Current Affairs 11 November 2022

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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman approves India’s First Sovereign Green Bonds Frameworki.The Union Finance Minister of India, Nirmala Sitharaman approved the final and first Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrB) Framework of India.
ii.This approval is on the lines of the Union Budget FY23 announcement, and as a part of Government of India’s (GoI) overall market borrowings in 2022-23 to issue SGrB for mobilising resources for green projects.
iii.SGrB will focus on funding solar power projects, followed by wind and small hydro projects. All fossil fuel-related projects, and biomass-based renewable energy projects that rely on feedstock from protected areas are not a part of the framework.
iv.Notably, the framework has been rated ‘Medium Green’, with a “Good” governance score by a Norway-based independent second opinion provider CICERO, Center for International Climate Research.
v.Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), Ministry of Finance reserves the right to modify this Framework as per the international best practices or GoI’s commitments and environmental priorities.
About Ministry of Finance:
Union Minister– Nirmala Sitharaman (Constituency- RajyaSabha, Karnataka)
Ministers of State (MoS)– Pankaj Chaudhary (Constituency- Maharajganj, Uttar Pradesh); Dr. Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad
>> Read Full News

Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat Releases National Compilation On Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India 2022Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Ministry of Jal Shakti, published the National Compilation on Dynamic Ground Water Resources of India 2022. The assessment was carried out jointly by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and the States/Union Territories (UTs).

• The findings in the assessment can be used by various stakeholder groups to implement the necessary measures.

CGWB and States/UTs have already conducted similar joint exercises in 1980, 1995, 2004, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017, and 2020.
Significance

• The 2022 assessment report states that the total annual ground water recharge for the entire nation is 437.60 billion cubic meters (BCM), while the annual ground water extraction for the entire nation is 239.16 BCM.
• Besides this, 1006 units have been classified as “over-exploited” out of a total of 7089 assessment units in India.

Key Inferences from the report
i.The assessment shows an increase in ground water recharge, which can be attributed primarily to increased recharge from canal seepage, return flow of irrigation water, recharges from water bodies/tanks, and water conservation structures.
ii.When compared to assessment data from 2017, analysis shows improvements in groundwater conditions in 909 assessment units across India.
iii.Furthermore, there has been a decrease in the overall number of overexploited units as well as a decrease in the stage of groundwater extraction.

India Witnesses Phenomenal Growth in Data Centre CapacityIndia’s data centre capacity has been rapidly increasing, reaching 637 megawatts (MW) in the first half of the calendar year 2022 (H1 2022), and is predicted to reach 1318 MW by 2024.

• The data centre industry in India was valued at USD 385 million in 2024, but it has increased by 216% to USD 1.2 billion in 2021.
• India is ranked 13th in the world in terms of the number of data centres.

Data Centre  
A data centre is a physical space with networked computers, storage systems, and computational infrastructure that organizations utilise to store, assemble, process, and distribute massive amounts of data.
Backdrop

• As of March 2022, India had 138 data centres, with a projected increase to 183 by 2025.
• The United States (US) is the world’s leader with over 2,700 data centres, followed by Germany with 487 data centres.

India’s Performance in Terms of Data Centres
i.Mumbai in Maharashtra proceeds to have the highest share of data centres among cities.

• Mumbai is home to about half of India’s data centres and is likely to remain so until 2025.

ii.Mumbai is followed by Bengaluru (Karnataka) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), with 13% and 10% of the market share, respectively.
iii.By 2025, it is anticipated that Chennai’s data centre capacity will grow to 15%, while Bengaluru’s data centre capacity will fall to 11%.
iv.In H1 2022, Mumbai accounted for the most of supply and absorption, with Chennai coming in second among the top cities.

MoHUA Launches ‘Transport4All Challenge Stage-2’ upon Solutions to Transport ProblemsOn 9th November 2022, Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep S Puri, launched the Transport 4 All Challenge Stage-2, an initiative under which startups will be engaged to develop solutions to transport problems in 46 cities.

• He also launched the Citizen Perception Survey 2022 as a part of the Ease of Living assessment.

