1 – 4 January 2022 Daily Current Affairs With Video Lecture [DOWNLOAD PDF]

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS 01 – 04 January 2021

DRDO Celebrates Its 64th Foundation Day

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is celebrating its 64th foundation day on January 1^st. It was on this day in 1958 when DRDO was formed to make India strong and self-reliant in terms of science and technology and especially in military technologies.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh today wished to all Defence Research and Development Organisation, DRDO scientists, and personnel on their 64^th Raising Day. In a tweet, Mr. Singh said, they are working tirelessly towards strengthening India’s defense capabilities and making the country self-reliant in the defense sector. He hoped that the DRDO scientists and personnel will keep serving the nation with the same zeal.
• In 63 years, the organization has transformed the landscape of defense research and development in the country. The Chairman of DRDO Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy said that the last year was the year of breakthroughs and accomplishments even under the difficult situation posed due to COVID 19.
• Talking about the role of DRDO in the fight against the COVID 19 pandemic, the DRDO Chief highlighted the front-line tasks performed by his organization in the fight against the disease. He said that over 850 oxygen plants have been set by DRDO with the help of the PM CARES Fund and many COVID-centric hospitals have been set up across the country, besides developing a  medicine named 2DG.

Freedom2Walk & Cycle Challenges

• As part of ‘Azaadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ (AKAM) celebrations, the Smart Cities Mission of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is launching two unique national-level challenges between 1^st to 26^th January 2022, viz.  “Freedom 2 Walk & Cycle Challenge for City Leaders”, and “Inter-City Freedom 2 Walk & Cycle Challenge for Citizens”. 
• The challenges aim to build on the successful nationwide campaign titled “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav- Freedom 2 Walk & Cycle” that was held between October 1-3, 2021. During this event, 100 Smart Cities had actively hosted over 220+ events, to promote walking and cycling. The events ranged from activities to empower women & children to walk, run and cycle, to bring more pedestrians and cyclists to the streets, testing temporary interventions, and more.

Rani Velu Nachiyar Remembered On Her Jayanthi

• Rani Velu Nachiyar (3 January 1730 – 25 December 1796) was a queen of the Sivaganga estate from c. 1780–1790.
• She was the first Indian queen to wage war with the East India Company in India.
• She is known by Tamils as Veeramangai (“brave woman”).
• The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has paid tributes to Rani Velu Nachiyar on her birth anniversary.
• In a tweet, the Prime Minister said.
• “Remembering the brave Rani Velu Nachiyar on her birth anniversary. Her indomitable courage shall keep motivating the coming generations. Her strong commitment to fighting colonialism was remarkable. She personifies the spirit of our Nari Shakti.”
• Velu Nachiyar was the princess of Ramanathapuram and the only child of King Chellamuthu Vijayaragunatha Sethupathy and Queen Sakandhimuthathal of the Ramnad kingdom.
• Nachiyar was trained in many methods of combat, including war match weapons usage, martial arts like Valari, Silambam, horse riding, and archery. She was a scholar in many languages and was proficient in languages like French, English and Urdu. She married the king of Sivagangai, with whom she had a daughter. When her husband, Muthu Vaduganatha Periyavudaya Thevar was killed in a battle with EIC soldiers, she was drawn into the conflict. She escaped the battlefield with her daughter

Major Dhyan Chand Sports University in Meerut, UP

• The university is established at Salawa and Kaili villages of Sardhana town in Meerut at an estimated cost of about Rs 700 Crore.
• One of the key areas of focus for the Prime Minister is inculcating sporting culture and establishing world-class sporting infrastructure in all parts of the country. The establishment of Major Dhyan Chand Sports University at Meerut will be a major step towards fulfilling this vision, PMO said.
• The Sports University will be equipped with modern and state-of-the-art sports infrastructure including synthetic Hockey ground, Football ground, Basketball, Volleyball, Handball, Kabaddi ground, Lawn tennis court, Gymnasium hall, Synthetic running stadium, Swimming pool, Multipurpose hall, and a Cycling Velodrome.
• It will also house facilities for Shooting, Squash, Gymnastics, Weightlifting, Archery, Canoeing, and Kayaking, among other facilities with the capacity of training 1080 sportspersons including 540 female and 540 male sportspersons.

‘Padhe Bharat’ Campaign Launched

• Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan launched a 100-day reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat’. 
• The launch of the 100 Days Reading Campaign is in alignment with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020  which emphasizes the promotion of joyful reading culture for children by ensuring the availability of age-appropriate reading books for children in local/mother tongue/regional/tribal Language.
• Padhe Bharat campaign will focus on children studying in Balvatika to Grade 8. The reading campaign will be organized for 100 days (14 weeks) starting from 1^st January 2022 to 10^th April 2022. The reading campaign aims to have the participation of all stakeholders at the national and state levels including children, teachers, parents, community, educational administrators, etc. One activity per week per group has been designed with the focus on making reading enjoyable and building a lifelong association with the joy of reading. This campaign has also been aligned with the vision and goals of the foundational Literacy and Numeracy mission.
• The 100 days reading campaign will also focus on Indian languages including mother tongue/local/regional languages. It is in this regard, 21st February which is celebrated as International Mother Tongue Day has also been integrated with this campaign. This day will be celebrated with the activity of Kahani Padho Apni Bhasa Main (Reading story in own language) across the country by encouraging children to read in their mother tongue/local language. This will help in promoting the local language and culture of our society.
• Hence, 100 days Reading Campaign is envisaged to support and encourage students, along with their schools, teachers, parents, and communities, in every possible way and encourage children to read for a joyful learning experience. Department of School Education & Literacy invites all stakeholders to participate wholeheartedly in this campaign to build a strong foundation for our children.

