DAILY GK: 17, 18 FEB 2022
1. UDHAMPUR-SRINAGAR-BARAMULLA RAIL LINK
PROJECT: LONGEST TUNNEL T-49 CONNECTED
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The main tunnel T-49 between Sumber and
Arpinchala station of the Katra-Banihal Section of the
Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link(USBRL) Project, the longest tunnel of the
Indian Railway has been connected.
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T49 is a tunnel of length 12.758 kilometres
(km) long has become the longest tunnel surpassing the Peer Panjal Tunnel of
11.2 km length constructed by USBRL on the Banihal-Qazigund section.
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Jammu-Udhampur-Katra-Quazigund-Baramulla
Railway line is the biggest project in the construction of a mountain railway
since independence.
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The USBRL Project planned for 345 km aims
to provide an alternative and a reliable transportation system to Jammu &
Kashmir.
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The project is divided into 3 sections
Udhampur -Katra; Katra- Qazigund; and Qazigund -Baramulla
2. DELOITTE’S 2022 CXO SUSTAINABILITY REPORT:
INDIAN BUSINESSES RANK 5TH
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As per the ‘Deloitte’s 2022 CxO
Sustainability Report: The Disconnect Between Ambition and Impact’ Indian
businesses acknowledge the risks of climate inaction and ranks 5th amongst 21
countries in their concern for climate change.
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The report is based on a survey of 2,083
C-level executives.
3. NAVARS EDUTECH LAUNCHES 100 SATELLITE
CONSTELLATIONS IN COLLABORATION WITH SKYROOT AEROSPACE
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Navars Edutech Pvt Ltd, a hyderabad-based
space startup in collaboration with Skyroot Aerospace will launch 100
student-developed satellites constellations in the next 5 years.
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After the partnership, Navars Edutech will
be India’s first Space Education startup for K12 students to design and launch
satellites to space, using an indigenously developed private launch vehicle of
Skyroot Aerospace.
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Navars Edutech is a leading Astronomy &
Space education company with a primary focus to drive awareness and education
through engagement and innovation by offering real-life experience through live
content, software tools, hardware kits, and experiences among K12 students.
4. SCHEME KUNSNYOMS FOR THE WELFARE OF
DIFFERENTLY-ABLED PERSONS
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The Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development
Council (LAHDC), Leh, a society in transition, has launched the Kunsnyoms
scheme.
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This scheme aims to provide assistive
devices and technologies for differently-abled persons at a 90% subsidised
rate.
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Kunsnyoms, meant Equal for All, Fair for
All, aims inclusive and accessible Ladakh.
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To work efficiently towards empowering left
out sections of the society by providing the required technologies and
modern-day devices
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The LAHDC has provided 28 tri
scooters, battery-run wheelchair, walking aids and hearing aids which are
required for special needs of the individuals.
5.
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION APPROVED “NILP” A NEW SCHEME OF
ADULT EDUCATION
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The
Ministry of Education (MoE) approved a new scheme “New India Literacy Programme
(NILP) which is also known as Nav Bharat Literacy Program” for upcoming 5 years
of (FY 2022-27) to cover all the aspects of adult education to align with
National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
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The
total estimation of NILP is Rs.1037.90 crore, in which the Central government
and State government share Rs 700 crore and Rs 337.90 crore respectively.
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MoE
replaced the term “Adult Education” with “Education for All”
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Objective of scheme
1. Critical life skills
2. Vocational skills development
3. Basic education
4. Continuing education
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The
scheme is implemented to registered volunteers and accessed through online
mode.
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The
physical and financial progress of States/UT’s viewed through the Unified
District Information System for Education (UDISE) portal.
6.
PHONEPE AND NITI AAYOG PARTNERS TO LAUNCH FINTECH OPEN
HACKATHON
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PhonePe
partnered with National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, to
host the first-ever open-to-all hackathon that aims to showcase path-breaking
solutions for the fintech ecosystem.
