Current Affairs in English – September 19 2022

September 19 , 2022

National Events:

’No-bag day’:

• The Bihar govt has decided to introduce a ‘ no – bag day ‘ rule in schools along with a mandatory games period at least once a week in order to lighten the load on students. ‘ No – bag day ‘ will be devoted to practical and experiential learning .
• This new initiative by the state government is in line with the National Education Policy 2020. CM : Nitish Kumar Governor : Phagu Chauhan. Capital : Patna.

120 feet ta;; National flag:

• Jammu and Kashmir , Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha dedicated a 120 feet tall National Flag to the nation at Pulwama in South Kashmir on 18 September 2022.
• He also laid the foundation stone for various youth – oriented projects in the district worth 9.11 crores rupees. The new initiatives are aimed to empower the youth , enable self – development , and sharpen skills.

DDRCs:

• Union Social Justice & Empowerment minister Virendra Kumar inaugurated 9 District Disability Rehabilitation Centres ( DDRCs ) on 18 Sept 2022.
• The 9 DDRCs include : Badaun , Pilibhit , Barielly , Balaghat , Golaghat , Ahmedabad , Amravati , Kullu and Rampur. In these DDRCs services like hearing aids test lab , speech therapy room & psychologist room will be available for Persons With Disability.

CM13 & MI-7:

• Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh will lead a joint ministerial delegation to the US to participate in the Global Clean Energy Action Forum. Dr Singh will leave for the US on 19th Sept 2022.
• He will also participate in the joint convening of Clean Energy Ministerial ( CEM13 ) and Mission Innovation ( MI – 7 ) from 21st to 23rd September 2022 in Pennsylvania , US.

Adani Green & SECI:

• Adani Green commissioned a 324.4 MW wind power plant in Dhar , Madhya Pradesh. The operational generation capacity has increased to 6.1 GW after the commissioning of this plant.
• The plant has two 25 – year Power Purchase Agreements ( PPAs ) with Solar Energy Corporation of India ( SECI ) , one for 274.4 MW energy and another for 50 MW power , at a tariff of Rs 2.83 per kwh ( kilowatt hour ).

Vijoy Kumar Singh:

• Vijoy Kumar Singh assumed charge as Secretary , Ex – Servicemen Welfare , Ministry of Defence on September 19 , 2022. He is a 1990 – batch IAS officer of Punjab cadre , who has an experience of more than 32 years in administration.
• He recently served as Special Secretary in Ministry of Textiles. Prior to this appointment , he had served as Joint Secretary in Department of Personnel and Training.

Gross direct tax collections:

• The gross direct tax collections has registered a growth of 30 % in the current financial year in comparison to 2021-22. As on 17 Sept 2022 , the gross collection of direct taxes in 2022-23 is at over 8,36,000 crore rupees compared to over 6,42,000 crore rupees in 2021-22.
• Net Direct Tax collections have also grown at 23 percent for the current financial year ( 2022-23 ).

India & Egypt:

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reached Cairo on 18 Sept 2022 on a two – day official visit to Egypt. He will hold bilateral talks with Minister of Defence and Defence Production , General Mohamed Zaki.
• An MoU to provide further impetus to enhanced defence cooperation between India and Egypt will also be signed . ” The two Ministers will review the bilateral defence ties.

Largest bilateral lender:

• India has emerged as the largest bilateral lender for Sri Lanka , overtaking China . India has provided a total of 968 million US dollars in loans to the island nation in four months of 2022.
• In the past five years from 2017-2021 , China has been the largest bilateral lender to Sri Lanka. India had provided nearly 4 billion dollars in food and financial assistance to Sri Lanka.

NIT Patna & Huawei:

• Telecom Sector Skill Council ( TSSC ) has launched a centre of excellence with Huawei Technologies at NIT Patna for capacity building. It will come up under the aegis of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
• It will cater to roles in information and communications technology , cyber security , An MoU has been signed for a period of five years regarding the same.

3 day National Conference:

• A 3 – day National Conference of State Tourism Ministers of the country began in Dharamsala on 18 September 2022. Various issues related to the tourism sector including the promotion of tourism in India will be discussed at the Conference.
• Suggestions of ministers would be taken to prepare the National Tourism Policy. After this , a Tourism Policy will be prepared and brought into the Budget Session.

JIMEX:

• The 6th edition of the Japan India Maritime Exercise ‘ JIMEX ‘ hosted by the Indian Navy concluded in the Bay of Bengal on 17 September 2022.
• This edition marked the 10th anniversary of JIMEX , which began in Japan in 2012. The exercise , which commenced on 11 Sept , involved two Phases.

Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde:

• Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde has given in – principle nod to a proposal to set up an institution on the lines of NITI Aayog. The institution would be set up for comprehensive data analysis and to make studied decisions on various sectors.
• Set up in 2015 , NITI Aayog serves as the apex public policy think tank of the central government , & the nodal agency tasked with catalysing economic development.

India’s first Swachh Sujal:

• Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has declared Andaman and Nicobar Islands as India’s first Swachh Sujal Pradesh.
• Now , all villages of Andaman and Nicobar Island have been certified as Har Ghar Jal and verified as open defecation free. Andaman and Nicobar Islands Lieutenant Governor : Admiral DK Joshi. Capital : Port Blair Districts : 3.

Telangana govt:

• Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao has announced that the Telangana govt would increase reservations to STs to 10 % from the existing 6 %.
• The state government would also implement Girijana Bandhu scheme for tribals on the lines of Dalit Bandhu for scheduled castes in the state. Under this scheme , Rs 10 lakh would be given to each tribal family in the state to start their own businesses.

Tamil Nadu Events:

Bird sanctuary:

• The Tamil Nadu government issued an order to set up a bird sanctuary at Nanjarayan Tank in Tiruppur district in Sept 2022. Nanjarayan Tank , spread in about 126 hectares of land in Tiruppur district , will be the 17th bird sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.
• Earlier in Dec 2021 , the state government declared the Kazhuveli wetland located near Villupuram as the ‘ Kazhuveli Birds Sanctuary ‘.

International Events:

Vanessa Nakate:

• 25 – year – old Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate has been appointed as the newest UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. She has been recognized by UNICEF for her outstanding global advocacy for climate justice for current and future generations.
• Most recently , UNICEF appointed actress Millie Bobby Brown as its youngest – ever Goodwill Ambassador. UNICEF HQ : New York President : Catherine M. Russell.

International Red Panda Day : 17 September:

• International Red Panda Day is celebrated every year on the third Saturday of September.In 2022 , this day falls on 17 September. This day is commemorated to raise awareness about the red panda conservation issues.
• Red pandas are native to the rainy mountain forests of India , Nepal , Bhutan , northern Myanmar and central China. This day was first celebrated in 2010.

Sports Events:

Durand cup:

• Bengaluru FC has won its maiden and the 131st edition of the Durand Cup by defeating Indian Super League ( ISL ) giants Mumbai City FC. This is the seventh domestic title for Bengaluru FC.
• The 2022 Durand Cup was played across three states for the first time.A total of 47 matches were played across 3 cities : Kolkata , Guwahati & Imphal from 16th Aug to 18th Sept 2022. First Durand Cup : 1888.

ENC Yatching Championship:

• ENC Yachting Championship was conducted at Visakhapatnam , Andhra Pradesh by the Indian Navy Watermanship Training Centre . It was held from 13-18 September 2022.