PM Releases 10th Instalment of PM-KISAN

• More than Rs 20,000 crore to more than 10 crore beneficiary farmer families transferred
• PM also releases equity grant of more than Rs. 14 crores to about 351 FPOs; to benefit more than 1.24 lakh farmers
• “FPOs are playing a stellar role in giving a collective shape to the increasing strength of our small farmers”
• “Confidence of the country’s farmer is the key strength of the country”
• “We need to embark upon a new journey taking inspiration from the achievements of the 2021”
• “Devoting to the nation with the spirit of ‘Nation First’, is becoming the sentiment of every Indian today. That is why today there is unity in our efforts and our resolutions. Today there is consistency in our policies and farsightedness in our decisions.”
• “PM Kisan Samman Nidhi is a big support for India’s farmers. If we include today’s transfer, more than 1.80 lakh crore rupees have been transferred directly to the accounts of the farmers”

Nationwide COVID-19 Vaccination for Teenagers

• COVID-19 vaccination of children in the age group of 15 to 18 years will begin from Monday.
• The vaccine option for children will be only Covaxin. Union Health Ministry has said that all those whose birth year is 2007 or before, will be eligible for vaccination. The registration for vaccination of Covid jabs in this age group on the Co-WIN portal has already started from the 1^st of January.
• The appointment for vaccination can be booked online or walk-in. All citizens irrespective of their income status are entitled to free COVID-19 vaccination at government Vaccination Centres. As part of the Nationwide Vaccination Drive, the government has been supporting the States and UTs by providing them COVID vaccines free of cost.

PM to Visit Manipur and Tripura

• PM to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of 22 projects worth over Rs 4800 crore in Manipur
• Foundation stone of National highways worth more than Rs 1700 crore to be laid; In line with PM’s vision to improve connectivity in all parts of the country
• More than 2350 mobile towers built at cost of around Rs 1100 crores to be dedicated to the public; Mobile connectivity to get a major fillip
• Health sector to get a major boost; Foundation stone of ‘State of the Art Cancer Hospital’ to be laid; newly built 200 Bedded Covid Hospital to be inaugurated
• Foundation stone of Manipur’s biggest PPP initiative, ‘Centre for Invention, Innovation, Incubation, and Training’ to be laid; to boost employment opportunities
• Foundation stone of ‘Manipur Institute of Performing Arts’ to be laid; Idea first mooted in 1990 but could not materialize for many years
• In line with PM’s mantra of ‘SabkaSaath – Sabka Vikas – Sabka Vishwas’, the foundation stone of projects worth Rs. 130 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram to be laid; to benefit the minority communities
• Multiple sectors like Drinking Water Supply, Urban Development, Housing, Handlooms and Skill Development to also benefit, In line with PM’s vision for the holistic development of Northeast.
• PM to inaugurate new integrated terminal building of Maharaja Bir Bikram airport in Tripura; In line with PM’s endeavor to provide modern facilities in all airports across the country
• PM to also launch Mukhyamantri Tripura Gram Sammridhi Yojana and Project Mission 100 of Vidyajyoti Schools in Tripura.

Srilanka to go Bankrupt By 2022

• Sri Lanka is facing a deepening financial and humanitarian crisis with fears it could go bankrupt in 2022 as inflation rises to record levels, food prices rocket, and its coffers run dry.
• The meltdown faced by the government, led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, is in part caused by the immediate impact of the Covid crisis and the loss of tourism but is compounded by high government spending and tax cuts eroding state revenues, vast debt repayments to China.
• The foreign exchange reserves are at their lowest levels in a decade. Inflation has meanwhile been spurred by the government printing money to pay off domestic loans and foreign bonds.
• The World Bank estimates 500,000 people have fallen below the poverty line since the beginning of the pandemic, the equivalent of five years’ progress in fighting poverty. The basic goods are now unaffordable for many. President Rajapaksa has declared Sri Lanka to be in an economic emergency.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

• “Strength’s Origin is in Science” (बलस्य मूलं विज्ञानम्) is the motto of
• IMA
• DRDO
• ISRO
• CSIR

ANSWER: B

• Current Chairman of ISRO
• G Sateesh Reddy
• K Shivan
• Rajiv Mehrishi
• Amitabh Kant

ANSWER: B

• Rani Velu Nachiyar in 1780’s formed an alliance with ____ to fight against EIC
• Hyder Ali
• Tipu Sultan
• Mir Osman Ali Khan
• Nawab Abdul Rasool

ANSWER: A

• Hyder Ali was the Sultan and de facto ruler of the ____
• Nizam Kingdom
• Mysore Sultanate
• Wadiyar dynasty
• Bijapuri Sultanate

ANSWER: B

• ______ is celebrated as National Sports Day in India.
• 29 August
• 29 September
• 29 June
• 29 February

ANSWER: A

• _______ called Major Dhyanchand as “hockey’s equivalent of Muhammad Ali”
• Times
• BBC
• CNN
• NDTV

ANSWER: B

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the PM-KISAN scheme on
• 24^th Feb 2019
• 25^th Jan 2014
• 26^th Mar 2016
• 27^th April 2017

ANSWER: A

• What is the revised name of “Scheme for Agro-Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters”
• PM Kisan SAMPADA Yojana
• PM-KISAN Samman Nidhi
• PM Rythu Bharosa Yojana
• PM-KISAN

ANSWER: A

• Capital of Tripura
• Agartala
• Raipur
• Shillong
• Guwahati

ANSWER: A

• Capital of Manipur
• Aizawl
• Gangtok
• Imphal
• Kohima

ANSWER: C

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