Attendees – Manoj Joshi, Secretary, MoHUA; senior officials of the Ministry; other officers of the Central, State, and City Governments and key officials from Partner organisations and other stakeholders participated in the event.
About Transport 4 All Challenge Stage-2:
i.The Transport4All Challenge is an initiative of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India (GoI).

• It is organised in partnership with the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) as co-host and challenge coordinator, the Word Bank as knowledge partner, Startup India and City Innovation Exchange as technology partners, and Association of State Road Transport Undertaking (ASRTU) as city-engagement partner.

ii.It aims at enhancing the mobility experience of citizens, focuses on digital innovation and also invites cities, citizens and innovators to develop contextual solutions to improve formal and informal public transport.
Stages of the challenge: 
i.The Transport4All through Digital Innovation Challenge comprises 3 stages including, stage I -problem identification; stage II – solution generation and stage III – pilot testing.

• More than 130 cities signed up for Stage 1 which was launched on 15th April 2021.

ii.Around 100 cities have formed a Transport4All Task Force (TTF) with key government stakeholders including the transport sector, and other academic institutes, non-profit organisations, and IPT unions.

• These cities have successfully conducted surveys of citizens, bus drivers, conductors and informal public transport drivers.
• Around 46 cities that were qualified for Stage 2 used these survey data to develop more than 165 problem statements, which has been analysed and brought down to 8 problem statements in the final list.

iii.In the Stage-2 of the Challenge, the interested startups can register with their solutions for the issues and problems identified by the cities on the Startup India portal.

• The stage 2 challenge is currently open for interested startups.

The Sunny Side of Asia: India Saved USD 4.2 Billion Through Solar Power Between January & JuneAccording to the report titled “The Sunny Side of Asia” India has saved USD 4.2 billion in fuel costs by utilising solar energy in the 1st half of 2022 and avoided the need of 19.4 million tonnes of coal which would have further stressed the strained domestic supply.

• The report was jointly developed by energy think tank Ember, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis(IEEFA).

Key Findings of the report:
i.The report which analysed the solar growth over the last decade has found that 5 of the top 10 economies with solar capacity are now within Asia which includes, China(1st), Japan(3rd), India(5th), South Korea(8th) and Vietnam(9th).
ii.According to the report, the contribution of solar generation allowed China, India, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand (7 Asian countries) to avoid potential fossil fuel costs of approximately USD 34 billion in the first half(January to June) of 2022.

• This is equivalent to around 9% of the total fossil fuel costs during this period.

iii.Solar power is expected to grow at an average annual growth rate of 22% until 2030 across 5 Asian economies – China, India, the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia
Key Points:
i.The majority of the estimated savings are in China, where solar met 5% of the total electricity demand and avoided approximately USD 21 billion in additional coal and gas imports during the first half of 2022.
ii.Japan witnessed the 2nd highest impact due to solar power. In Japan, solar generation alone has avoided USD 5.6 billion in fuel costs.
iii.In Vietnam, solar power has avoided USD 1.7 billion in additional fossil fuel costs. In 2022, solar energy accounted for around 11% – 14 Terawatt hours(TWh) – of the electricity demand of Vietnam from January to June 2022.

• This is a sizeable growth compared to nearly zero terawatt hours of solar generation in 2018.

iv.In South Korea, solar power contributed to 5 % of its electricity in the first half of 2022. With this, the country avoided the potential fossil fuel cost of USD 1.5 billion.
v.In Thailand, where solar power accounted for only 2% of its electricity in the first half of 2022, the country has avoided an estimated USD 209 million of potential fossil fuel costs. vi.The Philippines has avoided USD 78 million in fossil fuel costs where solar generation accounted for only 1% of the country’s electricity generation.
About the report:
i.The report, jointly developed by Ember, CREA and IEEFA, combines electricity generation analysis, energy generation cost estimates and in-depth policy assessments across China, India, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines and Thailand.
ii.The avoided fossil fuel costs for each country were estimated using actual power generation data from January to June 2022 from Ember’s Data Explorer.
iii.The report also estimates the potential cost of additional fossil fuel abatement if solar generation is expanded in line with each country’s solar power goals contained in their respective 2030 National Action Plans

India’s Ministry of Defence is World’s Biggest Employer with 2.92mn people: Statista As per the report by Statista infographic titled ‘The World’s Biggest Employers- Employers with the most personnel worldwide (2022 or latest available)’, India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) is the world’s biggest employer with 2.92 million people, which includes combined active service personnel, reservists and civilian staff.

