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Top 20 Current Affairs of 27 & 28 December 2020
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
DPIIT, NJJM launch Water Quality Testing Innovation Challenge to develop ‘Portable Devices for Testing Drinking Water Quality’
i.The Challenge is open to Startups, Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME), Innovators & Corporate Entities.
ii.Objective – To develop a portable device which would be used in every household for checking the quality of drinking water.
Key Points:
i.People who receive piped water supply in their homes do not have any means to test the potability of water, the challenge aims to address this situation by providing an innovative, cost-effective device.
ii.A portable device will help officials to test the water sources at various locations and design programs to address water contamination issues.
Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM):
JJM launched in 2019 (implemented by the Ministry of Jal Shakti) aims to enable tap water connection to every rural household in India by 2024.
About Ministry of Commerce & Industry:
Union Minister – Piyush Goyal
Minister of State – Hardeep Singh Puri, Som Parkash
About Ministry of Jal Shakti:
Union Minister – Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Minister of State – Rattan Lal Kataria
<<Read Full News>>
DGT, Microsoft & NASSCOM Foundation Signs Agreement to Provide Digitized Content for ITI Students via Bharatskills portal 
ii.This digital learning module can be accessed through the Bharat Skills platform.
iii.The blended digital content will benefit about 1,20,000 students in around 3000 ITIs across India.
About Directorate General of Training (DGT):
Director General– Neelam Shami Rao
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
About NASSCOM Foundation:
Chairman– KK Natarajan
Headquarters– Noida, Uttar Pradesh
About Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE):
Union Minister– Mahendra Nath Pandey(Constituency- Chandauli, Uttar Pradesh)
Minister of State– Raj Kumar Singh
<<Read Full News>>
6th India International Science Festival 2020 held virtually; Prime Minister Narendra Modi Inaugurates event
i.Theme of IISF 2020 – “Science for Self-Reliant India and the Global Welfare”.
ii.Organized jointly by Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in association with Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA). The nodal institution for IISF 2020 is CSIR-NISTADS (National Institute of Science, Technology & Development Studies), New Delhi.
About Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA)
President – DR. Vijay P. Bhatkar
Headquarter – New Delhi, Delhi.
<<Read Full News>>
UP Govt to Set up India’s First Mega Leather Park in Kanpur 
ii.The Union Ministry of Commerce has given approval to the project.
iii.After laying the foundation Mega Leather Cluster Development UP Ltd will develop the area
iv.The project is set to be built across 235 acres in Ramaipur village, Kanpur at an expense of Rs.5850 crores.
About Uttar Pradesh:
Tiger Reserve– Chuka Pilibhit Tiger Reserve, Dudhwa Tiger Reserve
Zoological parks– Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden, Kanpur Zoological Park, Shaheed Ashfaq Ullah Khan Prani Udyan
<<Read Full News>>
India’s First Lithium Refinery to be Set up in Gujarat
ii.More than Rs 1,000 crore will be invested by Manikaran Power Limited(MPL) to set up this refinery.
iii.MPL will import Lithium ore from Australia and process it in Gujarat.
iv.MPL in 2019 had collaborated with Australian firm Neometals to tap the Mount Marion Lithium mine in Western Australia for Lithium ore.
v.Target – India has set an ambitious goal of increasing the Electric Vehicle numbers to 30% by 2030.
About Manikaran Power Limited (MPL):
Incepted– 2008
Managing Director– Mr. Navjeet Singh Kalsi
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
<<Read Full News>>
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
India ranks 3rd in list of Countries with most Publications on AI from 2015-2019, China tops list : Nature Index 2020 Artificial Intelligence
i.India ranked 20th among 25 countries in artificial intelligence ranked by total article share in the field from 2015 to 2019.
ii.Anna University, Chennai ranked 32nd in Top 100 research organizations in the AI field. It is the only Indian Organization in Top 100.
Top 3 Countries based on Total number of publications in AI:
|
Rank |
Country |
|---|---|
| 3 | India |
| 1 | China |
| 2 | United States |
Top 3 Research Organizations based on Total number of publications in AI:
|
Rank |
Institution |
|---|---|
| 32 | Anna University, India |
| 1 | Tsinghua University, China |
| 2 | University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, China |
| 3 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China |
About Nature Research:
Editor in Chief – Magdalena Skipper
Location – London, United Kingdom
<<Read Full News>>
BANKING & FINANCE
Punjab National Bank Introduced PNB e-Credit Card
iii.PNB customers can use this card at any e-commerce platform or merchant website, without having to carry the physical card.
iv.The details of the card can be viewed in PNB Genie Mobile app by clicking on the e-Credit Card facility.
About Punjab National Bank (PNB):
Founded– May 19, 1894
Commenced Operations– April 12, 1895
MD & CEO– CH S.S. Mallikarjuna Rao
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Tagline– The name you can bank upon
<<Read Full News>>
AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS
NTPC Won Excellence Award in CSR Domain in 15th CII-ITC Sustainability Awards 2020
ii.In addition to this, NTPC has also received Commendation for Significant Achievement in the category of Corporate Excellence.
iii.NTPC wins the CII-ITC Sustainability Award in the corporate excellence category for consecutive second time.
iv.NTPC is the only PSU to receive the award in the Corporate Excellence category.
