NATIONAL NEWS

Delhi International Arts Festival

• Delhi International Arts Festival was organized at Kartavya Path with the slogan ‘Where Bharat Meets India,’ by the Ministry of Culture.

• The event is to honor the great epics, the warriors who fought for our freedom and the numerous policies and programs established by our government in the interest of Women’s Empowerment, Cleaning Our Holy Rivers and Maintaining a Country Free from Dirt and Disease.

• In addition to theater, classical musical performances and other cultural acts, the festival will feature dance performances like Kathak and Odissi.

Uttar Pradseh Government Signs Agreements with Singapore

• The Uttar Pradesh Government has signed several agreements with investors in Singapore ahead of the UP Global Investors Summit (UPGIS) in February 2023.

• The UP Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) to set the pace for Singapore investors to participate in the prosperity of UP.

• The UP is set to become a USD 1 trillion economy with the central government’s target to build a USD 5 trillion national economy in the coming years.

• It is to achieve such targets, the UP government needs to have around USD 50 billion grounded as early as possible.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Tentative List of UNESCO Heritage Sites

• The Union Ministry of Culture announced that Vadnagar town-Gujarat, Sun Temple Modhera-Gujarat and Rock Cut Sculptures and reliefs of the Unakoti-Tripura have been added to the tentative list of UNESCO’s world heritage sites.

• The submissions were made by Archaeological Survey of India, which is responsible for the conservation and preservation of Indian monuments.

• With the addition of these three sites, UNESCO has 52 proposals in the tentative list of India.

BANKING

Tata AIA Life Insurance Opens Emerging Opportunities Fund

• Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Limited (Tata AIA) has launched a new Emerging Opportunities Fund that will invest in companies and emerging market leaders.

• It is to generate capital appreciation in the long term by investing in a portfolio of stocks that offer opportunities in emerging leaders in the new-age sectors.

• The New Fund Offering (NFO) window will remain open from 15 December to 30 December 2022 at Rs 10 per unit, which is applicable only during the NFO period.

• The new offer will provide consumers with a unique opportunity to benefit from the long-term growth potential of equity while securing their loved ones with the protection of a life insurance cover.

BoB Proposes to Sell Its Majority Stake in Nainital Bank

• State-owned Bank of Baroda (BoB) plans to sell its majority stake in Nainital Bank.

• The bank has authorized the issuance of an advertisement inviting expressions of interest (EOI) through a preliminary information memorandum (PIM) from interested parties (IPs).

• Bob currently holds 98.57% of the total equity share capital of NBL.

• It has decided to bring in a strategic partner in its subsidiary Nainital Bank Ltd (NBL).

• The strategic partner will help the Bank of Baroda to reduce its stake in percentage terms.

SPORTS

Asian Wrestling Championships 2023

• The United World Wrestling (UWW) announced that the 36th Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 will be held in New Delhi, India from 28 March to 02 April 2023.

• New Delhi will be hosting the event for the 7th time.

• The Asian Wrestling Championship will offer ranking points to the wrestlers which will determine their seedings for the World Championships to be held in September 2023.

• The World Wrestling Championships is scheduled to take place in Belgrade, Serbia from 16 September to 24 September 2023.

RANKS, INDICES & REPORTS

University in India to get A Grade by NAAC

• The Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab has become the first University in India to get A grade by scoring 3.85 in National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) grading.
• The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) was established in 1994 as an autonomous institution of the University Grants Commission (UGC) with its Headquarter in Bengaluru.
• The NAAC conducts assessment and accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions such as colleges, universities or other recognised institutions to derive an understanding of the 'Quality Status' of the institution.
• The University has also been conferred with the status of “University with Potential for Excellence” by UGC.

Best Performing State and District in Social Progress Index

• The Prime Minister Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) released the Social Progress Index (SPI) for States and Districts prepared by the Institute for Competitiveness and Social Progress Imperative.
• The index assesses states and districts based on 12 components across three critical dimensions of social progress - Basic Human Needs, Foundations of Wellbeing and Opportunity.
• The index uses an extensive framework comprising 89 indicators at the state level and 49 at the district level.
• Aizawl (Mizoram), Solan (Himachal Pradesh) and Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) are the top 3 best-performing districts.
• Puducherry, Lakshadweep and Goa are the top three best-performing States/Union Territories.
• Jharkhand was ranked at the bottom, 36th with SPI score of 43.95.

AWARDS & PRIZES

Digital India Awards 2022

• The Smart Cities Mission of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has won the Platinum Icon at the Digital India Awards 2022 for their initiative ‘DataSmart Cities: Empowering Cities through Data’.

• The award was announced under the ‘Data Sharing and Use for Socio-Economic Development’ category.

• The DataSmart Cities Initiative is a key step in creating a strong data ecosystem that enables evidence-based decision-making in cities.

• It is a National competition conducted by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

• It aims to harness the power of data for better governance in India’s 100 Smart Cities.

Person of the Year by PETA India for 2022

• Sonakshi Sinha, a Bollywood actress, has been named PETA India’s Person of the Year for 2022.

• Sonakshi’s activities helped save many animals that would have been slaughtered for fashion, but she was given the title because of her ardent support for dog and cat rights.

• She actively participates in animal welfare initiatives and frequently advocates for stricter animal protection regulations.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

First Chancellor of Gati Shakti University

• Ashwini Vaishnaw has been appointed as the Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, Vadodara, Gujarat by President Draupadi Murmu.

• The President has appointed Dr. Manoj Chaudhary as the first Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University, Vadodara, Gujarat.

• Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw will be the first Chancellor of Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya.

• As per the Central University Act, 2009, Dr. Manoj Chaudhary will hold the position of Vice Chancellor of Gati Shakti University for 5 years from the date he assumes office.

• Gati Shakti University was granted central status by the Union Cabinet in July 2022.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

India’s Manned Space Flight Gaganyaan

• India’s maiden human space flight mission Gaganyaan is targeted to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2024.

• Gaganyaan project envisages demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching a crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3 days mission and bring them back safely to earth, by landing in Indian sea waters.

• Four Indian Air Force pilots have been identified as crew for the mission who are undergoing training in Russia.

• According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) LMV3 rocket will be used as a launch vehicle for the Gaganyaan mission.

• It will take the crew 16 minutes to reach space, where they will spend three days conducting scientific experiments.