• MoD is followed by the United States (US) Department of Defense which employs 2.91 million people.
• In China, the People’s Liberation Army employs around 2.5 million people. However, it does not include civilian positions.

Table showing top 5 rankers:

Other Finding:
i.Globally, Walmart is the biggest employer among companies with massive 2.30 million personnel. It is followed by US’ Amazon with a 1.61 million workforce.
ii.It should be noted that according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report, the 5 largest spenders on military in 2021 were the US,  China, India, the United Kingdom (UK) and Russia.

• They together accounted for 62% of expenditure.
• US’ military spending was USD 801 billion in 2021, China’s USD 293 billion, and India’s military spending was USD 76.6 billion.

iii.The total global military expenditure increased by 0.7% in real terms in 2021, to reach $2113 billion.
About Statista:
It is Hamburg (Germany)-based firm specializing in market and consumer data. It provides data and statistics about various issues worldwide.

MHA Completes Mother Tongue Survey Project of 576 LanguagesThe Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has successfully completed a Mother Tongue Survey of India (MTSI) with field videography of 576 languages and dialects across the country.

• According to the MHA’s annual report for 2021-2022, a web archive would be established at the National Informatics Centre (NIC) to preserve and analyse the original flavour of each indigenous mother tongue.

What is the MTSI?
The Mother Tongue Survey of India (MTSI) is a project that “surveys mother tongues, which are regularly returned consistently across two or more census decades.” It also records the linguistic characteristics of the languages chosen.
Key Points:
i.According to the MHA, the Linguistic Survey of India (LSI) is a regular research activity in the country since the 6th Five Year Plan.
ii.In continuation to earlier publications under the MTSI project, the volume on LSI Jharkhand is finalised and that on LSI Himachal Pradesh is nearing completion.

• The field work of LSI Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh is currently under progress.

iii.The NIC and the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) will be documenting and preserving the linguistic data of the surveyed mother tongues in audio-video files.

• The Video-graphed speech data of Mother Tongues will also be uploaded on the NIC survey for archiving purposes.

Some Insights About Linguistic Census & Mother Tongue
i.The category “mother tongue” is a designation provided by the respondent, but it does not have to be similar to the actual linguistic medium.
ii.According to a 2018 analysis of 2011 linguistic census data, more than 19,500 languages or dialects are spoken as mother tongues in India.

• The responses were categorized into 121 mother tongues after linguistic scrutiny, editing, and rationalisation.

iii.In the 2011 Linguistic Census, Hindi was identified as the mother tongue of 52.8 crore people, or 43.6% of the population.

• The next highest is Bengali, which is the mother tongue of 9.7 crore people, or 8% of the population.

Atal Innovation Mission launches Women-Centric Challenges under ANIC programOn 9th November 2022, Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI(National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog, launched Women-Centric Challenges under phase-II of the 2nd edition of the Atal New India Challenge (ANIC) to address the major challenges faced by women from all spheres of life.

• This is in line with Prime Minister’s vision to enable women and girls to live up to their fullest potential.

About ANIC Women-Centric Challenges:
The ANIC Women-Centric Challenges address the major issues faced by women from all spheres of life. This includes

• Driving women’s hygiene through innovation
• Innovations to improve women’s safety,
• Professional networking opportunities for women,
• Innovations that make working mothers’ life better,
• Easing the life of Rural Women.