About NTPC Limited:
Headquarters– New Delhi, India
Chairman and Managing Director– Gurdeep Singh
<<Read Full News>>
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Hardeep Singh Puri launches ‘E-Sampada’ Web Portal & Mobile App for Management of all GoI Estate Services
i.E-Sampada is an integration of Four Websites (gpra.nic.in, eawas.nic.in, estates.gov.in, holidayhomes.nic.in), and two Mobile Apps (m-Awas & m-Ashoka5) of the Directorate of Estates.
ii.The application will be a major step towards bringing uniformity across estate systems in India on line of ‘One Nation, One System’.
iii.It is also aimed at improving transparency & accountability in the services.
iv.Some of the services provided by GoI Estate services are allotment of government residential accommodations, office space allotment to government organisations, booking of holiday home rooms, booking of venues for social functions.
About National Informatics Centre (NIC):
Director General – Dr. Neeta Verma
Headquarter – New Delhi, Delhi
<<Read Full News>>
OBITUARY
Padma Shri Shamsur Rahman Faruqi India’s Noted Urdu Poet & Critic Passed Away at 85
About Shamsur Rahman Faruqi:
i.Shamsur Rahman Faruqi was also a noted lexicographer who worked as a part time professor at the South Asia Regional Studies Center at the University of Pennsylvania, United States of America.
ii.He is regarded as an authority on Ilm-e bayan – the science of poetic discourse – and classical poetry.
iii.He was well known for his contribution to the revival of “Dastangoi” the Urdu oral storytelling art form of the 13th century.
iv.He was the editor of his literary magazine “Shabkhoon”.
Books:
i.Some of his famous works include “Early Urdu Literary Culture and History” (2001), “The Flower-Lit Road: Essays in Urdu Literary Theory and Criticism” (2005) and “Urdu Ka Arambhik Yug” (2007).
ii.His book “Kai Chaand the Sar-e-Asmaan” (2006) has been praised as a masterpiece of Urdu Fiction and its english version “The Mirror of Beauty” was published in 2013.
iii.He translated some of his stories into English, which are included in the book “The Sun That Rose from the Earth” (2014).
Awards:
i.He received the Saraswati Samman in 1996 for “Sher-e Shor-Angez”, a study of Meer Taqi Meer, 18th century poet, which was published in 4 volumes.
ii.He received the Padma Shri for literature & education in 2009.
Robin Jackman, Former England Cricketer and Commentator Passed Away at 75
He was a right handed batsman and right-arm fast-medium bowler(seamer). He was born on 13 August 1945 in Shimla, Punjab, British India(Now Shimla is in Himachal Pradesh).
Note
Alan Gibson, the cricket writer, gave Jackman the nickname of the “Shoreditch sparrow” during his playing career.
About Robin Jackman:
i.As a cricketer, he played 4 test matches, 15 One Day Internationals(ODIs), 399 First class matches and 288 List A matches.
ii.In the 4 test matches he took 14 wickets, and 19 wickets in the 15 ODI’s at an average of 31.47.
iii.He was a member of Surrey side and also played for Western Province in South Africa in 1971–72, and for Rhodesia between 1972–73 and 1979–80.
iv.He announced his retirement in February 1983, later which he entered into broadcasting.
About South Africa(Officially- the Republic of South Africa) :
Capital– Pretoria (executive), Cape Town (legislative), Bloemfontein (judicial).
Currency– South African Rand(ZAR)
John Edrich, Former England Cricketer Passed Away at 83
- He was the Honorary Life Member of Marylebone Cricket Club.
- Apart from England, he also played for Surrey County Cricket Club.
About John Edrich:
Playing Career
i.Between 1963 and 1976, he represented England in 77 Tests and 7 One Day Internationals(ODIs).
ii.He scored 5138 runs in Tests at an average of 43.54 and 223 runs at 37.16 in ODIs.
Role as Captain, President
i.He captained England in one Test and also was the captain of Surrey.
ii.He served as the President of Surrey County Cricket Club in 2006-07.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
Justice Rajindar Sachar’s Autobiography “In Pursuit of Justice: An Autobiography” was Launched Posthumously
About the book:
i.At the time of his death in 2018, the book consisted of handwritten notes and recorded interviews.
ii.His personal Secretary Niranjan Kaushik transcribed these interviews and the manuscript was edited by Chitra Padmanabhan, an independent journalist and writer.
iii.The book portrays the life events of Justice Rajindar Sachar, a socialist, egalitarian, defender of civil liberties and a humanist who has witnessed India’s Partition in 1947.
About Rajindar Sachar:
i.Rajindar Sachar was born on 22 December 1923 in Lahore, British India (Present day Pakistan).
ii.He became the Judge of the Delhi High Court in 1970 and after his retirement he advocated human rights and civil liberties.
iii.He argued in various important cases for People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) like mandatory declaration of assets/criminal antecedents of MPs and MLAs, ‘None of the Above’ (NOTA) option for voters, among others.
iv.He was well known for the Sachar Committee report of 2006 which documented the social and economic conditions of Muslims in India.