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The
Hackathon will provide an opportunity for innovators, digital creators and
developers from all over India to think, ideate and code.
7.
MOA&FW ESTIMATES FOODGRAINS PRODUCTION OF OVER 316.06 MT
FOR 2021-22
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In the
Second Advance Estimates of production of major crops for the year 2021-22
released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (MoAF&W),
India’s estimated foodgrains production is 316.06 million tonnes.
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It is
higher by 5.32 million tonnes than the production of foodgrains during 2020-21.
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The
production during 2021-22 is also higher by 25.35 million tonnes than the
previous five years (2016-17 to 2020-21) average production of foodgrains.
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The
estimates show the foodgrains output in 2021-22 is expected to be 6 million
tonnes (MT) which is nearly 2% more than the overall production of 310 MT in
previous year.
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Rice- the
total production of Rice during 2021-22 is estimated at record 127.93 million
tonnes. Wheat- 111.32 million
tonnes.Nutri / Coarse Cereals–49.86
million tonnes .Pulses-
26.96 million tonnes .Oilseeds-
37.15 million tonnes .Sugarcane-
414.04 million tonnes.Cotton- 34.06
million bales (each of 170 kg) .Jute- 9.57
million bales (each of 180 kg).
8.
RBI EMERGES 2ND LARGEST BUYER OF GOLD IN 2021
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According
to Goldhub, an official website of the World Gold Council that maintains all
the data regarding precious metal, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has emerged
as the 2nd largest buyer of Gold among the world’s Central Banks in 2021.RBI
bought 77.5 metric tonnes in 2021.
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As per
Goldhub, India’s official gold reserves is the 9th largest in the world.
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At the
end of December 2021, RBI gold reserves stood at 754.1 tonnes, which amounts to
6.22 per cent of India’s forex reserves. As per RBI data, India’s total
reserves at the end of December 31, 2021 stood at $633.61 billion, including
gold reserves worth $39.405 billion.
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Among
the world banks, the Central Bank of Thailand is the largest buyer in 2021 that
bought 90 metric tonnes of gold, Hungary bought 63 tonnes, tripling its gold
reserves.
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Goldhub
is the official website of World Gold Council that maintains all the data
regarding precious metal(Gold).
9.
IBA’S 17TH ANNUAL BANKING TECHNOLOGY AWARDS 2021
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The
South Indian Bank (SIB), headquartered in Thrissur, Kerala, has won 6 awards at
the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA)’s 17th Annual Banking Technology Awards
2021. The 6 awards for South Indian banks include the ‘Best Technology Bank of
the Year 2021’ under the “small bank” segment.
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The
IBA Awards 2021 celebrate “Next-Gen Banking” and recognise the technologies and
practices in the banking industry that have demonstrated a high degree of
innovation over 2021.
10.
G ASHOK KUMAR APPOINTED AS INDIA’S 1ST NATIONAL MARITIME
SECURITY COORDINATOR
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The
government of India has appointed Vice Admiral (retd) G Ashok Kumar, the former
Navy vice chief, as India’s first National Maritime Security Coordinator (NMSC)
in the National Security Council Secretariat. The proposal for the creation of
this post was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security in 2021.
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This
is a part of India’s efforts to enhance maritime security following the 26/11
Mumbai terror attack (2008).
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The
NMSC is mandated to ensure cohesion among the key stakeholders with the
objective of strengthening India’s maritime security.
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The
NMSC will work in coordination with the National Security Council Secretariat
and report to National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Kumar Doval
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The
NMSC will coordinate among the Indian Navy, the Coast Guard, security agencies
involved in coastal and maritime security and 13 coastal states and Union
Territories(UTs).
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The
coastline of India stretches around 7500 kilometres(km) covering 9 states, 2
UTs and 2 island territories.
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National Security Council(NSC):NSC is an executive government agency tasked with advising
the Prime Minister’s Office(PMO) on matters of national security and strategic
interest.
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National Security Advisor– Ajit Kumar Doval