Key points:
i. Women-Centric Challenges are thought-provoking and can lead to big discoveries and solutions.
ii. The website made by AIM for this initiative is https://www.aim-challenges.in/.
iii. The challenge was launched during the annual mentor round table hosted by AIM, NITI Aayog to honour outstanding mentors of change.
About ANIC: 
ANIC is an initiative by AIM, NITI Aayog that aims to seek, select, support and nurture technology-based innovations that solve sectoral challenges of national importance and societal relevance through a grant-based mechanism of up to Rs 1 crore.
Atal Innovation Mission hosts ‘Mentor India Round Table’ to celebrate EMoC
On 9th November 2022, AIM, NITI Aayog hosted a Mentor India Round Table to acknowledge the contribution of the top 35 Exemplary Mentors of Change (EMoC).
Mentor India:
Mentor India is a strategic national development programme of the AIM, NITI Aayog that hires professionals, academicians, and industry experts to mentor (teach) students in Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATL) and startups.
About Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATL):
i. The Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATLs) were developed in schools across India by the AIM with the goal of “cultivating one million children in India as Neoteric Innovators.”
ii. The aim of this plan is to develop in young minds curiosity, creativity, and imagination, and inculcate skills such as design mindset, computational thinking, adaptive learning, physical computing etc.
iii. A handbook called ‘The Gems of Mentor India’ was launched during the event.

• The book captures best practices that the mentors have been following to promote tinkering among school students.

About the National Institution for Transforming India Aayog (NITI Aayog):
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Parameswaran Iyer
Establishment- 2015
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

F1’s Lewis Hamilton named Honorary Brazilian Citizenship

Lewis Hamilton, a British Formula 1 racing driver, was awarded Honorary Brazilian Citizenship during a ceremony in the country’s capital, Brasilia.

• Lewis Hamilton, the 7-time World Champion, has been granted honorary Brazilian citizenship ahead of the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix.
• Congressman Andre Figueiredo proposed the idea in November 2021, after Lewis Hamilton won the Brazilian Grand Prix for 3rd time at Interlagos, where Lewis Hamilton carried a green and yellow Brazilian flag on his victory lap and at the podium to celebrate with local fans

BANKING & FINANCE

NPCI Introduces BHIM App Open Source License Model for Digital paymentsOn 9th November 2022 the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) introduced the BHIM app open-source licence model, with an aim of achieving ‘Digital Payments for All’.
Highlights:
i.Under NPCI’s new model, the source code of the BHIM will be licensed to the regulated entities that do not use Unified Payment Interface (UPI) app of their own and empowers them to launch their own UPI app.

• This also extends any new features that get launched on BHIM App for the entities to continue accessing the BHIM app’s upgraded features.

ii.NPCI bridges the digital gap of mobile banking and other digital services by extending readily available features of UPI to those entities which are not included in the UPI ecosystem.
About National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI):
Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – Dilip Asbe
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra

SEBI gets fewer complaints on average till October FY23: SCORES dataAccording to data shared by SCORES, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) received an average of 3,011 complaints every month so for in FY23. At the beginning of October 2022, 3,001 complaints were pending and 2,886 fresh complaints were received during the month.

• This states a 15.4% decline over the 3,558 average monthly complaints in FY21-22.
• SCORES is an acronym for SEBI Complaints Redress System launched in 2011, which is an platform to help investors to lodge their complaints, pertaining to securities market, online with SEBI against listed companies and SEBI-registered intermediaries.
• All complaints received by SEBI are dealt through SCORES.

This information by SEBI is issued in exercise of its powers conferred under Section 11(1) of the SEBI Act, 1992 to protect the interests of investors in securities and to promote the development of securities market.
Key Points:
i.The average monthly figure of complaints was higher in FY20-21 (4,906), FY19-20 (4,627) and the pre-pandemic year of FY18-19 (3,517).
ii.On the other hand, there is rise in the number of investors which are now over 100 million as compared to 40 million in FY18-19.
iii.The number of days SCORES takes to resolve a complaint has dropped from 36.8 days in October 2021 to 29 days as of September 2022.

• The lowest average resolution time was in April 2022 when it was 24 days.

iv.As per the yearly data from SEBI, the majority of investor complaints are against stock brokers. There were 11,261 complaints filed against stock brokers in FY22.

• These are followed by issues related to refund, allotment, dividend, transfer, bonus, rights, interest and redemption matters which accounted for 6,789 complaints.

NIIFL Signs MoU with JBIC to Enhance Japanese Investments in India

On 10th November 2022 the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIFL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to promote and enhance Japanese investments into India.

• Under the MoU, NIIFL and JBIC will establish a bilateral India-Japan Fund (IJF), for making  equity investments in environmental preservation and low carbon emission strategies.
• Both, JBIC and the Government of India (GoI) will invest in the India-Japan Fund.

