remarkable, with energy storage for 8 hours and energy release for 5 hours per
day, and a service life of more than 30 years.
7. UN-DESA’S WESP 2025 REPORT
·
United
Nations- Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) released
a report titled “World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP)
2025”.
·
The
report has projected that India economy
will grow by 6.6% in 2025,
·
Indian
economy is further expected to expand by 6.7% in 2026.
·
The
report revealed that Indian economy registered the growth rate of 6.8% in
2024.
·
South
Asia Region(SAR) is expected to remain robust, with growth rate at 5.7% (in
2025) and 6.0% (in 2026).
·
The
report has projected that global
economic growth rate will be at 2.8% (in 2025) and 2.9% (in
2026).
·
These
projections are largely same from the rate of 2.8% registered in 2023 and
estimated for 2024.
·
Under-Secretary-General
for Economic and Social Affairs – Li Junhua
·
Headquarters- New York, Establishment- 1948
8.
INDIA FINTECH REPORT 2024: INDIA RANKED 3RD
·
According to Bengaluru
(Karnataka)-based Tracxn Technologies
Limited, a leading global market intelligence
platform, ‘Annual India Fintech Report
2024’, India ranked at 3rd position
globally in terms of funding received in the fintech segment, despite
witnessing a decline of 33% on a Year-over-Year (Y-o-Y) to USD 1.9 billion
·
As per the report, the United States of America (USA) topped the
ranking globally, followed by the United Kingdom (UK) which secured 2nd
position.
·
Top 3 Indian cities which emerged as hub for fintech funding in
2024: Bengaluru
(Karnataka), Mumbai (Maharashtra) and Delhi (Delhi).
·
Top 3 Investing Companies: Karnataka-based Peak XV Partners, LetsVenture
Technologies Private Limited based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, and California
( USA)-based Y Combinator, LLC.
9. INDIA RANKS 49TH IN NETWORK READINESS INDEX (NRI) 2024
·
India
has jumped 11 spots to rank 49th in the
2024 Network Readiness Index (NRI), up from 60th in 2023, with an improved
score of 53.63.
·
This
progress reflects the country’s growing focus on digital infrastructure, AI,
mobile networks, and broadband connectivity.
10.
HIMKAVACH
CLOTHING SYSTEM FOR COLD WEATHER MILITARY OPERATIONS
·
Defence
Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) announced that its HIMKAVACH multi-layer clothing system has
successfully completed user trials in extreme cold weather conditions.
·
The
system is designed to protect soldiers in temperatures ranging from +20
degree celsius (°C) to -60°C, making it ideal for high-altitude
military operations, particularly in the Himalayan region.
·
Previously, the Indian Army (IA)
used the Extreme
Cold Weather Clothing System (ECWCS), a 3-layered outfit developed
by DRDO
11.
CHINA LAUNCHES ‘SHIJIAN-25’ SATELLITE
·
China successfully launched the ‘Shijian-25’ satellite into Geostationary
Transfer Orbit(GTO) aboard a Long March 3B rocket marking
its first space mission of 2025.
·
The launch took place from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in
southwest China.
·
The satellite is been developed by the
Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST),
to conduct tests related to developing technologies for in-orbit refueling and extending the
operational lifespan of satellites.
·
The
satellite is primarily used for the verification of satellite fuel
replenishment and life extension service technologies.
·
China President– Xi Jinping, Capital–
Beijing, Currency – Renminbi
