NATIONAL NEWS
Hyderabad gets India's first Open Rock MuseumUnion Minister of State for Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated India’s first Open Rock Museum in Hyderabad, displaying around 35 different types of rocks from different parts of India with ages ranging from 3.3 billion years to around 55 million years of the Earth’s history.
- The Open Rock Museum, set up with the aim of educating and enlightening the masses about several lesser-known facts, displays around 35 different types of rocks from different parts of India with ages ranging from 3.3 billion years to around 55 million years of the Earth’s history.
- These rocks also represent the deepest part of the earth, up to 175 kms from the surface of the earth.
KVIC chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena launched the country’s first Mobile Honey Processing Van at a Sirora village in Ghaziabad, UP.
- The Mobile Van has been designed in-house by KVIC at its Multi-disciplinary training centre, Panjokehra, at a cost of Rs 15 lakh.
- This mobile honey processing unit can process up to 300-KG of honey in 8 hours. The van is also equipped with a testing laboratory, that would instantly examine the quality of honey.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry have decided to organise a week-long virtual innovation celebration called 'Startup India Innovation Week' to showcase the spread and depth of entrepreneurship across India.
- The virtual event will be organised from January 10 to January 16, 2022. The event also aims to commemorate the 75th year of India's independence 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav'.
- 'Startup India Innovation Week' will have sessions ranging from topics such as enhancing market access opportunities, discussions with industry leaders, best practices by states, capacity building of enablers, reverse pitching by incubators, technology exhibitions, corporate connect and more.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
India and five other nations begin anti-submarine exercise with USIndia is among the six Indo-Pacific nations participating in a multi-lateral anti-submarine warfare exercise in the Pacific Ocean.
- The Sea Dragon 22 exercise began along with the navies of India, Australia, Canada, Japan and South Korea.
- The two US Navy P-8A Poseidon aircraft from the Golden Swordsmen and The Tridents will join the forces from the five other nations. The P-8 Poseidon Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft with Patrol Squadron (VP) Forty-Seven and Twenty-Six travelled to Andersen Air Force Base in Guam.
BANKING & FINANCE
Irdai issues guidelines on surety insurance businessThe insurance regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), has come out with guidelines to promote and regulate sustainable and healthy development of the surety insurance business in the country. The guidelines will come into force from April 1, 2022.
- A surety bond is a three-party contract by which one party (the surety) guarantees the performance or obligations of a second party (the principal) to a third party (the obligee).
- The surety is provided by an insurance company on behalf of a principal or contractor to the obligee or government entity awarding the project.
The Reserve Bank has increased the threshold for deposits and other funds of non-financial small businesses by 50 per cent to Rs 7.5 crore for the purpose of maintenance of Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR), with the aim to better align its regulations with Basel norms and also enable banks to manage liquidity risks more effectively.
- The existing cap was Rs 5 crore, the central bank said, adding the new framework will be effective immediately.
- Issuing the revised Basel III framework on liquidity standards -- liquidity coverage ratio (LCR), liquidity risk monitoring tools and LCR disclosure standards and net stable funding ratio -- for small business customers, the monetary authority said these revisions are aimed at helping banks manage their liquidity risks more effectively by aligning them with the norms as set out by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS).
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Spread of Omicron to reduce GDP growth by 10 basis points in FY22: India RatingsRising cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 and the subsequent curbs will have an adverse impact on India's Q4FY22 GDP, said India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra).
- The rising cases have led to various curbs instituted by state governments such as reduced capacity of markets, night and weekend curfews to check human mobility. As per Ind-Ra's estimates, GDP growth in Q4FY22 will now come in at 5.7 per cent year-on-year (YoY) which is 40 basis points lower than the agency's earlier estimate of 6.1 per cent.
- For the entire FY22, the GDP is expected to clock a growth rate of 9.3 per cent YoY, 10 bp lower than our earlier estimate of 9.4 per cent.
The Government of Karnataka and Port Authority New Mangal5ore Port Trust (NMPT) have partnered with Singapore's LNG Alliance for the facility, which will have an initial capacity of four million tonnes per annum (MTPA).
- It will have the potential for expansion up to 8MTPA, in line with estimated demand increase over the next 20 years.
- The import and re-gasification terminal will also have the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) LNG containerisation and LNG truck loading facility for serving the industrial and transportation sector.
- LNG Alliance intends to invest around $290 million (£214m) to develop, build and operate a floating storage and re-gasification unit and manage the LNG supply.
SPORTS
Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Alexandra Kosteniuk win World Rapid ChampionshipNodirbek Abdusattorov, a 17-year-old chess prodigy from Uzbekistan, emerged as the World Rapid Chess champion after overcoming a stacked field in the open event which included Ian Nepomniachtchi, defending champion Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana.
- In the women's section, Alexandra Kosteniuk won her first world crown in rapid chess.
- After earning 9.5 points from 13 rounds, Abdusattorov was the first among four players tied for the top spot along with Nepomniachtchi, Carlsen and Caruana.
APPOINTMENTS
LLC appoints cricketer Jhulan Goswami as ambassadorTo promote women's empowerment, Legends League Cricket (LLC) has appointed cricketer Jhulan Goswami as an ambassador, LLC said.
- LLC also announced an 'All Women Match Official Team' for the League that includes ICC empanelled female umpires and match referees from all across the world.
- Shandre Frtiz from South Africa will be the match referee for the entire League while Shubdha Bhosle Gaikwad, the youngest female umpire in India, Lauren Agenbag from South Africa, Humaira Farah from Pakistan, and Renee Montgomery from Hong Kong will be officiating umpires.
The Constitutional Convention of Chile elected as its new president the dentist and epidemiologist María Elisa Quinteros, after nine rounds of voting, reported.
- Quinteros, 40 years old and belonging to the Constituent Social Movements bloc, will replace the Mapuche academic Elisa Loncon, who ends her six-month term, as stipulated in the internal regulations.
AWARDS
Forensic Science Laboratory wins SKOCH award for battling crime against childrenThe Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) won SKOCH Award in Silver category for its work towards combating Crime and Violence against Children.
- It was given on the 78th SKOCH Summit organised with theme of “State of Governance”.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
ICMR approves made-in-India Omisure kit to detect Omicron variantIn a successful attempt to cut down delays in genome sequencing to detect the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV2 (Covid-19), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved a made in India ‘Omisure’ test kit.
- This RT-PCR test kit has been developed by Tata Medical and Diagnostics to specifically detect the Omicron variant of Covid-19.
- TATA MD has fixed the cost of the Omisure test kit at Rs 250 per test, which is cheaper than current test kits available in the market.
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