Key highlights:
The IJF will enhance cooperation between the India and Japan by investing in strategic partnerships between companies and also promoting business collaboration across multiple sectors in India.

• In addition, JBIC will providing debt financing under their Global action for Reconciling Economic growth and Environmental preservation (GREEN) initiative to investee companies of funds managed by NIIFL.

About National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIFL):
NIIFL is a quasi-sovereign wealth fund, worth Rs 40,000-crore, that was set up as an institution for enhancing infrastructure financing by investing in greenfield (new), brownfield (existing) and stalled projects.

• Presently, NIIFL is an active investor in sustainable and climate friendly technologies and solutions through its investments in Ayana Renewable Power, IntelliSmart Infrastructure, Ather Energy and the Green Growth Equity Fund.

Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – Sujoy Bose
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment – 2015

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

BSNL gets Govt Approval to sign Rs 26821 crore 4G deal with TCSThe Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), has received approval from the government of India to sign a Rs 26821 crore order with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) for rolling out BSNL’s 4G network.
Tata Group companies TCS and Tejas Networks are set to bag the over Rs 30,000 crore BSNLMTNL (BSNL and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL)) 4G Network infrastructure tender and other additional government-funded projects.

• With this, BSNL aims to launch its 4G services by December 2022 or January 2023.
• Following the launch of 4G services, BSNL also mails to launch the 5G services by August 2023.

Note: 
i.With the launch of 4G services, India will join the United States, Sweden, South Korea and China in developing telecom network technology.
ii.At present, the market is dominated by Sweden’s Ericsson, Finland’s Nokia, China’s Huawei, and South Korea’s Samsung.
Background:
i.The government of India received interest from vendors such as HFCL (partners Pertsol and Mavenir), and L&T (partners Pertsol and Sterlite).
ii.The TCS consortium has cleared the proof of concept(PoC) for the project, making it a single vendor, eligible for the tender.
iii.The other vendors who failed to submit the PoC were dropped out of the process.
iv.As per the eligibility conditions of the Expression of Interest, PoC is required for the bidder to participate in the tender.
Key Points:
i.With the Rs 26821 crore offer, TCS would install 1 lakh towers for BSNL-MTNL 4G network.
ii.The rest of the order will be used for the installation of an additional 25000 towers for other government-funded projects in the Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) areas, Lakshadweep islands, and 4G saturation projects.
iii.The TCS-led consortium also includes the state-owned Centre for Development of Telematics (CDOT), which will provide the locally-developed core for the network.
iv.Tejas Network, a unit of Tata Sons, will manufacture the equipment locally for BSNL.
The TCS-Tejas-CDOT consortium will indigenously develop the entire 4G network of BSNL-MTNL.
v.This is the first time the indigenous initiative will match the scale of global leaders like Nokia, Ericsson, Huawei, and Samsung.
About Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL):
Chairman & Managing Director(CMD)- Pravin Kumar Purwar
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi
Incorporated on 15th september 2000

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS   

India Agribusiness Awards 2022: NFDB wins Best Agribusiness Award under Fisheries Sector; Haryana Wins India Agribusiness Best State Award

National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad (Telangana), under the Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries has been awarded the “India Agribusiness Awards 2022” for the Best Agribusiness Fisheries Sector Category at the 5th India Agribusiness Summit 2022 held as a part of “AgroWorld 2022” – India International Agro Trade and Technology Fair 2022 – held from 9th to 11th November 2022 at Indian Agriculture Research Institute, Pusa Campus, New Delhi.

• The award was presented by Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Minister of State of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying and Dr. Ramesh Chand, Member, NITI Aayog to Dr. Suvarna Chandrappagari, IFS, Chief Executive, NFDB.

About Agroworld 2022:
i.The ‘AgroWorld 2022’ was organised by the Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) at ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Pusa Campus, New Delhi.
ii.The event was organised for showcasing the development and modernisations achieved by key stakeholders in major sectors like food, agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, fisheries and allied sectors.