STATE NEWS
Andhra Pradesh CM Launches Housing Scheme ‘Navaratnalu-Pedalandariki Illu’ in East Godavari District
i.A total of 30.90 lakh houses will be constructed by the government by 2024 for the poor people of the state and ensure that every household in the state has a pucca (cemented) house. Rs 50,490 crore would be spent on the construction of houses.
ii.Under the scheme, a house site patta will be issued to the beneficiaries and the patta will be registered in the name of a women’s household. All the beneficiaries will be given 1.5 cents in rural areas or one cent in urban areas.
iii.30.75 lakh beneficiaries have been identified across the State, of which 28.30 lakh houses will be given under 17,000 YSR Jagananna layouts named YSR Jagananna Housing Colonies and another 2.62 lakh are of Township and Infrastructure Development Corporation (TIDCO) flats.
Note : A Patta is a legal document issued by the Government in the name of the actual owner of a particular plot of land. It can also be given to lands with buildings or individual houses etc. constructed on them.
Govt of Odisha Appoints Suresh Chandra Mohapatra IAS as the new Chief Secretary
Presently, Suresh Chandra Mohapatra is serving as the Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary, Planning & Convergence Department, Odisha State Secretariat and holds the additional charge as the working chairman of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration, Puri.
About Suresh Chandra Mohapatra:
i.He served as the first collector of the newly formed Bhadrak district of Odisha in 1993 and he also served as the Collector of Kandhamal district.
ii.He served as the Managing Director of Orissa State Cooperative Milk Producers’ Federation Limited (OMFED) for around 6 years.
iii.He has served as the Chief Administrator of Puri temple for 3 years and served as the Principal secretary of energy department and Water resources.
iv.During his term as the Additional Chief Secretary Forest and Environment Department he started schemes like mega lift, deep bore well, check dams and eco-tourism.
Other Appointments:
i.Asit Kumar Tripathy, the outgoing Chief Secretary has been appointed as the Chairman of the Western Odisha Development Council (WODC). He will also serve as the Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on regional development, tourism, agribusiness and industry.
ii.Pradeep Kumar Jena, the additional Chief Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management Department and Special Relief Commissioner, has been appointed as the Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary to the government of Odisha.
Assam Cabinet approves Bill to make ‘Bodo’ as Associate Official Language of the State
i.According to the Census 2011, There are ~ 14.16 Lakh Bodo speakers in Assam, which is around 4.53 % of the total population of the state.
ii.Declaration of ‘Bodo’ as associate official language was one of the demands made by 4 Bodo rebel groups & 2 Bodo organizations during the signing of 3rd Bodo peace accord in January, 2020.
‘Bodo’:
i.It is one of the 22 languages listed in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution.
ii.It is spoken in the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya & West bengal.
iii.It is part of Sino-Tibetan language family.
About Assam:
Governor – Jagdish Mukhi
Capital – Dispur
<<Read Full News>>
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Current Affairs Today (AffairsCloud Today)
| S.no | Current Affairs 26 December 2020 |
|---|---|
| 1 | DPIIT, NJJM launch Innovation Challenge to develop ‘Portable Devices for Testing Drinking Water Quality’ |
| 2 | DGT, Microsoft & NASSCOM Foundation Signs Agreement to Provide Digitized Content for ITI Students via Bharatskills portal |
| 3 | 6th India International Science Festival 2020 held virtually; Prime Minister Narendra Modi Inaugurates event |
| 4 | UP Govt to Set up India’s First Mega Leather Park in Kanpur |
| 5 | India’s First Lithium Refinery to be Set up in Gujarat |
| 6 | India ranks 3rd in list of Countries with most Publications on AI from 2015-2019, China tops list : Nature Index 2020 Artificial Intelligence |
| 7 | Punjab National Bank Introduced PNB e-Credit Card |
| 8 | NTPC Wins 15th CII-ITC Sustainability Awards 2020 |
| 9 | Hardeep Singh Puri launches ‘E-Sampada’ Web Portal & Mobile App for Management of all GoI Estate Services |
| 10 | Padma Shri Shamsur Rahman Faruqi India’s Noted Urdu Poet & Critic Passed Away at 85 |
| 11 | Robin Jackman, Former England Cricketer and Commentator Passed Away at 75 |
| 12 | John Edrich, Former England Cricketer Passed Away at 83 |
| 13 | Justice Rajindar Sachar’s Autobiography “In Pursuit of Justice: An Autobiography” was Launched Posthumously |
| 14 | AP CM launches ‘YSR Jagananna Housing Colonies ‘ scheme |
| 15 | Govt of Odisha Appoints Suresh Chandra Mohapatra IAS as the new Chief Secretary |
| 16 | Assam Cabinet approves Bill to make ‘Bodo’ as Associate Official Language of the State |