• The stakeholders would support various need-based projects for technology upgradation, species diversification in aquaculture, dissemination of new and improved fish varieties, promoting seaweed cultivation, ornamental fisheries, training and capacity building for increased fish production, improve the livelihoods of fish farmers.
• They also support in promoting entrepreneurship opportunities in fisheries, employment generation, promoting hygienic handling and marketing of fish and increasing fish consumption.

Haryana Wins India Agribusiness Best State Award
Haryana has bagged the ‘India Agribusiness Awards 2022’  in the best state category for outstanding contribution in the areas of agriculture friendly policies, programs, production, inputs, technologies, marketing, value addition, infrastructure and exports in the state.

• The award was received by the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister J. P. Dalal on behalf of the Haryana Government.

Key highlights:
i.Haryana played a major role in transforming Indian agriculture from a production-centric to a market-driven system.

• The Haryana government has taken several steps for the improvement in the field of agriculture and horticulture, including proper use of water for irrigation, diversification of crops with less water consumption and implementation of various schemes to increase the income of farmers.

ii.The main focus is on the establishment of Farmers Producer Organisation (FPOs), where around 700 FPOs have been formed inorder to strengthen backward and forward linkages.
iii.The Crop Cluster Development Programme, a special scheme for the FPOs was launched by the Haryana government, under which 70-90 percent subsidy is provided to FPOs for establishing Integrated Pack Houses in the Horticulture Clusters.

• Until now, 30 Integrated Pack Houses have been established and 35 are under progress.

iv.During FY22, around 22 Agri Sector Companies executed 34 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with 22 FPOs for trading and marketing of FPOs produced with buy back mechanism.

• During FY23, 12 more FPOs and 15 companies have come forward to sign MoUs for horticulture commodities.     

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS    

Indian Olympic Champion Neeraj Chopra signed up as ‘Friendship Ambassador’ of Switzerland Tourism

Switzerland Tourism has appointed Indian Javelin thrower, Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra, as its ‘Friendship Ambassador’ to showcase and promote locations in Switzerland to Indian travellers.

• As the Friendship Ambassador, Neeraj Chopra will share his experiences in Switzerland to promote it as the best place for hiking, bicycling, gentle and intense adventure, and, of course, snow sports.

About Neeraj Chopra:
i. Neeraj Chopra was born on 24th December 1997 in Khandra Panipat, Haryana. He decided to try his luck at the javelin throw and started training at the Shivaji Stadium in Panipat, Haryana.
ii. In 2012, he became the U-16 national champion. He won the 1st International medal (silver) in the Youth Olympics Qualification in Bangkok, Thailand.
iii. In 2015, he received his 1st medal in a National Senior Championship during the Inter-State event in Chennai with a throw of 77.33 metres.
iv. He made his Asian Games debut in August 2018, representing India, and was also the flag-bearer for the Indian contingent during the 2018 Asian Games Parade of Nations.
v. Neeraj Chopra is the 1st-ever athlete to win a gold medal in the Javelin throw at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 in 2021. He is the 2nd Individual Olympic gold medalist after shooter Abhinav Bindra’s 10m air rifle glory at Beijing 2008.
vi. The athlete also donated his gold-winning javelin to The Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland on September 2022.

• The museum founded by the International Olympic Committee in 1993 showcases the richness and diversity of Olympism through history, culture, design, technology, and sociology with sports as the main element.
• Mary Kom’s gloves & Dhyan Chand’s hockey were already a part of the exhibits at the Museum.      

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS 

SUUTI under GoIto sell 1.55% stake in Axis Bank for ~ Rs 4000 crore Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India (SUUTI), an investment vehicle of the Government of India (GoI), is set to sell 46.5 million shares in Axis Bank representing 1.55% of its equity stake. The GoI is expected to make around Rs 4,000 crore from the sale of these shares.

• The sale will go on the block on November 10 & 11 through an Offer for Sale (OFS) mechanism by SUUTI at a floor price of Rs 830.63 apiece.
• In May 2021, the government sold a 1.95% stake in Axis Bank held through SUUTI for a consideration of about Rs 4,000 crore.

About the sale: 
i. As of September 2022, SUUTI owns 1.55% (4,65,34,903 shares) ownership in Axis Bank.
ii. According to the regulatory filing of Axis Bank, Shares held in one or more dematerialisation (demat) accounts with the applicable depository participant in the dematerialized form are offered for sale on

• November 10, 2022 (‘T day’) (transaction date) for non-retail investors only
• November 11 (T+1 day) for both retail and non-retail investors.

Up to 10% of the OFS has been set aside for retail investors who want to bid no more than Rs 2 lakh in the OFS. They would be able to submit bids on November 11.
Key Points:
i. On behalf of the Government, ICICI Securities, Citigroup Global Markets India, and Morgan Stanley India act as brokers.
ii. More than 25% of the OFS will be allotted to mutual funds registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and insurance companies registered with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
About the Axis Bank Limited:
Managing Director(MD) & Chief Executive Officer(CEO)- Amitabh Chaudhry
Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment- 1993
Tagline- Badhti Ka Naam Zindagi

LIC buys Additional Stake in Voltas for Rs 635 crore 

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has raised its investment in Voltas by acquiring a 2% stake. It acquired Voltas shares worth Rs 634.50 crore through open market transactions between August 10 and November 4, 2022.

• LIC has increased its shareholding from 2,27,04,306 shares (equivalent to 6.862% ) to 2,93,95,224 (8.884%) in Voltas.
• Voltas is a domestic and international EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) contractor for air conditioning, refrigeration, and electro-mechanical projects.
• LIC stock closed at Rs 633.30 a share on the BSE, up 0.84 per cent, while Voltas closed 1.24 per cent lower at Rs 834.40 per share.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

 ISRO Successfully Tests of CE20 Cryogenic Engine for LVM3 LaunchOn 9th November 2022 the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully tested  CE20 cryogenic engine, which was indigenously developed for the launch of Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3) or GSLV-Mk3 with an increased thrust level of 21.8 tonne for the first time.

• This test will enhance LVM3 payload capability up to 450 kg with additional propellant loading.

Highlights:
i.The Thrust Control Valve (TCV) has been newly introduced in this test compared to the previous test for thrust control, in addition to the 3D printed LOX (Liquid Oxygen) and LH2 (Liquid Hydrogen) turbine exhaust casings, which were inducted in the engine for the first time.
ii.The LVM3 (GSLV-Mk3) launch vehicle will be India’s heaviest launch vehicle that can carry up to 4 tonnes to a geostationary orbit and up to 6 tonnes to a low earth orbit (LEO).

• This is a three-stage launch vehicle with 2 solid motor strap-ons, 1 liquid propellant core stage and 1 cryogenic stage.

About Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO):
Chairman – S Somanath
Headquarters – Benguluru, Karnataka

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Science Day for Peace and Development 2022- November 10The United Nations (UN)’s World Science Day for Peace and Development is annually observed across the globe on November 10 to highlight the important role of science in society and the need to engage the general people in discussions about rising scientific concerns.

• 10th November 2022 marks the observance of the 21st edition of World Science Day for Peace and Development.

The theme of World Science Day for Peace and Development 2022 is ‘Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development‘.

• World Science Day 2022 is contributing to the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development(IYBSSD) – 2022 by celebrating this theme.

i. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) adopted resolution 31 C/Resolution 20 in 2001 and proclaimed the 10th November of every year as the World Science Day for Peace and Development.
ii. The 1st ever World Science Day for Peace and Development was observed on 10th November 2002.
About the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):
Director-General- Audrey Azoulay
Headquarters- Paris, France
Establishment- 1945 (came into force in 1946)
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STATE NEWS

Jaipur set to host 11th edition of India StoneMart International Exhibition

Jaipur is set to host the 11th edition of India Stonemart 2022, the International Stone Industry Exhibition, from November 10 to 13, 2022 at the Jaipur Exhibition and Convention Center (JECC), Sitapura Industrial Area, Jaipur (Rajasthan).

• The exhibition is organized by the Centre for Development of Stones (CDOS), in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
• India Stonemart will be the largest worldwide exhibition of the stone business, showcasing natural stones, associated products, and services.
• The main sponsor is the Rajasthan State Industrial Development and Investment Corporation Limited (RIICO).

Note: More than 350 exhibitors from India and abroad are expected to participate in the exhibition.

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